The Toyota Prius hybrid is no longer on sale in India. We have confirmed this with the biggest Toyota authorised dealerships in Delhi, Mumbai and Bangalore. Also, on the Toyota India website, the Prius Hybrid is shown as Out of Stock for all dealerships in the country.
Toyota had launched the fourth-gen Prius hybrid in India in February 2017. It was priced at Rs. 38.96 lakh (ex-showroom, Delhi). The relatively high asking price was a result of the fact that the Prius was brought into the country as a CBU (completely built unit). This sort of import attracts the highest tax slab applicable on bringing cars from other countries to India. As a result, despite being offered only in the top-end Z8 variant, the Prius didn’t find many takers in the Indian market.
The Toyota Prius launched in India came with a 1.8-litre, four-cylinder petrol engine that was mated to an electric motor to develop a cumulative output of around 120 PS. Thanks to the electric support, Toyota claimed a fuel economy of 26.26 km/l for the Prius hybrid.
However, with the advent of all-electric mobility, hybrids offered at such high prices have stopped making practical sense for customers. In India, Hyundai recently launched the Kona electric SUV. At the time of launch, the all-electric Kona was priced at Rs. 25.30 lakh (ex-showroom, Delhi). However, with the government slashing GST tax rates applicable on EVs, the Kona’s price in India dropped to Rs. 23.72 lakh (ex-showroom, Delhi). At this price, the Kona Electric offers an all-electric powertrain rated at 134 PS and 356 Nm, a claimed range of 452 km and DC fast charging. Being a Hyundai, the electric SUV is also loaded to the brim with features, including ventilated and heated seats, touchscreen infotainment system with Android Auto and Apple CarPlay, electric sunroof, automatic climate control, and cruise control.
With competition like the Hyundai Kona present in the green car market, there is no doubt about why Toyota decided to pull the plug on the Prius Hybrid in India. It is worth noting that the Prius continues to be on sale across the world, and has even received a mid-life facelift recently for the Japan market.