New Car of the Year Title Leads Triple Success for Toyota Prius in the 2019 Auto Express Driver Power Awards
The Toyota Prius has seen off all comers in the 2019 Auto Express Driver Power survey to take the gold award as the New Car of the Year.
The honour is all the more significant for being based on the opinions and real-world experiences of thousands of UK motorists.
Prius – the world’s original and best-selling self-charging hybrid car – recorded an emphatic Driver Power performance, claiming further awards for topping the survey’s Compact Family Car category and achieving the best ranking for miles-per-gallon performance and running costs, both for a second consecutive year.
Across four generations and 20 years of sales in Britain, Prius has consistently raised the bar not just for exceptional fuel economy and low emissions, but also for lasting, reliable quality and pioneering use of new technologies for greater performance, safety and on-board comfort.
The current Prius, introduced in 2016, was the first model to feature a new Toyota New Global Architecture (TNGA) platform, the foundation for significant advances in ride and handling, safety, design and driver rewards. Further development of the Toyota Hybrid System yielded equally impressive improvements in efficiency and responsiveness, with official combined cycle figures of 59.6 to 68.35mpg (WLTP data) and CO2 emissions from 78g/km (NEDC correlated data). This efficiency is central to Prius’s low cost of ownership profile, together with its proven durability and the low maintenance requirements of its hybrid system.
True to its heritage of innovation, the 2019 Prius is the first Toyota hybrid car to be available with a bespoke, intelligent all-wheel drive (AWD-i) system. This new option automatically provides extra grip when pulling away, or in slippery conditions, improving safety and giving the driver extra peace of mind.
Steve Fowler, Auto Express Editor-in-Chief, said: “The Toyota Prius has long been the world’s biggest-selling hybrid, but according to our readers it’s also Britain’s favourite car. Its rating of 93.22 per cent means it’s not only the Driver Power New Car of the Year 2019, but also ranked the number one Compact Family Car and the top choice for buyers who place fuel economy and running costs at the top of their list of priorities. The results are proof, if any were needed, that hybrid cars are here to stay.”
Andrew Cullis, Toyota GB Marketing Director, said: “Prius has won many awards over the years, but success in the Driver Power survey is particularly significant as it directly reflects the great satisfaction owners have in their vehicle. Their enthusiasm and appreciation demonstrates how Prius remains the touchstone for the benefits our self-charging hybrid technology and our commitment to making ever-better cars.”
The Driver Power survey, now in its 17th year, gathers the opinions of thousands of British motorists about the cars they own, the problems they encounter and the service they receive from manufacturers, retailers and workshops.
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