No longer just a novelty, fuel-efficient or alternative-fuel “green” cars have become familiar to many drivers, and they’re a popular choice for their efficiency. For the 2024 AutoTrader Awards’ Best Overall Green Car category, the winner is the Toyota Prius Prime.
Our award winners are selected by our jury of more than 20 automotive experts from across Canada, who look at every vehicle available to Canadians for the model year. The Prius Prime took the trophy over the category finalists, the BMW i4, Hyundai Ioniq 6, Kia EV9, and Nissan Leaf. The Prius and Prius Prime were all-new models for 2023 and carry into 2024 virtually unchanged.
To win, a car has to shine brighter than its competition across several factors that are crucial to buyers, including performance, features, comfort, practicality, and value – and that last one is especially important because it isn’t just about what a car costs, but if it’s worth its price tag. Our experts thought so: the Prius Prime comes in three trim levels ranging from $40,910 to $49,410, including a non-negotiable delivery fee of $1,860, and like the fully electric finalists, it qualifies for provincial and/or federal rebates.
That’s because while its Toyota Prius sibling is a self-charging hybrid and, therefore, not eligible for rebates, the Prius Prime is a plug-in hybrid (PHEV), which is. It uses a 2.0L four-cylinder engine that, on its own, makes 150 horsepower and 139 lb-ft of torque, but that increases to a combined 220 horsepower when the engine is working in conjunction with the electric hybrid motor.
The sole PHEV up against electrics in the final round of voting, the Prius Prime can be plugged in. Once charged, it can drive on electricity alone up to 72 km in the entry SE trim, or up to 64 km in the XSE and XSE Premium trims with their larger wheels. The vehicles it defeated can go from 340 to about 580 km on a charge, but the Prime is a “different animal” from them. When that stored charge depletes, the Prius Prime automatically reverts to self-charging hybrid operation and will drive for as long as it has gas in the tank. That doesn’t make it inherently superior to fully electric vehicles, but it may be the best choice for longer-distance drivers who worry about range anxiety. And for many commuters who charge the Prime regularly – which can be viably done on a regular household outlet or a quicker Level 2 charger – they may do most or even all of their daily driving on electricity alone.
The Prius Prime’s 2023 makeover took it from what AutoTrader Road Test Editor Dan Ilika described as “stylistically challenged” to one where “the doorstop shape is just one of the ways it turns heads, with unique styling elements almost everywhere. That includes the cabin, which has been elevated beyond the previous generation in a big way.”
As for its driving performance, Ilika said that, “While the previous Prius Prime was just fine to drive, this new one has been dialled up to premium levels. It’s smooth and serene, with excellent suspension damping, while it feels firmly planted in a way its predecessor simply didn’t.” A vehicle can be fuel-efficient, and this one rates as low as 4.5 L/100 km in combined driving in hybrid mode, but it also has to be enjoyable to drive if it’s going to be a well-rounded choice.
Our experts have extensively driven electric vehicles and recommend many of them, but the Prius Prime’s attributes, well-roundedness, and easy efficiency sent it to the top of the class, and it justifiably earned the 2024 AutoTrader Award for Best Overall Green Car.
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