The Prius V (earlier post) was presented at Detroit and it featured 5-seats and the nickel-metal battery hybrid system of the standard Prius. The Prius V was also presented at the Geneva this week, but its name was changed to Prius+, while it featured three rows of seats (with a total capacity of seven passengers) and it was equipped with a Li-Ion battery hybrid system.
So, now the big question is what will be Toyota's approach for the Japanese Domestic Market. A Nikkei story via Reuters informs us that both versions will be available there. The article contains the first pricing predictions we’ve seen for the newest Toyota. While the least expensive current Prius in Japan is the Prius “L” with a base price of ¥ 2,050,000, they expect the 5-passenger Prius wagon with NiMH batteries to start at ¥ 2,350,000 and the 7-passenger Prius wagon with Li-ion batteries to start at ¥ 3,000,000.
An official English-language Press Release from Toyota Japan also notes that the Prius wagon will go on sale there in late April 2011, ahead of the late summer 2011 U.S. release of Prius V and the “first half of 2012″ on-sale date for Prius+ in Europe.
[Source: Kaizen Factor]