As
if terrific mileage, low emissions and handsome
good looks weren't enough! Ladle on the latest
in safety, comfort and conscience items and it
totals Toyota's Prius for 2006. As a two-year-old
and one of the original hybrids ever to cruise
American roads, Prius has firmly established the
fundamentals of driving green, while offering
the only vehicle we drove for '06 that was visibly
earth friendly enough to garner some curiosity
stares. If any new technology system had knocks
or noise it undoubtedly would spoil the concept
in a hurry. Not to worry. Prius adheres to the
Lexus/Toyota mandate that quiet beats clunks any
time, and expectedly delivers a seamlessly smooth
ride, although there was a learning curve with
the whisper quiet "by wire" connections
and large center-mounted "Consumption"
screen.
Prius
is what's known in the industry as a "full"
hybrid, one that can chug along on electricity
or gasoline independently or with the two systems
working in concert. For those wondering if this
means plugging into a house outlet overnight,
it doesn't. As with most hybrids, the gasoline
engine recharges the system's high tech battery
system during normal driving and braking. Safety
comes from an array of airbags, including head-protecting
side curtain ones, plus anti-skid systems, tire
monitors and solid crash test numbers. Conscience
has to come from knowing one is driving a vehicle
with both SULEV and PZEV ratings. For the uninitiated,
that's car biz lingo for "Super Ultra Low
Emissions Vehicle" and "Partial Zero
Emissions Vehicle." (The industry does tend
to cut hairs when measuring infinitely small levels
of ozone- and earth-damaging pollutants.)
On
the coddling side, Prius delivers. Beyond the
basic comfortable ride for four (five for short
trips), and truly usable hatchback deck, there's
a load of high tech and smart gadgetry that ranges
from push button start to an optional backup camera,
new for '06. Also newly available is leather seating
in two shades, plus a new audio upgrade with MP3
capability plus more. Prius's 1.5-liter, four-cylinder
engine, mated to a 50 kW motor, delivers a combined
net horsepower rating of 110. That's unlikely
to blow the doors off a cop car when blasting
away from a standstill. But pickup and control
are more than adequate for the kind of environmentally
conscious driving one would expect from a hybrid
owner. When you can eke out a combined 55 MPG
in city/highway miles to the gallon of gas (we
squeezed out 45 with somewhat aggressive driving),
and paying about a $22K base for the privilege
of owning a vehicle that can do it, who can complain.
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