For those interested, yesterday my SA told me that I can get the Prius C by March (already booked at Jan), and the price has been reduced to 97k+ (OTR I guessed).

Saw the car in Toyota showroom in Larkin, JB today.

The interior quality is not that much inferior to my current Civic 8th gen. The issue, if any, is the new styling of white color hard plastic with green fluorescent strip at the doors and half of the dashboard area. This styling might be too futuristic for some, but could be good for people with a taste for novelty. Quality of all plastic (black and white) parts are better than seen on photos. But the steering wheel handle is plastic, not the leather type in normal Prius.

I did not get to see the default radio unit (show car is equipped with the optional dvd-avn system), so can't commend on its quality.

Other than that, the front seat cabin space is comparable to my civic 1.8 (surprisingly), but rear seats are much more limited. Default configuration include free aeroback and spotlight. Cushion materials comprise three type of textiles, no idea how it works in real life.

So I end up signing the contract, should be able to get the car in mid-march.

I didn't ask for any discount, more focus on trading in my old car for good price. So paid 97000 OTR.

As for the DVD-AVN, I tried the one in Prius, the reverse camera is quite awkward to use (maybe I am not used to it), and also I already has my own portable GPS (with like unlimited updates ), so did not buy it.

I spent quite sometime in the showroom checking the plastic, its about the same quality as my civic or my brother's altis. It is the color and pattern that turn some people off I guess.

Based on my research:

Con
- Not so fancy interior
- Cargo and backseat space (front seat is actually spacious)
- Second hand value?? (I talked to some secondhand car trader, but no one is sure how the battery affects it)

Pro
- Fuel economy
- Safety (7 airbags, VSC, ABS, TSC etc.)
- Reliability (Japan CBU)

Acceleration is average (0-100km/h 10.6-11.3sec), handling is better than prius but nothing to write home about.

Because many people know that a car is much more than just personal taste for fancy interior or perceived company image. You might see it differently when you actually look at all the pros and cons (safety, features, reliability, fuel etc., see my previous post).

This post has been edited by pweic: Mar 8 2012, 10:17 PM

The upgrade is 2990, not 6k. I am getting mine at 16th March (booked at jan), add toyota tint for 1400, but not the dvd-avn.

Got my car today. I am not an auto expert though, so can only compare it to my civic (current gen) that I trade in for this.

Sound insulation: Excellent, much quieter than civic.

Dashboard display: Not very used to the lack of rpm meter, but the digital speed display is the same as civic, with higher readability due to the black background. The colorful LCD display while beautiful, I dun think would be used frequently in the long run unless you are very concerned of fuel consumption. Overall satisfactory.

Engine and brake noise: Acceleration is smooth, slightly slower than civic, but lack of engine noise makes it hard to tell how fast you are going. Braking noise is like many have said, slightly disturbing, like flying a airplane.

Front seat space: The front car cabin feels higher than civic, while width slightly narrower.

Keyless entry and engine start/stop system: Excellent, really like it.

Cornering: Very good, since turning radius is only 4.8.

Hah, the trade in price of Civic is so high (75k) that I figure it is in high demand. Main reason for the change is that
(1) I prefer a smaller car, easier to park and maneuver, and I drive alone most of the time,
(2) my civic at 6th year old (bought at april 2006, one of the first on the road I guess) has started to show sign of wear and tear, suspension is giving up, rubber trim are fading, my vkool is getting blurrer day by day, cloth cover stay dirty no matter how u wash it.... so time for a change before something bigger pops up.
(3) the better accessories, keyless entry, japan built quality and 7 air bags of prius c kinds of make it feel like an upgrade for single driver like me.

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Added on March 19, 2012, 9:29 pmActually it is only more quiet if you ignore the braking sound, it is always there haunting you....

This post has been edited by pweic: Mar 19 2012, 09:29 PM

Huh, I didn't get to drive EV mode with pedestrian nearby, pretty dangerous. But as far as I know the car doesn't have pedestrian sensor (whatever it is called), so it shldn't be able to. If you are talking about constant sound to alert pedestrian, then no I didn't hear any. In fact the function of EV mode is not to wake up your neighbor in the dense Japan residential area.

This post has been edited by pweic: Mar 19 2012, 10:00 PM

Btw, the backseat and cargo are sort of limited compared to Civic, so if you have children riding along it might not be suitable.

Offtrack a bit...
Actually for anyone who has been to Japan residential area or commercial carpark they would understand why Prius C sells like hotcake (6 month waiting) while Civic totally bombed over there. Their parking space and cornering allowance in carpark are terrible, so small that I kept taking picture and study how Japanese park their cars, Civic has terrible turning radius btw. They seems to me not particular about style, most cars are in white or silver color.

Do let us know when it is available in Malaysia.

Also anyone know of any brake lock for Prius C in the market?

I often drive at 15-25km/h around my neighborhood and I can tell the speedometer is pretty accurate, no delay whatsoever.