It’s
a surprising move for Toyota since it will be the first ever that the
Japanese carmaker will be launching a vehicle in the Sin City. But many
motoring experts believe that the decision of Toyota to unravel a 2016
Prius this month has something to do with the plans of Tesla Motors to
launch its Model X late this month as well.
It
has been previously reported that Toyota will be launching the 2016
Prius before the end of the year. While September 8 is technically
before the end of the year, nobody was expecting that the launching
could happen soon enough.
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However,
the launching event in Las Vegas on September 8 is a media only affair
so it is possible that Toyota may be planning be a bigger roll-out event
before the end of the year, notes Digital Trends.
Next era of an icon
Toyota refers to its 2016 Toyota Prius
as the next era of an icon. In a statement announcing the media launch
of its next hybrid on September 8, Toyota said that it is pulling all
stops for the exclusive event to celebrate the future of Prius in a
truly spectacular way that will be anything but expected.
The
teaser photo unveiled by Toyota showed a black background with a
bright-red squiggle that is likely the car’s taillight profile, details
the Green Car Reports.
Photos
of two different 2016 Prius were leaked late last month – one featuring
silver, and the other one is dark gray – by a Malaysian Prius owner on
Facebook and it went viral all over the world.
Given that the exterior design of the 2016 Toyota Prius
was already made in public, it would be interesting to see how much
information will Toyota release during the media event on September 8 in
Las Vegas as reports have it that the Japanese carmaker will not be
providing test driving opportunity at the event.
More shimmering profile
While
the 2016 Toyota Prius will be launched on September 8, the hybrid will
be released to the retail markets a few weeks or months after. It is
expected that the hybrid vehicle shall have a more lustrous and
shimmering profile than its predecessor.
The
2016 Toyota Prius is also one of the first Toyota vehicles to make use
of the Toyota New Global Architecture for a lower center of gravity and
improved handling. The base model of the Prius will have the staple
nickel-metal-hydride battery pack while the premium model might house a
lithium-ion battery. The vehicle will also come with an all-wheel drive
option.
It
is evident that a new Prius is forthcoming because the current range of
the Toyota Prius hybrid cars has received significant discounts to keep
its sales up even as the lineup ages and gas prices remain low.
Accordingly
the Toyota Prius V in San Francisco is getting a regional discount of
as much as $4,000, which is far higher than the $2,750 price cut offered
by the Japanese carmaker on the vehicle in July.
The overall discount includes a $2,500 rebate and a $1,500 bonus offer for buyers in San Francisco and its environs.
The
rebates in most other regions remain largely unchanged, particularly
the $1,500 discount in Los Angeles, where there is a huge demand for the
hybrid vehicle.
The
hybrid vehicle segment has been on the decline as of late because of
falling fuel prices and the rising efficiency of conventional gasoline
cars, not to mention the advent of fully-electric vehicles.
