Next gen Toyota Prius to be unveiled soon - Report

Is based on the TNGA platform.

American media is reporting that the all-new 2016 Toyota Prius will be "shown soon". Toyota North America CEO Jim Lentz met with the media at the New York Township for the Toyota Technical Center expansion and was speaking to the media.

Though Lentz did not give a specific timeframe for its launch, he said the last two generations of the Prius had a 6-year lifecycle. The current Prius, which is also sold in India, was introduced in 2009. The media speculate its unveiling to either be at the Tokyo or Los Angeles Motor Show which are scheduled in November 2015.

"I have driven it. It's fantastic," Lentz said. He stated that the car is better looking and handling, with a lower center of gravity. Some design cues on it could come from the Toyota C-HR concept crossover shown at the 2014 Paris Motor Show.

The 2016 Toyota Prius would debut the Toyota New Global Architecture (TNGA) platform to leverage better the global scale of the company. This platform would eventually underpin many of Toyota's mainstay products leading to new high in cost savings for the company.

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The 2016 Prius would also have a breakthrough in its powertrain. At present, only 30 percent of the energy created by burning fuel in the petrol engine creates actual wheel-turning power. This figure has been taken up to 40 percent with the engine on the next-generation hybrid car.

Toyota Prius c - Image Gallery (unrelated)

[Source - Freep.com]