irishcar.com

7 February 2002: The Toyota Prius hybrid has won the Fleet Excellence Gold Award at an awards event in London where readers of Fleet Management and Fleet Week voted for the car in recognition of its practicality and versatility as an alternative fuel car.

Editor of Fleet Management magazine Guy Bird said Prius 'has wowed all who have experienced it' as being practical, economical and capable. "The Toyota offers a pointer to the future," he said.

At Drive 2001, the alternative fuel show last September, Prius proved to be one of the most popular cars for fleet managers to test drive. Since then a number of British Government agencies have added Toyota Prius to their fleets, including the Department of Work and Pensions and the Government Despatch Agency.

To the best of IrishCar.Com's knowledge, no Irish Government department has taken a Prius to its fleet. Some 20 Prius cars have been sold in Ireland since its launch last year.

The Toyota Hybrid System (THS) produces around half the carbon dioxide emissions and just one tenth of the toxic emissions of conventional petrol engine cars of a similar size. Tests have shown that Prius not only comfortably surpasses the current European (Euro III) standards, but that the car already meets Euro IV, which is not in force until 2005.

More information on the Prius.