When I was at this year's Tokyo Auto Salon walking amongst the gobs of GT-R's, Evos and such, my eye was struck by this dark blue Toyota Prius that was in the Yokohama Tire booth. The car was built by Mooncraft which is one of Japan's oldest race car designers and has worked in many forms of motorsport including Super GT and Formula Nippon. With gas prices soaring around the world and growing concern about the enviornment, Mooncraft's latest project is part of the "Eco Tuning" movement.
Although this Prius looks like it's a Bonneville Salt Flats racer, the car's purpose is not speed but effeciency. The Mooncraft aero parts that have been fitted to the car add even more to the already impressive fuel effeciency that the stock Prius has. Now I am far from a big time enviornmentalist, but as a car guy I do think this is a pretty cool concept. Especially for a daily commuter. It shows that hybrid cars do not have to be soulless boxes and that the "hot rodder's touch" is continuing to evolve. I'm curious to know you what your guys thoughts on the matter are.
Mooncraft
-Mike Garrett
OFFICIAL SPEEDHUNTERS SUPPLIERS
it actually makes it a apealing car to own, compared to say, its oe style/look
DJJAW11
I think its a little spacey looking or cheesy like those efficiency solar powered cars from the late 90's BUT, i do like the idea of big tuners getting into this scene for ultra efficiency, i think that could appeal to many car fans and make this ultra efficiency appealing because these cars are worked on by "cool" companies. This could take off or bomb completely but im all for the idea of it taking off as something like this would certainly appeal to me for sure. It is definitely a unique take on the hybrid situation
I'd like to see one of those lightened as much as possible and then possibly optimizing the gearing if possible... A couple hundred pounds off would be interesting...
But maintain it as a daily driver ofcourse...
IMO tuning is tuning. engineering and calibration to achieve utmost efficiency. It's nice to see great aftermarket brain power spreading some love over to fuel efficiency.
I wouldn't complain at all, I hate the Prius in stock form, but this one actually looks cool! Me being a hardcore Citroen fan has something to do with it I think; I like how they covered the half of the rear wheel, just like on older granddaddy Citroens!
do i see Advan RS wheels peaking out in the back?
that's pretty cool. i concur with nitinj, i'd like to see that car go on a diet.
i wonder if any software tweaking was done...
I guess it does look like one of the future cars from Back to the Future II doesn't it? Haha.
Yeah it does kinda look like one of those ugly ford probes from 2015. Fuck hybrids. I want a hover conversion!
Top Gear ran an 'eco experiment' where they had a Prius driving as fast as it could vs. an E90 M3 which just had to keep up with it. Not exactly scientific but the mpg from the Beemer was better.
If I get in a car that is covered in stickers and visual mods then I expect people to treat me that way on the road. That means driving it harder than normal. As soon as you drive it hard you lose any kind of economy and the car becomes a waste of time.
These cars are seen as being kind to the environment but let's not forget the bad stuff that happens to the environment when they actually make the prius in the first place. Those batteries are EVIL!
Shape wise, I think it looks just like the Honda Insight.
u guys know that there is a tune or... tweak for this car to get around 300mpg? something to do with adding an extra battery, etc.
also heard about some guy turbo-ing it and making something like 200hp and 300tq, but that was like 2~3 years ago and i havent seen or read it for myself.
and i for one think they should make it more vip-ish, this thing does look like a late 80's concept like stated above.
interesting idea to make a prius more efficient, but did mooncraft post the mpg on this thing? it'll be a moo point if all these aero parts and $ only does little to improve the mpg
I would rock a black one any day, considering it's on air bags and low offset wheels ...