Toyota Prius wins Top Gear UK's Lifetime Achievement Award, for refusing to die
Hans · Apr 6, 2023 03:22 PM
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Hybrid pioneer Toyota Prius has received a Lifetime Achievement award in the TopGear.com Electric Awards 2023.
“As it piles on the years and miles, a Prius refuses to die. Durability and reliability are the stuff of legends, never mind the complexity and presence of a battery,” said Top Gear.
Old Priuses don't die, they are repaired and exported to places like Cambodia or Sri Lanka, where they get a second life as taxis
First introduced in Japan in 1997, the original first generation Toyota Prius introduced hybrid technology to the world. Its reliability and fuel economy quickly made it the preferred choice of taxi operators in many major cities, from London to Los Angeles, Sydney to Singapore, to even Phonm Penh.
Today, the Prius no longer needs to play the role of a hybrid champion, as the two-motor full-hybrid technology has been deployed to nearly every Toyota model on sale today, including our region’s Innova. Cumulative sales of Toyota hybrids have since crossed the 10 million milestone.
Takeshi Uchiyamada, former Chairman of Toyota Motor Corporation, better known as “father of Prius” said, “When we launched Prius, no one even knew what a hybrid was. Those who drove it were called geeks or other names. Thanks to those early adopters who gave Prius a chance, hybrids have grown in popularity and have ridden a wave of success out of the unknown.”
In Malaysia, the Prius was briefly sold briefly, from around 5 years, from 2009 to 2014 – the third generation ZVW30 model. A total of 6,159 units were sold by UMW Toyota Motor. There are several more privately imported units left behind by Japanese expats.
Despite the relatively small number of Priuses sold here and the fact that many of them are more than 10 years old now, the Prius is still a regular sight on local roads – a testament of their reliability.
Cheap subsidized fuel and expiration of tax exemption for imported (CBU) hybrids meant that there was no follow-up to the Prius.
Currently, UMW Toyota Motor only sells one hybrid model, the Toyota Corolla Cross Hybrid. Prices start from RM 142,000. It is currently the best-selling hybrid in Malaysia.
Over 15 years of experience in automotive, from product planning, to market research, to print and digital media. Garages a 6-cylinder manual RWD but buses to work.
