You won't like me when I'm angry

Okay let's get something out of the way before we get started: I DO NOT HATE THE PRIUS. Yes, I am a car guy and to some degree the Prius represents everything I despise about modern numb feeling automobiles.  However, despite its notoriously bland road dynamics, dainty and odd looking drive selector (I swear just touching that thing is emasculating), and somewhat quirky aesthetic (isn't that the word they used to always use for Subaru to avoid outright saying that their cars looked like they fell out of the ugly tree and hit every branch on the way down?) I really respect the Prius.  Genuinely I do.

To me it is the epitome of the ultimate form follows function vehicle.  Every crease, sloping curve, and line is designed around a singular purpose: increasing efficiency through reduction of drag.  And in that regard it is incredibly successful; as its signature wedge shape cuts through the air like a teardrop knife through atomized butter.  Furthermore it is something of a technological marvel in that, despite the extremely complicated and advanced technology used in its multi-mode drive system: it just works.  Consider for a moment that other Japanese automakers that have a nearly equal reputation for producing quality automobiles (*cough* Honda *cough*) have repeatedly tried to develop hybrid vehicles of their own only to later have reliability issues and lawsuits filed against them when those vehicles did not meet their advertised mileage claims, and... you have to be amazed by how well designed the Prius is.

No, the gearbox is not sporty in the least, and yes, it takes forever to shift gears.  However, what it lacks in driving dynamics and responsiveness it makes up for in robustness; as the planetary gearing system Toyota uses is the same type of arrangement commonly found in heavy earth moving equipment. In fact I have so much respect for the engineering behind the Prius I seriously considered buying one at one point.... Well right up until I got into one and realized that to comfortably fit my 6'6" frame into the pilot's seat: I would have to re-weld the seat mounts.  So instead I went for a first generation Civic Hybrid that suffered from the the reliability issues that I alluded to above.

So clearly I don't hate the Prius and I appreciate how well designed it is... and yet I this newest incarnation of the humpbacked wonder leaves me feeling a bit perplexed and confused in terms of its aesthetic

Notice any family resemblance?

For starters that face (yes, face not grill) with its tight lipped angry expression and Romulan-esque its furrowed headlight brow. What was Toyota trying to do here exactly? give the Prius some sense of sporty aggression in its styling? Isn't that pretty much the opposite of what a Prius is designed around? (Not "left foot go", but rather "left foot... no!!!")

I appreciate that part of the swept back aesthetic is oriented around reducing the frontal cross section to aid in aerodynamics, and yet the rather angular and pointed elements of its design to me seem totally at odds with the vehicle itself. Now I fully I understand that some elements of styling are going to be subjective and totally dependent on the tastes of the individual viewer, but to me the Prius is a peace loving happy car (basically a modern day hippy on wheels) and I tend to think that its design should reflect that. Das Beetle is a prime example of this. No, it has nothing in common mechanically with the car from which its name is derived, but yet it still manages to capture the spirit of that vehicle in its styling. It is friendly and just appears carefree, not like some aging movie star that has had copious amounts of ill-advised plastic surgery done in an attempt to stay youthful an relevant. Automotive designer should look to Joan Rivers for inspiration on how to design a car.




Speaking of rhinoplasty... that nose in profile is an even more egregious affront to the visual senses. Clearly this design language is shared with other members of the Toyota family with those high front cheek bones, slab sides, and angular and multi-faceted contours, but this time Toyota's designers have taken that theme to new extremes with even more oddly jutting protrusions arranged around the front grill.  I honestly don't mean to be so critical, but it is hard to find much nice to say given that it seriously looks like the design team couldn’t decide what types of angles and shapes to use to accent the nose… so they just used all of them.  It is just too busy and lacks any sense of cohesion.



Now thankfully the rest of the design is a bit more uniform and pleasing; although still a bit odd in some places.  Other new design features include the ever so popular floating rear roof line is once again being copied from Land Rover/Jaguar (you know to add a bit of upscale class at the loss of rear visibility), some rather nicely sculpted creases in the body panels, and a more pronounced rear deck lid that seems oddly reminiscent of the spoiler off of a a D20 Mitsubishi Eclipse/Plymouth Laser.  The Prius of course retains its stereotypical hatchback arrangement, but the defining rear hump that provided extra rear seat headroom in previous generations has been replaced by a more flowing roofline and an almost sedan like silhouette. This change makes me wonder if Toyota would ever consider making the base Prius a Sedan and force consumers to pay more for the Prius V to obtain the more practical and utilitarian hatchback layout.

Another thing I do find odd is the curved edge in front of the mirrors where the A pillar meets the front quarter panel, but not offensively so; as it seems to mirror some of the lines seen around the front grill.  Overall I think the design is surprisingly sporty looking for a car famous for being anything but.  However, it is still hard to ignore the overly busy front end. (In profile the somewhat bulging headlights kind of remind me of the frog like projectors Nissan uses on the Juke/Leaf… and no that is not a slur based on the nation of origin from which much of Nissan's design is derived: those two cars actually make me think of frogs.)