By Andre Palma
Inquirer

THE INEVITABLE came to my garage last week in the form of a charcoal gray, four-door hatch. The nondescript car mutely crept up the incline of the driveway and powered down in almost complete silence; such a voiceless way to announce an arrival of such significance. I stared at it for a while, trying to grasp the gravity and consequence of this automobile. And in the quiet darkness of the garage, I could swear all the other cars were staring too.

This is a car that for all intents and purposes, spells the obsolescence of almost every other car on Philippine roads today. Over a million units of this very model and its similarly powered brethren inconspicuously ply roads around the globe, leaving in their wake reduced fuel consumption and some of the lowest motor vehicle carbon emissions ever. The hybrids have landed and the 2007 Toyota Prius is at the tip of the spear.

Here’s a photo of the Toyota Prius hybrid in silver pine.

Old news

Hybrids and their symbiotic petroleum and electric engines are old news in the rest of the world but only a handful of these cars are in the country. Having already tested hybrids at both Honda’s Tochigi R&D and Toyota’s Fuji Speedway, one can only imagine my excitement for a test drive in the Philippine setting.

Your initial moments in a Prius cockpit can be a little unnerving. First of all, there is no physical key to speak of, just a plastic transponder that goes into a slot on the dashboard. Next is the start button one presses to bring the electrical and engine systems to life, a process that is uncannily silent and uneventful. It is in fact easy to forget the Prius is on at all, as the electric engine does not have the usual violent ignition process of traditional powerplants.

Info center

Secondary systems such as the air conditioning and the audio are accessed primarily through a centrally located screen with touch interface. This colored monitor also serves as your information center regarding the status of each of the vehicle’s engines, the massive 168-bank NiMH (nickel metal hydride) battery, trip information and estimated fuel efficiency.

Placing the dash mounted shift lever in gear gets the hybrid moving and things only get better when the car takes to the road. While some will think that the need for fuel efficiency and dramatic emission reduction take the punch out of this car, two minutes in this car will make you think twice about such an assessment.

Acceleration with conviction comes from the massive 400 Nm of torque available to the electric motor from the very bottom of the rpm band. Think of direct drive electric motors found on battery-powered remote-controlled cars and you will begin to understand the off the line acceleration of this Prius. Notable too is the way that the two motors seamlessly integrate with each other, handing off powering duties in a manner that is almost indiscernible to the driver.

Road feel and traction are generally similar to other passenger automobiles with the exception of a sensation of weight that lends an air of stability to the Prius, especially at speed. At somewhere around the century and a half-speed mark, this hybrid is comfortably planted and feels like it could keep going all day. The funny thing is that it probably could.

Fuel efficiency

While manufacturer-supplied fuel-efficiency numbers are often too incredible to believe, this particular car’s actual consumption makes one think twice about being too critical. Despite over 450 kilometers of standstill traffic and rocketing, flat-out on empty toll roads, the fuel indicator shows that a little more than three fourths tank remains. That, ladies and gentlemen, spells fuel efficiency in any language. Guiltless driving pleasure can be had after all.

Capturing the automotive spirit of this remarkable little Toyota has honestly been difficult because of all the overwhelming innovation. So it must be boiled down to its basics so to speak. Underneath all the gadgets and gimmickry, cars are all about the driving experience. And at the end of the day, some things about the Prius just make you want to drive it over and over and over again. That’’s what separates great cars from the good ones.