Car Statistics: Toyota - Prius Series (4 stars)

Styling (4 stars)

The design is a marked improvement on the previous model, but the Prius is still not going to win any beauty contests. Keeping the same basic profile as its predecessor, the Prius gets a racier front, with deeper bumper and sculpted, boomerang-shaped headlights. At the rear it's very familiar, although an integrated black spoiler and a deeper rear bumper are in keeping with its new 'sportier' image.

Handling (3 stars)

Most buyers are unlikely to be overly concerned with how the Prius behaves on the road, beyond whether it feels stable going round corners at speed (which it does). There's a touch of understeer when pushed harder on bends, but generally body roll is well controlled.

Comfort (4 stars)

The Prius's cabin is a pleasant place to spend time and benefits from a good driving position, thanks to plenty of adjustment and supportive seats in the front and rear. It is also light and airy, and although there is a little wind noise at motorway speeds, road noise is minimal, with the engine largely silent other than during harder acceleration.

Quality (4 stars)

There are areas of excellent build quality throughout the Prius, although some of the interior materials are a little disappointing. Hard - but eco-friendly - plastics adorn the majority of the dash and centre console, while some of the trim can feel a touch flimsy. That said, a lot of thought has clearly gone into the instrument panel, with features such as the head-up display giving the Prius a more upmarket feel. Being a Toyota, reliability should be excellent.

Performance (3 stars)

The new 1.8-litre petrol unit is a welcome replacement to the 1.5 that featured in the last-generation Prius. The new PWR mode button gives it a touch of extra grunt, which makes overtaking and going up hills a bit easier. And even when not activated, 0-62mph is achievable in a steady, rather than brisk, 10.4 seconds.

Roominess (4 stars)

Six-footers won't struggle for space in the front of the Prius and even in the rear there's decent legroom for someone of the same height: headroom is a little limited though, due to the sloping roof line.

Costs (5 stars)

Toyota has an official figure of 72.4mpg on the combined cycle for the Prius, although it is possible to achieve upwards of 80mpg by utilising EV mode around town, which allows the Prius to run on battery only for up to 1.6 miles at speeds below 31mpg. Staggering CO2 emissions of 89g/km also make it tax exempt, while insurance costs should also be quite low.

Value (4 stars)

Considering the number of modifications Toyota has made to this new Prius, it is almost unbelieveable that the price is unchanged. Standard equipment levels are much higher and include air conditioning, head-up display, front fog lights, six-speaker sound system and 15-inch alloy wheels, while extras also represent good value for money too.

Stereo (4 stars)

The stereo benefits from auxiliary connection and HDD music storage, and is intuitive to use. It sounds decent too. Sat nav is very easy to use and is available as standard on range-topping T-spirit models.