2019 Toyota Prius Heads to LA with Likely AWD
The Toyota Prius hybrid car has been offered with all-wheel drive for the last three years in Japan, but American customers have so far been stuck with the front-wheel-drive version. That may be about to change as Toyota gets ready to unveil the 2019 model at the 2018 Los Angeles Auto Show at the end of the month.
Toyota hasn’t outright stated this but hinted at it fairly strongly in a new teaser for the auto show. “Fall is here, winter’s near, but the 2019 Prius performs on roads whether snowy or clear,” it wrote alongside the image you can see above.
The AWD system the Japanese Prius uses is called E-Four, which Toyota specifically developed for hybrid models. It adds a second electric motor to the rear axle that drives the rear wheels only. The system can then choose to switch between FWD and AWD depending on the road conditions.
Related: Learn more about the 2018 Toyota Prius
For purposes of fuel economy, the car should remain in FWD configuration when there is no need for AWD, but the E-Four system is so lightweight and compact that the impact to weight and efficiency is negligible in the Prius E-Four.
The Toyota RAV4 and Lexus NX also use this system, though with much larger rear motors, and Toyota revealed an updated version at the end of last year that delivers more torque.
So if you care about fuel economy but live in Vermont and keep buying Subarus because you think they’re the only car to have when winter comes around, you may want to keep an eye out on the new Prius when shopping for your next car.
Related: Check out the Toyota cars that get 30+ mpg
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