The darling of Hollywood, the Toyota Prius Prime was declared the 2017 World Green Car today at the New York International Auto Show. That comes as no surprise as the Prius has always been the de-facto green car standard in the US.
This is the second consecutive year Toyota earned the World Green Car title. Last year the award went to the Toyota Mirai (which uses fuel cell).
“It is a great honour to see the Prius Prime named World Green Car,” said Jack Hollis, group vice president and general manager of Toyota division. “For global automakers like Toyota, this award is a testament to our focus on developing products that both stir the emotions and meet the mobility needs of our customers in all corners of the world.”
The Prius Prime was chosen from an initial entry list of 12 new vehicles from all over the world. Tailpipe emissions, fuel consumption, and use of a major advanced power plant technology (beyond engine componentry), aimed specifically at increasing the vehicle’s environmental responsibility, were all taken into consideration.
Toyota is no stranger to the World Car Awards program, now in its 13th year. In addition to the Mirai’s win last year, the Toyota Prius earned “Top Three in the World” status in 2010 for both the World Green Car and the overall World Car of the Year categories. The Toyota GT86 was a “Top Three in the World” finalist for 2013 World Car of the Year; the Toyota iQ in 2009 for the same category and the Toyota Harrier Hybrid for 2006 World Green Car.
Vehicles in all award categories are selected and voted on by an international jury panel comprising 75 top-level automotive journalists from 23 countries around the world.
