With the launch of the 2015 Toyota Prius, this model vehicle turns 18 years old and remains the hybrid against which all others are judged. The Toyota Prius is manufactured by Toyota Motor Corporation and first went on sale in Japan in 1997. It was introduced worldwide in 2001. Now it is sold in over forty countries.

1. Toyota Prius History

2. With the launch of the 2015 Toyota Prius,
this model vehicle turns 18 years old and
remains the hybrid against which all others
are judged.

3. The Toyota Prius is manufactured by Toyota
Motor Corporation and first went on sale in
Japan in 1997.

4. It was introduced worldwide in 2001.

5. Now it is sold in over forty countries.

6. Toyota Prius Name Comes From Latin

7. The name Prius is Latin and means "to go
before", and that is what Toyota Motor
Corporation hoped that it would be, namely
the first hybrid that would come before
others that would eventually follow.

8. According to the United States
Environmental Protection Agency, the Prius
is the most fuel efficient car that is sold in
the United States.

9. The technology has had its issues over time.

10. For example, its batteries have been prone
to dying if the the vehicle sits unused for
over a month.

11. When the battery quits the vehicle has no
electrical power and thus is completely
inoperable.

12. Toyota recommends to owners that if the
vehicle is going to sit for an extended period
of time that a battery trickle charger be used
to keep the battery in the vehicle charged
for use.

13. When the Prius was first offered for sale in
the United States, not everyone was
impressed with its preformance.

14. The first Prius took thirteen seconds to
accelerate from a stop to 60 miles per hour.

15. Regardless of this less than steller
performance, sales of the Prius exceeded
Toyota's first years projections.

16. Toyota Prius And Hollywood

17. Then Hollywood came calling.

18. When some famous Hollywood stars started
purchasing the Prius, others began to take
notice.

19. Then in 2003, the Prius was introduced with
a significant redesign and potential buyers
found it to be a bit more stylish.

20. The end result was that sales skyrocketed
and buyers found themselves having to wait
for months to get their hands on their own
vehicle.

21. I myself, have been driving a hybrid vehicle
since 2004.

22. My vehicle is a Nissan Insight.

23. Even after eleven years I still get over 50
miles per gallon.

24. With today's gas prices it costs me about
$25 to fill up and I can drive over 500 miles
on that single tank of gas.

25. The Prius model now has over 20,000 sales
per month.

26. There are also many more models of hybrid
vehicles to choose from today.

27. The Toyota Prius did in fact "go before" and
now has its own place in hybird history.