2005 Toyota Prius Reviews

Ewan Kennedy road tests and reviews the 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015 Toyota Prius as a used buy.

When Toyota released the Prius hybrid the green debate was in its infancy and climate change sceptics poured scorn on this radical newcomer, but the debate is now driving our choice in cars and the just-replaced second generation Prius has become an option for environmentally aware used car buyers.For many years now we've had laws to limit the emission of unburnt hydrocarbons, carbon monoxide and nitrous oxides, the stuff that causes smog and leads to all sorts of health problems, but those gases are only part of what comes out of the tailpipes of our cars. The bulk of what is emitted is carbon dioxide, now better known as greenhouse gas and blamed for causing global warming and climate change.While it's possible to effectively control hydrocarbons, carbon monoxide and nitrous oxides by treating the exhaust gases before they enter the atmosphere the only way to cut carbon dioxide is to reduce the amount of fuel burnt. Enter hybrids like the Prius that reduce our reliance on the petrol engine, and therefore the amount of fuel burnt, by combining it with an electric motor.MODEL WATCH Toyota launched its first generation Prius hybrid here in 2001 with claims it would cut fuel consumption by 50 per cent and tailpipe emissions by 80 per cent. In 2003 it followed up with the improved second-generation model and claimed it would better those numbers.Driving a Prius was a completely new experience, one that was mostly silent. Silence was something the Prius driver had to come to terms with because there was little of the noise they'd become used to with cars over the decades.The front-wheel drive Prius five-door hatch used a combination of a small 1.5-litre four-cylinder petrol engine and an electric motor for motivation, and depending on the driving circumstances, one or both could be in use.When at rest, at traffic lights or wherever the Prius comes to a halt, there's an eerie silence as neither motor is running. When it comes time to move off the electric motor does the work, it's only when more acceleration is called for that the petrol motor starts and joins in to help out.Once a cruise is reached it's the petrol motor that does most of the work, as it's at its most efficient when running at a steady speed. At that time the electric motor becomes a generator and feeds the system's batteries. Energy is also harnessed during braking and that's also fed into the batteries to keep them charged. The Prius drives smoothly at all times and the changeover between petrol power and electric motivation are seamless.Best of all the driver can observe what's happening with the drive courtesy of an energy readout in the dash, which informs them of the energy being consumed, or better still, that being stored for future use. While the primary aim of designing the Prius was to be frugal and environmentally friendly, Toyota didn't do it at the expense of the driving experience.The Prius was a good car to drive, quiet and smooth with decent performance in traffic and out on the highway. When pitted against the clock it would match a Corolla for acceleration. If the focus was on the hybrid drive system there was also all the features you could want in your daily driver.It came standard with climate-controlled air, cruise, remote central locking, immobiliser, power windows and mirrors, and six-speaker CD sound. The I-Tech model boasted all of that plus a six-stacker CD, leather trim, nine-speaker sound system, reversing camera, and sat-nav.IN THE SHOP Driving a Prius effectively links you to a Toyota dealer, as they are the ones with the knowledge and equipment to service and repair it. The hybrid technology is still relatively new and hasn't flowed on to local workshop level yet.There is some concern about the life of the batteries used in the Prius, for good reason, as they are expensive to replace at around $4000. That said, Toyota says they will last the life of the car, and better still the company says it has only sold a handful through its spare parts service in the eight years the Prius has been on the market here.Because of the complexity of the Prius it's best to adopt a cautious approach when thinking of buying one second hand, and have it checked by a Toyota dealer to make sure all is well. Apart from checking the operation of the hybrid system make the usual checks for crash repairs and regular servicing.IN A CRASH The Prius was packed with all the safety features going. It has dual front airbags, and seat belt pretensioners standard, plus head airbags and side front airbags in the I-Tech. For active safety there was ABS antiskid brakes, brake force distribution, emergency brake assistance, and traction control, but if you stepped up to the I-Tech you also had electronic stability control.AT THE PUMP While the Prius is primarily about reducing greenhouse gas emission owners are keen to point out its fuel-saving virtues as well. But the amount of fuel you save with a Prius is very dependent on the type of driving you do.The more stop-start city driving the more fuel you will save; the savings out on the highway where the petrol engine is used more are much less. Tests of a Prius by carsGuide in 2005 showed that around the city the hybrid would comfortably do 4.1 L/100 km, whereas out on the highway it would run in the high-fives and wasn't any more economical than a small four-cylinder petrol or diesel car.LOOK FOR . Deafening silence. Smooth driving. Low fuel bills. Complexity beyond local mechanic. Comfortable and roomy. Environmentally friendlyTHE BOTTOM LINE It's not a gimmick, the driving future is here, but it isn't cheap and it is yet to be fully proven over the long term.RATING 80/100

We have managed to clock up more than 6600km behind the wheel of the Prius in a three-month period.And surprisingly, in that time, the car has managed to endear itself to our family more than I could have anticipated.It is more practical than it looks and sounds, and the two-week interval between fill-ups is especially welcome.As the cost of petrol continues to soar, we'd have been reluctant to part with the car, except for the fact that Honda has offered us a hybrid Civic for comparison,For the uninitiated, Prius is one of those new fangled hybrid petrol-electric cars that runs on the smell of an oily rag, using a combination of petrol and electric power.It has an electric motor as well as a small 1.5-litre petrol engine, that work in tandem to produce a maximum 82kW.Toyota claims Prius uses up to 50 per cent less fuel than an equivalent-sized conventional car.Bold words from the Japanese company but a claim that has certainly be borne out by our family.During the last three months, we have averaged 734km from the 45-litre fuel tank, which we ran right down and refilled to the brim each time.Prius takes ordinary unleaded and the tank consumed an average 40.6 litres of petrol at each fill.During this time, our best figure for a single tank of fuel was 777km before we finally bailed and went looking for a servo.Although Prius has an elaborate trip com- puter, the one thing the car cannot tell you is distance to empty - that depends on too many factors.Prius can probably run on electric power alone for a short period but we didn't want to risk it.After 777km the car took 42 litres of fuel which still left three litres in the kitty so it probably could have made the 800km mark had we persisted.Totalling the kilometres travelled and the fuel we used for the three months, our average fuel consumption for the period was 5.52 litres per 100km.In fact, hard as we have tried, we were unable to push the car into using more than 5.7-litres per 100km.Prius is front wheel drive with a continu- ously variable (CVT) automatic transmission.The transmission performs the dual role of splitting the delivery of energy between the front wheels and generator which powers the electric motor.Any surplus energy generated is stored in the extensive battery system for later use.Braking also regenerates power, so stop-start city driving is not necessarily a bad thing.The petrol engine automatically switches off when the car is stationary or coasting.Apart from its obvious fuel economy what really impressed us about the car was how practical it actually is.We did not have high expectations but once we got used to the car's little idiosyncrasies, it quickly impressed.It's a lot bigger inside than it looks, with plenty of head and shoulder room and plenty of legroom in the back for two adults.It is classy, well finished and has a high level of standard equipment including electronic stability control.There's still room for improvement in the suspension department and the front seats are fairly flat and lifeless, but apart from that its all good.Cars such as Prius start to make more sense the higher the price of petrol goes.In fact, the higher the price the greater the saving driving cars likes this is going to be.Prius is priced from $36,500 plus on-road costs. 

The Prius is one of those new fangled hybrid petrol-electric cars from Toyota that runs on the smell of an oily rag using a combination of petrol and electric power.It has an electric motor as well as a small 1.5-litre petrol engine, that work in tandem to produce a maximum 82kW.Toyota claims the Prius uses up to 50 per cent less fuel than an equivalent-sized conventional car.Our tests so far have borne out these claims, but what has really impressed us is the practicality of the vehicle.It's a lot bigger inside than it looks, with plenty of room in the back for two adults.However, we have discovered one flaw in an otherwise spotless report card.It seems you cannot tow anything with a Prius, not a sausage – this for many will rule out the hybrid as being the main family car.When you think about it, dragging a trailer, boat or caravan behind the car is going to prevent the technology from doing its stuff?It wouldn't get a breather during which the system could go into recharge mode – it would be forced to work flat out all the time.To confirm our suspicions, we asked Toyota who in turn was forced to consult the experts back in Japan for a definitive answer.For towing, we are told, it is necessary to reinforce both body and parts which increases vehicle weight, impacting on fuel economy and mileage.It would also be necessary to increase the size of the radiator to ensure satisfactory engine cooling and the HV system, especially when towing uphill.The Prius's engine bay is not large enough to support such a large radiator, and if installed would again increase vehicle weight.So there you have it.What about a bike rack?Well, there is always the option of fitting a rack to the roof.Of course that is going to increase wind drag astronomically.We have, however, read of one inventive owner who has manufactured a rack for the back of the car. 

The Prius is one of those new fangled hybrid petrol-electric cars that runs on a combination of petrol and electric power.Toyota claims it uses up to 50 per cent less fuel than an equivalent sized conventional car.After an initial "getting to know you" period, we have found the car to be just as easy to operate as any other.At the time of writing we have just put in our second tank of gas, with fuel economy running between 5.0 and 5.5 litres per 100km.With the rising cost of fuel, the car has obviously surfaced on the radar of many motorists.Our first report was hardly fish and chips wrapper before we were contacted by one owner welcoming us to the Prius club.Ray Bickerton used to drive a Falcon but he and his wife made the switch because they are "very concerned" about pollution."Since the Prius reduces pollutant gases by 90 per cent, it seemed a logical choice to put my money where my principles are," Ray said."As a side benefit the Prius uses only a third of the fuel that the Falcon uses. When the price of fuel rises to $2 per litre as it surely will, the benefit will be very substantial."Apart from the silly space saver spare wheel, Ray has no regrets and says the car is fun to drive.But he did negotiate a full size spare for longer trips, just in case.Ray opted for the i-Tech option pack and says he wouldn't be without it now.The pack includes side and curtain airbags, vehicle stability control, Bluetooth hands-free mobile telephone compatibility, Smart Entry and Start, new generation DVD-based touch- screen satellite navigation and premium JBL audio system.Meanwhile, Mrs Riley has already chalked up a few kilometres behind the wheel of the Prius with few complaints.She particularly likes the split rear window because the lower section remains clear even in the rain.However, she's not too keen on all the questions that people have for her about the car. 

It's one of those new-fangled hybrid cars that run on a combination of petrol and electricity.Toyota has given us one for three months so we can get better acquainted with the technology.A week, which is the normal amount of time we spend in test cars, is just not long enough with this one, especially as we failed to run our first Prius dry.Given our experience with other hybrid and diesel-powered vehicles, we were half expecting to get 1000km out of a single tank.But surprisingly the low fuel light starting flashing long before this at 770km to be exact.Disappointing? No, not if you put the figure in context. The Prius only has a 45-litre fuel tank.Filling the tank to the brim, it took 39.36 litres – which means we still had a bit left in the kit.If you do the maths, that puts our fuel consumption at 5.1 litres for every 100km, or about 55 miles per gallon in the old money.Now, that's a bit more impressive.As well as a smallish 1.5-litre petrol engine, the Prius has an electric motor that provides extra power, especially during acceleration.The petrol engine delivers 57kW of power at 5000rpm and 115Nm of torque at 4000rpm, while the electric motor generates 50kW between 1200 and 1540rpm. Maximum power output, however is restricted to 82kW because the two don't hit their stride at exactly the same time.More interesting, is the torque output of the engine which is a combined 478Nm, giving the car some real punch off the line.The petrol engine automatically switches off when the car is stationary or coasting. You can even run the car for short periods and at low speed using just electric power, kind of a "stealth" mode – although we can't see any great call for this.Power is fed to the front wheels through a continuously variable (CVT) automatic trans- mission. There are no gears and therefore no discernible change points.The transmission performs the dual role of splitting the delivery of energy between the front wheels and generator which powers the electric motor.Any surplus energy generated is stored in the extensive battery system for later use.Braking also regenerates power, so stop-start city driving is not necessarily a bad thing.Toyota claims the Prius uses up to 50 per cent less petrol than an equivalent-sized conventional car and emits about half the carbon dioxide. 

This week we welcome a new member to the family, but this one is not just any car – it's one of those new fangled hybrid Prius thingies.You know - one of the futuristic cars that runs on a combination of petrol and electricity - that uses hardly any fuel.The Prius (pronounced Pree-us) is a Toyota and one of two hybrid petrol-electric cars currently available to Australian buyers.The other is the hybrid version of Honda's Civic sedan, but the Prius is by far and away the better looking of the two.Toyota claims it offers the same kind of performance and interior space as a conventional 2.0-litre car.Fuel consumption is a claimed 4.4 litres per 100km from the 45-litre tank, which gives it quite a range.It's priced from $36,500 and is pretty well equipped.The Prius looks different and, dare we say it, it even looks a little bit sporty.We reckon that's important because if you going to shell out the extra dough for one, then you're going to want people to know that you are driving something special.Esteemed motoring editor Peter Barnwell knows his cars but he wouldn't know one end of a computer from another.Everyone will tell you, however, that I'm a bit of a techno geek and, in that context, I've really been looking forward to spending some quality time behind the wheel of this car. Seeing how far it will go on a single tank and that sort of thing.We've decided that we are not going to treat the Prius differently to any other car, because if the technology is going to succeed – then it needs to fit in with our needs rather than the other way around.Getting into the car and driving it for the first time is a bit of a steep learning curve.For a start, there's no key – just a keyless entry unit that you push into a slot to the right of the steering wheel.After that there's a button to switch things on, then you need to push it again to start the engine so to speak.When we say "start the engine", there's no initial starter motor or engine noise, so it requires a leap of faith.Put your foot on the brake, select Drive and suddenly the car is in motion.We'll check back after we've filled it up for the first time.