2016 Toyota Prius Car Review

The polarizing lines of the fourth-generation Prius may not look like an ordinary car, but thankfully it drives more like one now. Tom Voelk reviews the Prius Three model.

[hunterkyle]

I guess im the only one who loves the looks of this car? On camera it isnt great but in real life I love them

[smoothvelvetsinger]

I love the Prius look. It's a sexy car. Add reliability and fuel efficiency and it's a no-brainer😊

[tamarunitamaruni]

I have had this car years and it looks BOM in person!!! 🥰🥰

[jonk.]

I like how the Prius drove past an i3 while you commented on the design. Cool shot.

[skepticalmechanic]

Love my 2022 Prius Prime… there sold out everywhere and waiting times are 6 to 9 months! Good luck getting one!

[evoemperor]

This channel is one of the best car reviews! it should have more subscriber!

[LNatureblush]

Great review. Probably the best review (and thorough) review ever. Thank you.

[NXTgenASASSAIN]

am i only one that thinks the car looks cool? just curious

[TinLeadHammer]

I hated it first when seeing it on photos, but when seeing it IRL I can understand the design language and the reasons for some decisions. The Prime looks better though, more polished.

[trttfcu]

20 years from now, those Priuses will be displayed on a podium in a science museum as a living proof of the Japanese innovation, while all American vehicles will be in JUNKYARD!

[nicholie]

For 2016 it looks way advanced for its overall design and features.

[sleekitwan]

At the core of this car is an American-conceived automatic transmission that is as close to ‘solid state’ reliability as it is likely to get. Toyota bought the patent from GM, who either bought it from, or sponsored, the Berkeley University researchers who came up with it. I believe it to be a heavily-disguised differential in effect - it even has 3 inputs/outputs, and I realise when I was kicking around such ideas, I simply didn’t have the brains, knowledge, or expertise, to drop 2 Motor-Generators and a single internal combustion engine into the mix. They have only an ‘emergency clutch’ for coping with certain extremes, and it’s not used in normal operation.

There’s no complex hydraulic circuits to gum up, and no slush box/torque convertor. In other words, this is a lot less fragile than every automatic transmission I ever owned. It’s not a CVT. ‘e-CVT’ turns out to be a misleading term, and ‘synergy drive’ is actually an apt one. There’s no cones or pulleys. See ‘weber auto’ on youtube for a detailed view. That ‘emergency clutch’ I have figured out when it mainly gets used…in certain circumstances (gen 3 I speak of) I am rolling along and suddenly have to reduce speed. If the Prius has certain activities going on, it may be the case a motor-generator is spinning quite fast, and there’s a bump as it’s suddenly got to be stopped…that’s the emergency clutch giving it’s half-inch or whatever, it’s absorbing the momentum of stopping that freewheeling MG I believe.

My gen 3 has just been bought, 13 years old, and about 50, 000 miles in the UK. We get the same sort of right hand drive the Japanese use so there are direct imports of used ones due to strict Japanese rules that encourage a certain age of vehicle to be sold-on over there. They don’t have our weather, or the huge amounts of road salt, so those cars are often in better condition than our own. Thanks for this vid, even 6 years on it’s great for those of us looking to buy-in to the Prius world via used cars. Take care all. PS I wonder if GM wish they hadn’t sold that patent?!

[OrisueCrew]

The interior is definitely much sharper looking than the 2015 model. I will get one of these in two years or so.

[carmel]

Tom, the only thing that I don't like about the Prius is the instrument panel in the center stack, not in front of the driver's eye (behind the steering wheel). I'll go with Camry Hybrid if I want a Toyota hybrid.

[jacksonboyd]

Hey Tom, when are you going to do a review on the Mustang.
I liked your Cameron review but I would like a comparison.
Thanks!

[sportsMike]

I think it looks futuristic. You want boring take a look at VW

[NerdRiots]

Getting one soon, could have gotten a newer model but damn doni loves its goth eyes

[TheAdamo]

Throughout my sector. I'm the only one with a Prius 4. and I contemplate it every day. I am the only one who is aware of its true value.

[dodgeyaussie]

I for one, would like a review of you cornering a damp rag, for accurate comparative purposes.

[fenq]

I just hope for the GEN five they can make it more crowded less usability put some gigantic wheels on it that are expensive to replace and give it a harsher ride. Take away that very useful second rear window that makes it easy to back up. And then jack the price up and make it impossible to get. That’s a winning formula.