Refreshed 2012 Toyota Prius Priced from £21,350 in Britain

Toyota has released UK pricing on its subtly facelifted Prius hybrid that goes on sale this March. The 2012 model is offered in three trim levels with on-the-road prices ranging from £21,350to £24,620.

Revealed last September at the Frankfurt Motor Show, the 2012 Prius gains some modest improvements inside and out.

On the exterior, there's a newly designed front bumper that houses new daytime running lights, clear headlamps featuring a revised LED lamp configuration, different tail lamp graphics and a new choice of alloy wheel designs.

In the cabin, there are new front seats, new upholstery and softer-touch surfaces, while Toyota also raised the equipment levels, most notably with the Toyota Touch touchscreen control system that is now standard on all grades.

Toyota also claims to have made changes to the suspension and steering column to improve comfort and steering feel.

There are no changes to the Prius' hybrid setup that mates a 1.8-liter Atkinson cycle petrol engine with a CVT and an electric motor to deliver a combined cycle fuel economy of 72.4mpg UK with CO2 emissions of 89g/km (70.6mpg UK and 92g/km respectively for models riding on 17-inh alloy rims).

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So You Never Want to Leave Your Toyota Prius, do You?

If you are asking us whether someone has been creative with a ton of snow, the answer is no. If you are viewing this bizarre build from the side and wondering if this is some sort of humorous phallic statement, the answer once again is -you guessed it- no.

So what in the blazes is it, we hear you ask? Well, it's a Toyota Prius camper van conversion and it was unwrapped (or so to speak) at this weekend's 2012 Tokyo Auto Salon with NAPAC. And no, we are not pulling your leg – it does exist and it's available for order.

It's the wacky creation of Campinn, which specializes in these sort of builds. The transformation from going green to living in green involves the addition of a huge lump on top of the Prius, which is made entirely of Fibre-Reinforced Plastic (FRP) and increases the hybrid's length to 4,980mm (196-in.) and height to 2,050mm (81.1-in.).

Inside, there's what the company describes as a living area that can be optionally fitted with retractable coffee table and/or a side sofa while doubling as a bed, and if someone happens to visit, there's also as second bed on the…second floor. Did we mention that it also gets a back door?

What will they think of next…

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Ford Introduces C-MAX Hybrids, Claims They Outperform Toyota's Prius and Prius V

Along with the Focus Electric, the Blue Oval also announced two more new models today, the C-MAX Hybrid and the C-MAX Energi plug-in hybrid, which Ford claims will allow operation in all-electric mode at higher speeds than any other hybrid currently in production.

Ford is willing to compare its new cars, which will be launched in North America in 2012, with the competition and in particular, Toyota’s Prius models.

According to the company, the plug-in C-MAX Energi will deliver a better fuel economy equivalent (MPGe) in all-electric mode than the Toyota Prius plug-in hybrid along with a 500 miles (800 km) driving range, while the Hybrid is said to be more fuel efficient than the Prius V.

“C-MAX is the right car for the time as it combines the dynamics and quality of a traditional car with the versatility of a MAV and leading fuel efficiency that you cannot even get from Toyota”, said Sherif Marakby, director of Ford’s Electrification Programs and Engineering.

Both hybrid versions of the C-MAX feature a naturally aspirated 2.0-liter gasoline engine that operates on the Atkinson-cycle, an electric motor and a lithium-ion battery pack.

Ford says that its next-generation ‘powersplit’ architecture allows the two motors to operate separately or in parallel, with the electric motor being capable of powering the car in low-speed conditions and the gasoline engine kicking in and/or charging the battery when necessary.

In the C-MAX Hybrid, the battery pack is recharged when the gasoline engine is in operation. A regenerative braking system also recovers more than 95% of the braking energy and helps charge the battery.

The C-MAX Energi plug-in can also be charged by connecting the vehicle’s charge port to either a standard 120-volt outlet or a 240-volt charging station.

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New Volkswagen Electric Car Concept and Jetta Hybrid Headed to Detroit Show

While a little overdue to the celebration, the VW Team programs to make up for its bad existence in the electrical and multiple car area with a onslaught of eco-friendly versions within the next year or so.

At the future 2012 Detroit Auto Show, the VW company will raise the protects off a never before seen genuine electrical idea car and the edition of the Jetta Hybrid, according to the Detroit Free Press.

The document says that the electrical car research will not be depending on any present generation design with VW phoning it "pure concept" - at least for now.

The new Jetta Hybrid, however, will be a frequent generation design and is planned to appear in VW's South United states showrooms next Nov. It will evidently be operated by 1.4-liter turbocharged energy powerplant (not to be puzzled with the Western 1.4 TSI that uses both a turbo- and a super-charger) packaged to an generator unit.

According to the Detroit Free Press, VW said that the Jetta Hybrid is "meant to immediately task the Toyota Prius' popularity of the U.S. multiple market."

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