2012 Toyota Prius C – Affordable Green Machine

Toyota has promised in the past to produce different flavors of Prius. There’s the proven and popular Prius all auto enthusiasts love to hate. Have a family and need a bit more space? Prius V. Wish for a bit of luxury while saving the environment? Lexus HS250 (fondly known as the “Hella Slow to 50″). Hate the look? Camry Hybrid.  At the Tokyo auto show and Detroit auto show, Toyota shows off a new Prius family member, the Prius C. Follow the jump for a quick look.

The original Prius was a dumpy and unloved thing. It was cramped in space, ugly to look at, slow, poor handling and a bad value. If this was the future of motoring, then the future looked mighty grim. But Toyota really hit a nerve in the market. People who didn’t care about 0-60 times or value, but cared deeply about global warming and the environment lined up with open wallets. These early adopters became the Prius’s strongest advocates and championed the vehicles only virtue – it burned less fossil fuels than the next car on the road.

It didn't do many things well, but the original Prius started the hybrid craze

Fast forward 11 years (yes, it really has been that long) and Prius’s has grown up from the environment choice to a mainstream choice. But Toyota isn’t sitting idly at the top of the hybrid mountain. It wants to bring more eco-goodness to more driveways. And the plan is to make a cheaper version, the Prius C. At first glance, the Prius C looks like a normal Prius that’s been left in a vice and then stepped on. It has a strong resemblance to both it’s Yaris and Prius sisters.

So bad that not even a press photo could save it

Selling so many Priuses must have driven the cost of the hybrid powertrain down for Toyota, but to make a really appealing list price, the bean counters took an axe to the interior. Plastic this ugly hasn’t been seen since General Motors in the 90′s. Rubbermaid might’ve applied as a supplier, but Toyota obviously thought they could do even cheaper. The price should be comparable to a Honda Insight. While the Insight is a miserable car through and through, at least the driver isn’t reminded of it every time they lay their eyes on the interior. It’s likely the cost cutting also trim sound deadening materials, so don’t expect a quiet nor comfortable ride.

But all these complaints aren’t the point of this car. Just like its ancestor, the Prius C isn’t for auto enthusiasts. It only promises to do one thing well – sip gas.  Bringing the price down will bring new buyers into the showrooms, but unlike the late 90′s, there are many new compelling high-MPG vehicles. Will this new one trick pony be able to fight off the more well rounded and cheaper new comers?