Toyota Prius AWD to Cost $1200-$1300 More Than FWD Model
Adding all-wheel drive to your 2019 Toyota Prius will boost the price by around $1,200 to $1,300, the automaker told AutoGuide at the 2018 Los Angeles Auto Show.
The Prius currently starts at $23,475 in the US for the entry-level Prius One and tops out at just under $30,000 for the range-toping Prius Four.
The optional AWD system will be available on Prius LE and LXE models for 2019. Toyota has yet to announce pricing for the 2019 Prius, but it looks as though you’ll be able to get yourself in a Prius AWD for well under $30,000 US.
SEE ALSO: New AWD Toyota Prius Gets 50 MPG, Is Less Ugly
Toyota customers had been asking dealers for a Prius AWD for quite some time and they finally got their wish in LA last week. The Japanese automaker has added a single electric motor to the rear axle of the 2019 Prius, making it a bit more livable for customers in northern parts of the country and in Canada. The AWD system is the same that appears in the Lexus UX 250h.
“I think when you look across our sales, you really see that (with the Prius) we’ve always done a great job in the southern US,” Toyota North America general manager Jack Hollis told media in LA. “And it’s always been a bit more of a struggle the further north you go. I think adding AWD is really listening to the consumer. The consumer has been asking for a while.”
Toyota is apprehensive to put a figure on take-rate for the Prius AWD, however. The automaker said the goal with Prius was always to reduce green house gas emissions through mass adoption, so if adding AWD gets more people into the car, the rollout was a success. It’s not targeting massive gains, though.
“The easy way to say is I don’t know yet (how much of an impact AWD will have on sales),” Hollis said. “We’re hopeful, and hopeful’s not a good number. And I say that sincerely. We’re not really putting a.. in most cases we have sort of a KPI or some number specifically. It’s really not that.”
“But are sales going to increase? Yes. Is there going to be penetration in the North more? Yes.”
SEE ALSO: 2017 Toyota Prius Prime Plug-In Review
Hollis explained that Toyota’s vehicle debuts in LA, including the Prius AWD, Corolla Hybrid and even the Camry and Avalon TRD, were responses to demands from customers and dealers.
“We are listening closely to the consumer or specifically to our dealers,” Hollis added. “Our dealers have been asking for AWD on Prius. Our dealers have been asking for hybrid on Corolla. Or even TRD editions when we talk about the Camry and Avalon. These are extensions of what were hearing from the consumer to increase choice.”
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Sam McEachern holds a diploma in journalism from St. Clair College in Windsor, Ontario, and has been covering the automotive industry for over 5 years. He conducts reviews and writes AutoGuide's news content. He's a die-hard motorsports fan with a passion for performance cars of all sorts.
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