Last minute styling changes are the reason that the next-generation Toyota Prius has been delayed until the end of 2015.
Production of the next-generation Toyota Prius was supposed to kick off next spring, but it’s already been reported that it is delayed until the end of 2015. We’re now learning that the reason for the last minute delay is due to some last minute styling changes.
As of late Toyota has been trying to make styling a higher priority, which is why the 2015 Camry received so many updates only a few years after the current generation was released. According to Automotive News, Toyota’s global R&D boss decided last year that the design of the fourth-generation Prius didn’t cut it, which prompted a long list of tweaks from Prius Chief Engineer Koji Toyoshima.
Related: Toyota C-HR Crossover Concept Revealed Ahead of its Paris Debut
Mitsuhisa Kato, the executive vice president who decided the design didn’t cut it stated, “The design redo was instructed by myself, and the president said the same thing. We substantially refined the design, and we have finally reached a level where we can offer it next year.”
Toyota is keeping the design of the next Prius tightly under wraps, but according to one source, the C-HR concept that you see here and that was unveiled at the Paris Motor Show, is a preview of the next Prius. Of course the C-HR concept is a crossover, but it’s muscular wheel arches, aggressive grille and tapered greenhouse are expected to influence the design of the next Prius.
Source: Automotive News
