2009 Toyota Prius Overview Change Vehicle

This 2009 Toyota Prius overview explains changes for the model year, provides a summary of the 2009 Prius, and includes Toyota Prius safety, reliability, and fuel economy ratings.

Shoppers checking out the 2009 Toyota Prius will find that nothing has changed for the new model year. Available trims include the Standard, Base and Touring Edition, and fuel economy is rated as high as 48 mpg in the city.

Last year, Toyota created the new Prius Standard for buyers on a budget. Though not as well equipped as the Base, this entry-level model still comes to the table with automatic climate control, power door locks and windows, a keyless ignition system, and safety items including traction control and six airbags.

What you won’t find on the Standard are cruise control, a cover for the cargo area, and heated mirrors. These amenities are reserved for the 2009 Toyota Prius Base model, which can be dressed up with features unavailable on the Standard, like stability control, leather seats, a handy navigation unit, Bluetooth, a premium JBL sound system, or the added safety of a backup camera.

For hybrid shoppers who want more entertaining dynamics with their four-door fuel sipper, Toyota offers the Prius Touring Edition, which includes items that serve Toyota’s customers in Europe. The list of standard features mirrors that of the Base, plus a sportier suspension, 16-inch alloy wheels, HID headlights, and front fog lights. Options for the Touring mirror those for the Base model.

No matter which front-wheel-drive 2009 Prius you’ve got your eye on, Hybrid Synergy Drive moves it down the road. This is the name for Toyota’s gas/electric hybrid technology, comprised of a gasoline four-cylinder engine that joins forces with a continuously variable transmission, a couple of electric motors, and a battery pack. The system allows for operation in gas/electric hybrid mode, as well as full gas and full electric modes. Regenerative brakes are employed to lasso what is normally wasted energy for recharging the nickel-metal hydride battery.

Net horsepower for the 2009 Prius comes in at 110, which turns out to be just enough. Fuel economy is impressive at an EPA-estimated 48 mpg in the city and 45 mpg on the highway.

When you do something the same way as you’ve always done, chances are the results won’t change. In the case of the Prius, that’s a good thing. For years, the star of the hybrid movement has been lauded as an excellent choice in terms of reliability, accolades that have been bestowed upon the Prius once again in 2009 by J.D. Power and Associates as well as Consumer Reports.

Safety scores are also laudable, though we think that a car as technologically sophisticated as the Prius ought to include stability control as a standard rather than optional feature. Every Prius does include traction control, antilock brakes, and a total of six airbags including side curtains. Crash test ratings from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) and National Highway Traffic Safety Administration are very good overall, with the exception of a Marginal rating for rear impact safety from the IIHS.

Hybrid shoppers who want to balance improved fuel economy with relatively inconspicuous styling are finding a growing number of options from which to choose. But none can match the Toyota Prius’s efficiency, and few measure up to its combination of versatility and overall reliability.

By Thom Blackett