Toyota Prius

If you've never heard of the Prius, you've also never seen standup from hacky 2000s-era comedians, attended a Greenpeace rally or screamed at a coastal elite from your coal-rolling brodozer. For better or worse, the 2022 Toyota Prius is the unofficial mascot of the eco-conscious movement, as well as being the go-to pick for Uber and Lyft drivers. This small hatchback is one of the most efficient hybrids on the market, though the fuel savings come at the cost of a jittery ride, lethargic acceleration and a subpar infotainment interface. Rivals including the Honda Insight and Kia Niro are more luxurious and comfortable, and only slightly thirstier.

Given this generation's advanced age, we have to believe that a new Prius is right around the corner. Alas, Toyota's ultra-popular hybrid soldiers on virtually unchanged from last year's model. The primary difference is that the 2020 Edition trim level (which, somewhat confusingly, was only available for the 2021 model year) has been replaced by the Nightshade variant. But since they share a similar feature set, you can think of this as a mere name change.

What's it like to live with?

To learn more about the Toyota Prius of this generation, read about our experiences from living with a 2016 Toyota Prius. After its debut, we went out and bought one and racked up more than 30,000 miles. We cover everything from this hybrid's real-world fuel economy to seat comfort and cargo space. Please note that the 2022 Toyota Prius differs from our long-term 2016 model in that the newer model has updated styling and more standard features. It's the same generation, though, so most of our observations still apply.

Which Prius does MatoCar recommend?

There are two trims that stand out in the Prius lineup. The base L Eco wins accolades for its reasonable price and abundance of standard features. But if you have a little wiggle room in your budget, we think it's worth upgrading to the XLE. Its imitation leather upholstery and trim goes a long way to dress up the interior, and upgrades including heated front seats and an auto-dimming mirror will pay dividends in everyday use.

The 2022 Toyota Prius is a four-door hatchback hybrid that seats five passengers. The front-wheel-drive model is available in five trim levels: L Eco, LE, XLE, Nightshade Edition and Limited. The Prius AWD-e, which has all-wheel drive, is offered in the LE and XLE and Nightshade Edition trims only. All Prius models are driven by a 1.8-liter four-cylinder engine paired to a hybrid powertrain (121 total system horsepower) and a continuously variable automatic transmission. Significant features include:

L Eco Fairly basic but includes:

15-inch wheels
Automatic LED headlights
Heated mirrors
Keyless entry (driver's door only) and ignition
Automatic climate control
Height-adjustable driver's seat
7-inch touchscreen
Six-speaker audio system
Apple CarPlay, Android Auto and Amazon Alexa compatibility
Wi-Fi hotspot

All Prius trims also come with:

Adaptive cruise control (adjusts speed to maintain a constant distance between the Prius and the car in front)
Lane departure warning (alerts you if the vehicle begins to drift out of its lane)
Automatic high beam control
Road sign assist (displays relevant road signs such as speed limits)
Automatic emergency braking (warns if a front impact is imminent and applies the brakes if you don't respond in time)
Blind-spot monitor (alerts you if a vehicle in the next lane over is in your blind spot)
Rear cross-traffic alert (warns you if a vehicle behind you is about to cross your vehicle's path while you're in reverse)

LE Adds a few features, with:

Rear window wiper
Cargo cover
Parking sensors (alert you to obstacles that may not be visible in front of or behind the vehicle when parking)
Automated parallel parking system (steers into a parking spot with no driver intervention)

XLE Adds nice-to-have features such as:

17-inch wheels
Rain-sensing windshield wipers
Keyless entry (for both front doors and rear hatch)
Auto-dimming rearview mirror
Heated front seats
Simulated leather seating surfaces (SofTex)
Heated and SofTex-wrapped steering wheel
Power-adjustable driver's seat
SofTex-trimmed door panel
Wireless charging pad

Nightshade Edition New for 2022, the Nightshade Edition model builds off the XLE trim and adds unique visual touches such as:

Black-painted 15-inch wheels (Prius AWD-e)
Black-painted 17-inch wheels (Prius)
Black exterior trim elements

Limited Tops the range with:

Adaptive headlights (swivel as you turn the steering wheel for better illumination in curves)
Head-up display (displays important information in your sight line on the windshield)
Navigation system
11.6-inch touchscreen
10-speaker JBL audio system

The Prius doesn't offer much in the way of option packages, but there are a handful available for certain trims. On the options list are: