AIC release bulletin on new Prius
AIC Ezi-Methods has released a technical review of the new Toyota Prius 4, to ensure its customers stay ahead of the technology curve.
The new Toyota Prius 4 is due on our roads late 2015, early 2016, and to date, not a lot of official data has been released on the vehicle. However, from data accumulated by AIC and thanks to its unrivalled vehicle engineering knowledge, this technical bulletin offers great insight on the vehicle.
AIC Ezi-Methods engineering director Andrew Marsh commented, ‘The fourth generation of Prius owes very little to the previous vehicle and uses a brand new platform, Toyota New Global Architecture (TNGA). This is big, BIG news. This platform will appear under most of the Toyota range over the coming years so now is the time to start understanding.’
‘Prius 4 challenges what we know in a big way. Laser Screw Welding is just one example. This gives a good insight into how Auris, Avensis, RAV-4 and more will look in the short term.’
Of course Prius 4 is still a hybrid drive vehicle, but now has the option of four wheel drive. Critically the body has a challenging range of material. Knowledge and understanding are vital. Along with a complex mix of 1500 MPa alloy steel as well as 980 MPa alloy steel and also aluminium alloy, AIC Ezi-Methods predicts repair challenges for anybody without up to date information.
The electrical equipment is comprehensive, ranging from electric seat heating, electric steering wheel heating, bi-LED headlights, forward facing RADAR, CMOS camera in the windscreen and light clusters that extend deep into both the front as well as rear bumpers. The breakdown of information in these areas is imperative.
Andrew Marsh explained, ‘The high voltage system appears at face value to be very similar to previous models. However, crucially the low voltage as well as the high voltage batteries have moved. That means repairing the Prius 4 for all sorts of reasons should not be approached the same way as Prius 2 or Prius 3.
In a fast moving technological world, it has never been more important to get a summary on new vehicle arrivals before they arrive and to be ready for repair, something that AIC Ezi-Methods clients value and are well placed to do.
