Appeared in 2012, the Japanese hybrid minivan displays some wrinkles, but also retains qualities. Is this Prius + still recommendable?
Yes, the Prius + still has a card to play …
At the time when the Peugeot 5008 had not yet become an SUV, when the Scenics, Picasso, Touran and others were selling like hot cakes, Toyota has played the hybrid card with its Prius +, the first compact MPV in this way.
It was a model of 4.62 meters long, capable of boarding seven seats, taking up the bowels of the older generation of Prius.
The hybrid powertrain therefore consists of an electric motor and a 1.8-liter petrol engine with 99 hp, which work together. via transmission by planetary gear and develop a total of 136 hp.
This association generates pleasant driving smoothness and contributes to a significant reduction in consumption, mainly in towns, where the real average is around 5 l / 100 km.
The lightness of the controls and the appreciable silence of operation make it decidedly a model very suitable for driving in urban and peri-urban areas. Taxi drivers, many of them request the Prius + and well installed on its soft upholstery, make no mistake about it.
The strength of the Japanese, reputed to be very reliable, also lies in its attributes of minivan: the Prius +, comfortably suspended, testifies toideal habitability in the rear for older children, with three individual seats, sliding and reclining.
And two booster seats form a third row, allowing seven people to travel. But not for too long journeys …
Another strong point: when the five rear seats of the Japanese are folded, they form a large flat floor, generating up to 1,750 liters of loading capacity.
No, the Prius + is definitely too old
When the Prius + was launched, hybrid cars were still quite rare. Today, they grow like quackgrass and progress day by day, especially in terms of approval.
The Toyota, him, victim of its transmission, gives the impression of spinning when a strong acceleration or recovery is requested: the heat engine takes turns and the tachometer climbs only afterwards, gradually.
And for regular use on the motorway, this engine ultimately turns out to be less economical than a conventional diesel engine.
Japanese don’t like to be whipped anyway. Pataud, heavy and placid, it remains healthy but not very pleasant to maneuver.
It will also be noted that its security endowment ignores equipment common, including autonomous emergency braking and active keeping in the lane.
On board, there is a touch screen, of small size, to control the Toyota Touch & Go 2 system, which evolved during 2016. But its functioning and its graphics cannot hide the age of the Prius +.
And the instrumentation overhangs the center of the dashboard, as was the fashion of the time. Many elements that testify to a decidedly very advanced age …
WE love
- Habitability and modularity
- Approval and consumption in town
- Comfort of the fabric upholstery
We like less
- Layout and presentation
- Performance and noise on relaunch
- Equipment gaps
Range (Toyota Prius +)
HYBRID-PETROL
136 ch, from € 33,250 to € 38,300
Data sheet (Toyota Prius +)
- Weight (kg): from 1,470
- Lxlxh (m) : 4,62×1,78×1,57
- Wheelbase (m): 2.78
- Tank (l): 45
- Chest at 5 (l): 784
THE RIVALS
Lxlxh (m) : 4,63×1,87×1,65
Chest (l): 718
From 140 to 160 hp, from € 31,300
- Citroën Grand C4 Spacetourer
Lxlxh (m) : 4,60×1,83×1,64
Chest (l): 704
From 130 to 160 hp, from 30,600 €
Lxlxh (m) : 4,53×1,83×1,66
Chest (l): 834
122 to 150 hp, from € 32,905
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