I was hoping for a bigger update and perhaps a sunroof, but make no mistake -- I will be driving one of these in 2009.

2009 Prius

Exposed: 2009 Toyota Prius
First spy shots and exclusive info uncovered.
By Sam Mitani

2009 Toyota Prius

It was a little more than a decade ago when Toyota completely changed the automotive landscape with its small, oddly shaped economy car called the Prius. Equipped with what Toyota calls its Hybrid Synergy Drive, the Prius was the first mass-marketed hybrid in the world.

“Hybrid” refers to the car’s powertrain. It consists of a lean-burning gasoline engine and an electric motor that work together to achieve more than 40 mpg, or even 50 mpg, in city driving. With gasoline prices currently soaring to all-time highs, we at Road & Track have had our attention focused on the all-new third-gen Prius, which will hit dealerships in the spring of 2009.

Toyota is saying very little about the future Prius, but we were able to uncover key bits of information regarding its appearance and technology.

The general shape of the car will remain intact, but the front end will be thoroughly redesigned. Thanks to canted headlights and a steeply raked windshield and hood, the new Prius will look sportier than the current model. The car will grow slightly, to an overall length of 179 in. (up from 175.0 in.), resulting in a more spacious interior.

As for the motor/engine, here’s what we uncovered. The displacement of the inline-4 will grow from 1.5 liters to 1.8, which will result in more power and torque. The gasoline engine will produce about 100 bhp and 105 lb.-ft. of torque, and the electric motor generating about 60 bhp, making the new Prius more powerful than ever. We hear it will run from zero to 60 mph in about 9.5 seconds and reach a top speed of about 115 mph.

With this extra oomph, one would expect the car’s fuel economy to suffer. Nope. Amazingly, the Prius will be even more fuel-efficient than it is now. According to our sources, Toyota has improved its hybrid system so the electric motor plays a bigger role when driving. Therefore, don’t be surprised when a slow drive to the corner market is achieved without using a single drop of gasoline.

Now here’s the real kicker. The price of the all-new Prius will probably be the about same, perhaps even lower, than the current one. Toyota is expected to offer three trim levels: base, luxury and eco, with the base model starting around $21,000. Of course, these prices are at the mercy of the dollar/yen exchange rate, so don’t take them to the bank just yet. What is sure is that the next Prius will be as ground-breaking as the model before it, and Toyota will remain the global leader in fuel-efficient modes of transportation.

I'll be on the waiting list at Marietta Toyota.

I'm kind of dissapointed that they're not bringing a factory supported plug-in feature to the market with the debut of the new model.

I think the Volt will be able to compete with the Prius if Toyota doesn't get 40 miles of pure electric to the market by 2010.

I'm not convinced the Volt will make it to market by 2010....

Chevy's pushing it really hard. They just showed what they say is extremely close to the final production version, which looks completely different than the concept car they've been showing. It looks close to the Malibu in styling.

I'll see if I can dig up the story.

Very nice. My husband dragged me to look at the Prius a few weeks ago, and I was impressed. Couldn't believe how spacious it was.

Our Mini has been averaging around 35 mpg so as far a gasoline cars go, it's great (and I LOVE driving it). He mainly wants something hybrid or fuel-efficient to keep the miles down on the Mini (whatever). But when we do finally go the hybrid route, it's between the Prius and the Civic.

I'd get one in a second but for two things:

1) I need a car next year. My truck is about shot, and 20 mpg is killing us financially.

2) I'm afraid Chevy is going to lease the batteries, and that's unacceptable to our financial situation (I want to be OUT of car "payments" of any kind within a few years, and if I'm married to a battery lease, I can't do that).

IF they get it to market and IF the batteries are reasonable to lease, I may trade the Prius up in 2010 or just give the wife the Prius and buy a Volt. But they have a lot of work to do to get there.

CNN Money article on the Volt.

Video that goes with the article.

Civic is REALLY nice, but the options for the future of the Prius tip the scales to me. They may have plug-in options that you can buy from Toyota under warranty soon. Honda is talking of nothing like that.

That's pretty cool stuff. If they can pull it off and make it a workable, realistic transportation alternative, it will be a boon. GM will have REALLY knocked Toyota on its ass.