2026 Lexus IS 350 AWD F SPORT

Posted on by

You could quickly drive it a long way, I suspect. . . .

By Gary S. Vasilash

(Images: Lexus)

Several years ago, after the introduction of a sports car, back when sports cars were more finicky than reliable, a famous automotive journalist said to me, “I’d drive it to Tuktoyaktuk.”

In the pre-Internet days, finding out where that was (the northwestern corner of the Northwest Territories in Canada, or about 4,000 miles away from Detroit), was a challenge (but the sort of place that said famous automotive journalist knew about).

His point was simply he was convinced of the reliability of that vehicle.

While Lexus didn’t even exist when that comment was made, it always stuck with me when I think about vehicles I’m driving.

And I think that I would drive the 2026 Lexus IS 350 AWD F Sport to Tuktoyaktuk.

(Well, honestly I wouldn’t because I have a hard time imagining driving anything that far. But I think you get the point.)

Now certainly Lexus racks up the accolades for its reliability by many sources that measure that characteristic.

After all, when the company from whence it came is Toyota, which is certainly among the global best when it comes to quality, durability and reliability, and the charter of Lexus is to be even better, there’s that measure of confidence.

While I don’t think there are a whole lot of people in Detroit who would get an IS 350 or any other Lexus and make that journey, I do think that there are a whole lot of people in Detroit and everywhere else for that matter who want to be certain that should they get a sport sedan like the IS 350 they are not going to find themselves somewhere by the side of the road—even if that road is I-75—muttering expletives and waiting for the tow truck to show up.

But there is another thing about the IS 350 AWD F Sport that lends itself to a long drive (OK: a long Sunday drive, not necessarily a transcontinental feat) is that the driver’s seat is immensely comfortable. The right amount of bolstering. The right amount of squish.

Rarely do people write about a new vehicle and laud the seats (and I include myself in this), but when you think about it, what is the feature of any vehicle that you are more affected by in a drive of any length than the seat? Yes, there are a 12.3-inch infotainment screen and a 12.3-inch TFT LCD digital instrument cluster, and the availability of a 17-speaker Mark Levinson audio system. But the seat is really important. (OK: maybe that 12.3-inch TFT LCD digital instrument cluster is more important because you do need to know how fast you are going lest you get a ticket. And the IS 350 has a 3.5-liter V6 that produces 311 hp and 280 lb-ft of torque, so it can certainly go quick enough to get you in trouble if you’re not paying attention.)

Another thing about the car that is notable—and something that I had people comment to me about—is that it has sensational styling.

Sometimes a vehicle will have an appearance that indicates that it is fast, but it is only the appearance, not the actuality. Those vehicles remind me of my bicycle when I was in elementary school: once I applied those flame decals, it could go faster. (It couldn’t.)

The IS 350 AWD is the real deal.

Decals not included nor necessary.

Lightning Strikes Again

Posted on by

Well, maybe it is more like a static electricity spark than a full-on lightning bolt. . .

By Gary S. Vasilash

A recent piece in Bloomberg about the Ford F-150 Lightning is about how the vehicle has become increasingly popular on the used market. It wasn’t popular on the new market.

Edmunds currently lists four new 2025 models of the electric truck with MSRPs ranging from $65,940 for an XLT to $87,590 for a Platinum.

2025 Ford F-150 Lightning Dark Elements Package. (Image: Ford)

The Bloomberg piece quotes Jimmy Douglas, CEO of Plug, which wholesales EVs: “When Ford was selling it brand new, the math was complicated. But used, the Lightning is 50% to 60% of the sticker price and that is really a sweet spot; it’s an incredible truck for the money.”

Pretty much everything that is 50% to 60% below sticker is probably popular, too.

From 2022 to 2025 Ford produced some 100,600 Lightnings.

In May 2021 Ford started taking reservations for the truck. In the first 12 hours there were 20,000 people who made a $100 (refundable) reservation.

By December 2021, when there were nearly 200,000 reservations, Ford wisely decided to stop building the list. As it turned out in 2022 there were 15,617 Lightnings delivered, so if all of those 20,000 reservation holders for the first 12 hours hung on to those reservations, there would have been some people still waiting until 2023.

While it is interesting that people are buying used Lightnings, the numbers should evoke not much more than a shrug.

According to the Manheim Used Vehicle Value Index for Q3 2026:

“Used retail EV sales totaled approximately 124,000 units in the third quarter, the highest level on record, up 11.4% year over year, but still only about 2.8% of all used retail sales.”

Which means 97.2% of the vehicle sales in the third quarter weren’t EVs.

2026 Toyota Sequoia Capstone

Posted on by

Even though this is a big vehicle, it is also a hybrid, which provides all-important (especially now) fuel efficiency while not giving up anything in performance

By Gary S. Vasilash

 The Capstone trim has something called “Shale Premium” textured leather-trimmed seats.

The “Shale Premium” textured leather-trimmed seats. (Images: Toyota)

Those two adjectives actually say a lot about the Sequoia.

The first undoubtedly goes to the color that is characteristic of the sedimentary rock of that name. What I also didn’t know until I looked it up: shale is the most common sedimentary rock on Earth.

And the Sequoia isn’t exactly a “common” vehicle. Through the third quarter of 2026 21,403 were sold. To put that number in context, know that during the same period there were 60,271 Ford Expeditions sold and 79,570 Chevy Tahoes. For those who are interested in some exclusivity there’s a benefit there to the Toyota.

Shale is comparatively fragile, so it would likely not be used as an architectural capstone, which is a stone that binds the underlying structure together.

And this is a non-Sequoia characteristic. Even in the lux Capstone trim it is far from fragile.

It is based on the body-on-frame TNGA-F platform. To put that into something relatable, it is the same platform used for the Toyota Tundra, Land Cruiser, 4Runner, and Tacoma. None of which are fragile.

The Capstone is the top trim, which goes to the point of “Premium.”

So in addition to those leather-trimmed seats the ones in front are 10-way adjustable. There is American walnut wood-grain interior trim (which is certainly in line with where it is built, San Antonio, Texas, as walnut is fairly characteristic of the state). There are illuminated driver and passenger footwells. There is a 10-inch color head-up display. There is a 14-inch infotainment display. And there are 22-inch dark chrome alloy wheels.

And while on the subject of dimensions, the exterior numbers for the vehicle are:

  • 208 inches long
  • 79.6 inches wide
  • 74.5 inches high
  • 122-inch wheelbase

And inside:

  • There are three rows and a total of 157 cubic feet of passenger volume
  • And if the second and third rows are folded there are 86.9 cubic feet for cargo

While on the subject of numbers, the Sequoia has a “i-Force MAX” (sounds powerful, right?) twin-turbo V6 hybrid. It produces 437 hp and 583 lb-ft of torque. It has a 10-speed automatic transmission. It can tow 9,500 pounds.

In the 4×4 setup it gets an EPA estimated 19 mpg city, 22 mpg highway, 20 mpg combined. (Which I think must be in two high and careful treatment of the throttle.)

And a figure that is important: 8.6 inches, which is the ground clearance, which makes the Capstone power-extending running boards my favorite feature: If you are going to get into a premium vehicle you don’t want to have to undergo gymnastics.

Of course, there is a figure that is likely more important: the MSRP.

The base MSRP is $86.135.

Toyota Sequoia Capstone: impressive presence.

Toyota & Batteries: More Impressive Than You Might Think

Posted on by

Enhancing support for its portfolio approach to propulsion for consumers, it opens a new battery research facility

By Gary S. Vasilash

Toyota was once excoriated by environmentalists and journalists alike for having a seemingly less-than robust approach to electric vehicles.

The company that arguably put the word “hybrid” into the vocabulary with its Prius, introduced in the US in 2000, was charged with slow-walking its EV initiatives or putting out underwhelming vehicles.

The company argued that hybrids were more likely to appeal to everyday drivers and that as a global company it needed to address needs of drivers around the world, where even diesel might be the fuel of choice.

Meanwhile, it kept working on its powertrain portfolio, including EVs.

On October 1, Toyota and General Motors released their sales numbers for the first three quarters of 2026.

Toyota brand has three EVs on its list. Chevrolet has four EVs on its list.

And the numbers are these:

–C-HR:                             7,215

–bZ:                                  24,944

–bZ Woodland:                   2,600

==

–Blazer EV:                     4,427

–Bolt:                               8,090

–Equinox EV:                 18,154

–Silverado EV:               5,327

Which results in:

–Toyota:                          34,759

–Chevy:                           35,998

Not only is the “laggard” doing pretty well—1,239 behind Chevy—but looked at from the all-important aspect of scale, it is doing better:

Toyota: three nameplates, or an average of 11,586 units

Chevy: four nameplates, or an average of 9,000 units

What’s more, for the first three quarters the comparison with year-to-date sales in 2026 compared to the same period in 2025 by percentage are notable:

–C-HR:                             240,400%

–bZ:                                  103.4%

–bZ Woodland:             Not available

==

–Blazer EV:                     -78.7%

–Bolt:                               6,477.2%

–Equinox EV:                 -65.6%

–Silverado EV:               -43.2%

Overlooking the absurd results (in the first three quarters of 2025 there were three C-HRs delivered and 123 Bolts), it certainly appears there is growth in one company and decline in the other in terms of EV sales.

What’s more, because of its robust hybrid sales*, 55.3% of Toyota’s sales in the first three quarters are electrified.

GM’s figure: 4.1%.

Also on October 1, Toyota officially opened its Toyota Battery Center of North America (TBC) in Saline, Michigan.

This is a $50-million, 30,000 square-foot facility.

It will be used for the development and evaluation of lithium-ion, LFP, solid-state, and other battery chemistries.

And as the company notes, the new facility:

“Supports Toyota’s electrified vehicle lineup — hybrid (HEV), plug-in hybrid (PHEV), battery electric (BEV), and fuel cell electric vehicles (FCEV)

Yes, the entire electrified portfolio.

*In the first three quarters Toyota delivered 260,684 Camrys—all of which are hybrids. Sticking with the Chevy comparison, with the exception of the Silverado light-duty pickup (279,614 delivered), it sold no vehicle in the same time period that had sales even near the Camry’s—the closest is the Equinox, of which it sold 191,578.

New battery development and evaluation center at the Toyota complex in Saline, Michigan. Saline? It is south of Ann Arbor, where the University of Michigan is located. Toyota is a founding member of the U-M Electric Vehicle Center. (Image: Toyota)

2026 Mazda CX-50 2.5 Turbo Premium Plus

Posted on by

It all comes down to your individual taste. . . .

By Gary S. Vasilash

Back in 1995 Chick-fil-A began its billboard campaign with two cows painting on the sign “Eat Mor Chikin.”

And since 1995, especially in the past few years, there has been phenomenal growth in the number of fast-food outlets ordinarily associated with beef patties on a bun offering chicken in various configurations.

But chikin.

Now for the most part a sandwich here and a sandwich there are essentially the same. Sure, there’s some distinctive variations, but it is, to drag in another metaphor, variations on a theme.

The same but different.

Which brings me to compact crossovers, which are to OEMs what chikin is to fast-food operators.

Everyone has one. And there isn’t a heck of a lot of difference between them.

In the chicken sandwich world there’s Chick-fil-A and then all the rest. Which is something like the Toyota RAV4 in the compact crossover space. (Don’t be misled by the RAV4 sales being off during the first half of this year because the company is in the process of launching the sixth generation, so once the production lines are humming things will resume, undoubtedly.)

Which brings me to the Mazda CX-50.

Mazda CX-50 (Image: Mazda)

This is the first generation of the vehicle, which launched as a model year 2023 crossover.

It is the first vehicle that Mazda is producing at the Mazda Toyota Manufacturing plant in Huntsville, Alabama.

(Although I used the RAV4 for analogy purposes only, given the name of that plant you might be wondering what Toyota does there—no, not the RAV4, but the Corolla Cross.)

The CX-50 2.5 Turbo Premium Plus in question has a Skyactiv-G 2.5L turbocharged four-cylinder engine producing 256 hp and 320 lb-ft of torque. That’s if you fill the tank with premium. Nowadays you might opt for regular (at the time of this writing, the national average for premium is $5.35 per gallon and $4.45 for regular; a few gallons can make the difference on whether you get a chicken sandwich with fries or not). If you run it on regular then the numbers go down to 227 hp and 310 lb-ft of torque.

The vehicle features a six-speed automatic with paddle shifters. There is standard “i-Activ AWD,”

 on premium 93-octane fuel or 227 hp and 310 lb-ft of torque on regular 87-octane fuel. The engine pairs with a Skyactiv-Drive six-speed automatic transmission with paddle shifters and has standard i-Activ AWD.

And a word about that. This is a clever system that uses 27 sensors to determine driving conditions, both the vehicle and the environment. So rather than merely being reactive (i.e., wheel slippage occurs, kick on the system), it is predictive, basing what it does on those sensors).

The vehicle offers black badges and LED headlights. Automatic power-folding side mirrors and a full-color “Active Driving Display” (a.k.a., “head up display”).

On the inside there is leather and nice stitching on the trim. There are heated rear seats and a 10.25-inch color display.

The CX-50 is a very nice compact crossover. This trim is the top-of-the-line, so it has a starting MSRP of $42,900. The base trim starts at $29,000. There is an array of the ways you can have the CX-50 to fit your needs.

I know people who swear by Mazdas. And evidently through August, there are a lot of people who are opting for the CX-50, as it is now the best-seller in the company’s lineup.

Whether it is a chicken sandwich or a compact crossover, it is a matter of taste.

And the CX-50 is well done.

McLaren Racing & McLaren Automotive Get a New Look

Posted on by

Both companies share heritage, but no longer common ownership

By Gary S. Vasilash

Although this is a bit tricky in terms of names and history, McLaren was founded in 1963 by Bruce McLaren as an F1 racing team, Bruce McLaren Motor Racing. It had a name change in 1981 to simply McLaren Racing.

McLaren Cars was established in 1985. It had a name change to McLaren Automotive in 2010.

McLaren Group, an umbrella organization, was established in 1985, encompassing both operations.

However. . .

In March 2024 McLaren Group was acquired by Baharain’s sovereign wealth fund, Mumtalakat Holding Company.

In December 2024 CYVN Holdings, based in Abu Dhabi, purchased McLaren Automotive. So it is out of the Group but the racing team is still in the Group.

All of that said, McLaren has revealed a new brand identity that encompasses both McLaren Automotive and McLaren Racing.

There continues to be the boomerang like Speedmark:

But there is a new wordmark, which is based on a sign that was used at Bruce McLaren’s parent’s service station in Remuera, Aukland, New Zealand:

In announcing the new visual identity both firms made statements:

“There is something uniquely special about McLaren. Throughout our history, we’ve never been content to follow established paths. We’ve always looked ahead, driven by a restless desire to innovate, create and push beyond expectations. This evolution of our visual identity captures that spirit. It’s a reflection of the journey we are on as a company. It marks the beginning of a new chapter for McLaren, giving a physical expression to the ambition, creativity and forward momentum that is shaping our future.”
David Woodhouse, Chief Creative Officer, McLaren Automotive

“McLaren has evolved enormously over the years, but looking back through our shared history across Racing and Automotive, it’s poignant how much of Bruce’s original vision and spirit still runs through the business today. This evolved identity perfectly bridges that proud heritage with our future ambition. It celebrates the symbols and stories our fans, partners and team mates already know and love, while giving us a more connected expression of where we’re heading next. It feels unmistakably McLaren.”
Lou McEwen, Chief Marketing Officer, McLaren Racing

It is interesting how the two companies, owned by different companies, apparently continue to share a notion of what they are about.

Bruce McLaren, incidentally, died in 1970 while testing his team’s new McLaren M8D Can-Am car at the Goodwood Circuit.

He was 32.

2027 Kia Telluride Hybrid X-Line SX Prestige

Posted on by

Looks great. Carries plenty. And has great fuel efficiency. Yes, the proverbial “total package”

By Gary S. Vasilash

Let’s talk about the Kia Telluride Hybrid X-Line SX Prestige.

Say you’re going on vacation with your kids or on a road trip with your pals.

You need a vehicle that can accommodate people and the stuff that people bring along for the ride.

Maybe you need three rows.

And if you do, and you need space for stuff, 21.3 cubic feet might do the trick. If only need to bring along people who can fit in the first and second rows, then folding that third row flat will give you 47.7 cubic feet for cargo. (Were you to have no passengers, it goes to 88.3 cubic feet with the second row folded, but that doesn’t work with this imagined trip with people.)

2027 Telluride Hybrid X-Line. You could drive from Phoenx, Arizona, to Telluride, Colorado–in comfort–and still have gas in the tank upon arrival. (Image: Kia)

Now there’s something to take into account having taken into account people and packaging.

That is, whether it is kids or adults, odds are good that your passengers want to get to wherever they are going sooner rather than later.

Don’t get me wrong: The interior of the Telluride is superb, whether it is the leather-like SynTex material used for the seats or the dual sunroofs or the fast-charging USB-C ports in all three rows or the 14-speaker Meridian audio system or the heated and ventilated seats in the first and second rows or the. . . .

You get it.

This thing is exceedingly comfortable, roomy (passenger volume: 158 cubic feet) and well-equipped.

And for the driver, when on some routes where there are, say, lots of semitrucks hauling their goods to market, seemingly going faster and faster, perhaps so they can refuel before the diesel prices go higher, having a sizeable vehicle is a good thing.

The Telluride is 70.5 inches high (with roof rails, because you never know when you need even more room), 78.3 niches wide, 199.2 inches long, and has a 116.9-inch wheelbase.

What’s more, the driver is going to want to have something that is not only large under those (and other) conditions, but powerful. The Telluride Hybrid X-Line has a 2.5-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engine and a parallel hybrid system that produces a total 329 hp. And it is sure-footed, as in having standard AWD.

But back to that notion of getting there sooner rather than later.

And to one of the beauties of this vehicle which, incidentally, has absolutely stunning exterior styling (the X-Line trim provides a somewhat “rugged” appearance with things like a black mesh-typed grille and squared-off black bumper, blacked-out wheel arches, and other dark-themed elements).

The beauty in question here is the fuel efficiency.

It is rated at 30 mpg city, 32 mpg highway, and 31 mpg combined.

So you fill the 18.2-gallon fuel tank with regular. (Yes, regular.)

That provides a theoretical range of 564.2-mile range. But knock off 30 miles from that and you’re still comfortably above a 500-mile range before it is time to stop for a Slurpee, beef jerky and fuel.

And when you make that stop, you’re done in well under 10 minutes, ready to go another 500+ miles.

(I drove the vehicle from Detroit to Chicago. I stopped on the west side of Michigan to get gas because it was convenient, continued to Chicago, drove back to Detroit, and had plenty in the tank when I arrived.)

The efficiency means you’re getting your gang and your gear to where you’re going without delay.

2026 Lexus RX 450h+

Posted on by

This is what “continuous improvement” means. . .

By Gary S. Vasilash

The Lexus RX has been exceedingly popular since it launched in the US in March 1998. Arguably it created the luxury crossover segment. It was followed in time by vehicles including the BMW X5 (1999), the Acura MDX (2000), and Volvo XC90 (2002).

But year after year, the Lexus has been the top seller among all Lexus models, as well as having greater sales than those other crossover models.

This seems to have led some critics to maintain that the RX is somehow boring, perhaps because of its success.

Which is somewhat bizarre logic: Because it has such great appeal, it must not be as good as vehicles with less appeal.

Yes, those other models may have better performance or more capacity or something, but it is the package that people buy, and evidently the RX package has, from the first generation, been one with the greatest appeal.

It is now on its fifth generation. It is still settling the pace.

US sales through the first half of 2026:

  • RX:        59,904
  • X5:        41,554
  • MDX:    24,102
  • XC90:   22,538

“Oh, but it is too this, that or the other thing.”

Maybe.

But it is also clearly successful. All the more so when you realize that this generation RX was introduced in the market in the fall of 2022 and here we are four years later and it still has considerable appeal.

///

Lexus RX 450h+. A stylish plug-in hybrid. (Image: Lexus)

The RX 450h+ is a plug-in hybrid.

Said simply, it is a gas-electric hybrid. It is an AWD vehicle. So there is a permanent magnet synchronous motor in the front, a permanent magnet synchronous motor in the rear, and a gasoline-powered 2.5-liter four cylinder engine under the hood. All-in the system produces 304 hp.

But the “plug-in” part goes to the fact that, yes, there is a plug, which can be used to charge the lithium-ion battery. Note the “can.” It isn’t a requirement, though not taking advantage of this would be silly (you can use a regular home outlet, though there are other, more powerful options for charging).

What that fully charged battery means is that the RX 450h+ operates like a full-on electric vehicle for as many as 38 miles.

And when that runs out—and you won’t notice it when it does, unless you keep a keen eye on your gauge cluster—the vehicle operates like a hybrid, which means it is fuel efficient (and lest you think fuel efficiency = sluggishness, Lexus says it goes 0 to 60 mph in an estimated 6.2 seconds, which is probably true because they probably had a lawyer or two assessing the claim).

While the fuel economy measure is 85 MPGe, let’s face it: that’s fairly meaningless.

Know that I was getting 35.7 mpg after the electric miles were long gone.

And realize that this is a vehicle that seats five in comfort. It is a midsize crossover, measuring 192.5 inches long, 75.6 inches wide, 67.3 inches high, and having a 112.2-inch wheelbase.

That “in comfort” part is the essence, I’d argue, of Lexus.

Whether it is feeling the suppleness of the semi-aniline leather on the seats or simply looking at the ash bamboo trim in the cabin, this tells you that this is authentic.

Yes, there is a 14-inch touchscreen display and a 12.3-inch multi-information display (a.k.a., “gauge cluster”), but there are also knobs (e.g., temperature control, volume), so it isn’t all swiping (though you could should you be so inclined).

When the Lexus brand was launched in 1989 it used the tagline “The Relentless Pursuit of Perfection.” That was phased out in 2013. (It is currently “Experience Amazing.”)

Still, it is evident that the designers and engineers at Lexus know that working to achieve the utmost in quality and flawlessness is something they have to work at every day.

Whether or not that results in something “amazing” is certainly something that’s a personal assessment.

But unquestionably, whether predicated on sales or getting behind the wheel, the RX seems to be getting better and better.

2026 Volkswagen Jetta GLI

Posted on by

Remember when you had fun driving?

By Gary S. Vasilash

One of the problems with sedans is that people think people aren’t buying them and so being inclined to do what everyone else seems to do, those people go to a dealership and ask about a crossover.

But in point of fact, people do buy sedans.

For example, last year Toyota sold 248,088 Corollas and Honda 238,661 Civics, and although in each case there were some hatchbacks sold, for the most part they were straight-up four doors.

To put those numbers in perspective, know that in 2025 Buick—the entire division–sold a total of 198,155 vehicles, all of which were crossovers. Of the four models on offer, its biggest seller was the Envista, with sales of 58,949.

Over at Chevy, the only vehicle that outsold the Corolla and Civic was, yes, a crossover, the Equinox, which had sales of 274,356.

But then it is worth noting there were 316,185 Camrys sold in 2025, and the only model Chevy had that outsold it was the Silverado light-duty pickup truck, with 362,909 units, and pickup trucks are another story entirely.

Still, the number of mainstream sedans is small compared to the crossover segment.

VW GLI: a compact sedan that can do the daily activities and provide a bit of engagement while doing so. (Image: VW)

And a consequence of that is people who haven’t been in a sedan for a while have forgotten that driving—even while doing daily chores—can be, well, fun.

Now the VW GLI is a peppy variant of the VW Jetta, a compact sedan that competes with the likes of the Corolla and the Civic.

Peppy? Well, the standard Jetta has a 1.5-liter turbo I4 engine that produces 158 hp and 184 lb-ft of torque.

The GLI has a 2.0-liter turbo I4 that produces 228 hp and 258 lb-ft of torque.

What’s more, whereas the regular Jetta has an eight-speed automatic, the GLI is available with a seven-speed DSG, or dual-clutch gearbox, which quickly shifts gears (no clutch required). (The GLI is also available with a six-speed manual for those who are inclined to like clutch pedals.)

As visually the GLI is sportier, as well, with standard 18-inch wheels (rather than standard 16-inch), honeycomb top and bottom grilles, a red accent stripe across the front fascia, and an integrated light bar across the front of the vehicle. And on the inside, there’s red stitching on the leather seats and trim, metal sport pedals, and a 10-colar ambient lighting system.

The GLI has a multi-link rear suspension, a rear anti-roll bar, and sport-tuned gas-filled shock absorbers. All of which means it can be driven in a spirited manner and the setup helps keep things in order, yet when driven in a more straightforward manner it is a comfortable ride.

What may seem like a trivial thing, the steering wheel is substantial, which underscores the fact that this is a car to be driven, not some sort of thing that you climb into and then otherwise distract yourself from the act of driving.

And while the 8-inch infotainment touchscreen provides access to such things as navi, and Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, there is also a Performance Monitor that can be called up so as to get real-time driving performance data.

Because you never know when you might want to know what the G-forces are.

And you probably wouldn’t in crossover.

Grown-up fun in a car (yes, car) that starts at $33,795 that can also take the kids to school and carry the groceries.

2027 Toyota Prius Plug-in Hybrid Nightshade Edition

Posted on by

Although this Prius styling is a few years old now, it still looks fresh. . .

By Gary S. Vasilash

One of the things that automotive observers observed when the OEMs reported their 2026 first-half sales results was that the Toyota Prius had rather anemic sales: 19,518 compared with 33,845 for the first half of 2025. That’s a 42.3% reduction.

While not an apples-to-apples comparison, it is interesting to note that in the first half of 2026 only a single Cadillac model—one out of 10—had greater sales than that 19,518: The Escalade at 20,062. That’s 544 more.

Another not-exactly-a-competitor-unless-you-count-both-having-four-tires is the Jeep Gladiator. Its first half sales were 19,033, yet when it was recently suggested that Ford might come out with a Bronco with a bed on the back to compete with it, people said that it is a good plan.

But the falloff in sales of the Prius, the vehicle that is considered the first (it wasn’t: Honda launched the Insight in the US market about seven months earlier, in December 1999) and foremost (you’ve got to give it that), is somehow meant to indicate something, imply those observers.

Sure doesn’t look like what many people think of when “Prius” is brought up. (Image: gsv)

However, given that Toyota (and Lexus) total electrified vehicle sales—mainly hybrids, with some EVs in the mix—in the first half was 53.9% of total sales, meaning that there are now hybrids in vehicle architectures across the board, a falloff in Prius sales shouldn’t surprise anyone.

A friend whose involvement with the auto industry goes no further than owning a vehicle, saw the 2026 Prius and said, “Prius—wasn’t that the sort of clunky-looking one when it first came out?”

He was most impressed looking at the current generation—the fifth, and didn’t realize that the model launched in the US in early 2023.

But he, like many, owns a compact crossover, not a sleek sedan that, with the exception of the cutlines for the rear doors, appears to be a coupe.

And let’s face it: faced with a vehicle that has 91.2 cubic feet of passenger volume and 20.3 cubic feet of cargo volume (Prius) is going to have a tough time competing with a vehicle that offers 98.9 cubic feet of passenger volume and 33.6 cubic feet (with the second row in place) of cargo volume (the RAV4).

Simply stated: a sporty design is a tough sell.

Yes, people may really like the way they look, but when it comes to making a decision about making a purchase, utility usually wins. (And if it is a RAV4, Toyota won’t mind.)

The vehicle driven here the Nightshade Plug-in Hybrid (one of four trims, with the other being the SE, XSE and XSE Premium), yes, has an outlet so it can be plugged in (with a typical 120-v outlet, it can be charged in 11 hours, or about four hours with a Level 2 charger).

But it also has a 10.6-gallon gas tank that can be filled up in a few minutes.

Now the “Plug-in” part allows the Prius to travel 39 miles on electricity alone before the conventional hybrid system does its stuff. (The base SE trim goes 44 miles.)

Then when it is operating as a hybrid you’re looking at getting 50 mpg city, 47 mpg highway. And yes, I got 48 mpg while driving in combined situations—and the driving style was simply driving.

As electric vehicles use their range as a feature—and for many of them a 300-mile range is quite an accomplishment—know that this model can go some 550 miles before a fill up (and charge up) is needed.

The net system horsepower (that is, combining the 2.0-liter engine with the motor generators) of 220, which is certainly quite reasonable for a vehicle, especially if you look at those fuel efficiency numbers.

The Nightshade Edition has 19-inch alloy wheels with a black finish; black bumper trim; black doorsills; black shark fin antenna; and black front seats.

The Prius was once analogous to a pair of orthopedic shoes. Now it has high-fashion styling.

It still provides the fuel efficiency that other OEMs still only dream of.