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For months, engineers and designers refined their concept for the next-generation of Prius. Finally finished, Chief Engineer Koji Toyoshima presented the design to the top brass at Toyota. What he received was a stunningly rare command: do it again.
This new focus on exterior design is a departure from previous strategy. Design at Toyota has traditionally been done by committee.
The groupthink approach has been replaced since family member Akio Toyoda became president in 2009. Toyota’s new strategy is to do less designing out of group consensus. Instead, Toyota wants its designers to become more independent and inject more personality into their designs.
This is a radical departure for Toyota. But the first vehicle with this strategy is one you might have already driven.
The 2015 Camry exemplifies the personality of its maker, global design chief Tokuo Fukuichi. The oversized front grille is its most prominent feature.
And for the new Prius, sources say we can expect something even more dramatic.
The designers went back to the table and forged a design that presumably had less consensus. Ironically, that’s exactly what Toyota’s leaders were looking for. The new design was approved.
The new Prius is meant to attract younger drivers, and the Prius Plug-In will go after the older set. Right now, the Prius and its plug-in version look identical.
Some designers wanted the next-generation Prius to look like Toyota’s hydrogen fuel cell vehicle. But leadership said, no, we want models that look less like each other, not more like each other.
What the new Prius will look like is being carefully guarded by Toyota. After all, they don’t want competitors to copy it. One source says that the C-HR Concept, however, offers some clues.
We’re just happy to see Toyota continually improving and making its excellent cars even better. To drive a current Toyota Prius in Raleigh, stop by our showroom.
Toyota C-HR Concept // Credit: Automotive News
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