2010 Toyota Prius Overview Change Vehicle

This 2010 Toyota Prius overview explains changes for the model year, provides a summary of the 2010 Prius, and includes Toyota Prius safety, reliability, and fuel economy information.

Toyota redesigns its iconic Prius hybrid for 2010, retaining the familiar triangular styling theme but updating and refining it for better aerodynamics, more passenger room, and a larger cargo area. The Hybrid Synergy Drive powertrain is 90 percent new, offering more power, better performance, improved fuel economy, and up to four different driving modes. New features include a solar-panel moonroof, a remote-controlled air conditioning system, Intelligent Parking Assist, Lane Keep Assist, Dynamic Radar Cruise Control, and Pre-Collision safety technology. Plus, the Prius employs plant-derived, carbon neutral plastic in its seats and some interior trim pieces.

The new 2010 Toyota Prius is offered in five levels of equipment, denoted by Roman numerals. The least expensive model is the Prius I, but it’s well equipped with 15-inch alloy wheels, power side mirrors, power windows, power door locks with remote keyless entry, a tilt/telescopic steering wheel, air conditioning, push-button ignition, a height-adjustable driver’s seat, and a CD player with an auxiliary audio input jack. The Prius I includes three different driving modes: Normal, Eco and Power.

Prius II trim adds an EV driving mode, plus an improved stereo, a rear window wiper, cruise control, a cargo cover, Smart Key entry for the driver’s door, and Toyota’s new Touch Tracer display for the steering wheel controls.

Selecting Prius III trim provides a six-disc CD changer, JBL audio speakers, Bluetooth hands-free calling, and satellite radio. The Prius III can be equipped with a Navigation Package that includes voice activation, a touch screen, XM NavTraffic service, and Bluetooth streaming audio capability. This option package also supplies a USB port, an iPod connection, and a reversing camera. A Solar Roof Package is also available, including the Navigation Package plus a solar-powered moonroof and interior ventilation system.

The Prius IV includes leather upholstery, heated front seats, lumbar support for the driver’s seat, Smart Key entry for all four doors, Homelink, an auto-dimming rearview mirror, and upgraded interior trim including a Plasmacluster air ionizer and purifier. This version also includes water-repellent window glass in the front doors. The Navigation and Solar Roof Packages are also optional on the Prius IV, and they include one free year of Safety Connect service on this model.

The most expensive model in the lineup is the Prius V. It has 17-inch alloy wheels, LED auto-leveling headlights, headlight washers, and fog lights. It is the only Prius offered with the optional Advanced Technology Package, which includes the Navigation and Solar Roof Package contents plus Dynamic Radar Cruise Control, a Pre-Collision System, Lane Keep Assist, and Intelligent Parking Assist.

For 2010, the Prius gets a larger, 1.8-liter Atkinson-cycle four-cylinder engine combined with a 650-volt nickel-metal hydride battery pack and a 60-kilowatt permanent magnet synchronous motor. Together, net output is 134 horsepower, good enough to get the Prius to 60 mph in 9.8 seconds, according to Toyota. A continuously variable transmission transfers the power to the front wheels, and the driver can select between four driving modes in most models: Normal, Power, Eco, and EV. The EPA says the Prius should get 51 mpg in the city and 48 mpg on the highway, for a 50-mpg combined fuel economy rating.

Toyota installs a comprehensive safety package in every Prius. Seven airbags, including a driver knee airbag, are on board to protect occupants in the event of a collision. Plus, the Toyota Star Safety System – ABS with electronic brake-force distribution, traction control, and stability control – is standard.

Available options include a Dynamic Radar Cruise Control (DRCC) system that maintains a safe distance between the Prius and traffic ahead; a Pre-Collision System that uses data from the DRCC to determine if a crash is imminent and then prepares the safety systems for impact; and Lane Keep Assist, which helps the driver to keep the Prius within marked lanes. If you want these features, plan to pay for the top Prius V trim level. Other features include a reversing camera in the Navigation Package on Prius III, IV, and V; and Safety Connect service with automatic collision notification, SOS emergency assist button, roadside assistance for one year on the Prius IV and V.

Maybe it’s no big deal that many of the Prius’s safety technologies are reserved for the more expensive models, because the car performs well in crash tests. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) gives the Prius 4-Star ratings for all crash-test results except front seat occupant protection in a side-impact crash, which receives a 5-Star rating. That’s pretty good. Better are the results from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety’s battery of tests, in which the Prius gets the top rating of Good in the offset frontal, side, and rear crash protection measures.

Reliability is a bit of a mixed bag. J.D. Power and Associates predicts that the Prius will be more reliable than average, but Consumer Reports is not as bullish, giving the Prius an average predicted reliability rating.

It’s hard to argue with 50 mpg, the combined fuel economy rating for the redesigned 2010 Toyota Prius. No matter what you think of the styling, or the car’s unimpressive driving character, 50 mpg is pretty damn awesome. And since many people use a car as nothing more than a transportation appliance, we think the affordable, roomy, comfortable, safe, and utilitarian Toyota Prius is worth every penny of its sticker price.

By Christian Wardlaw

-- Christian Wardlaw