I'm actually kinda stoked about it. Golf GTE aside, it's the only attempt any manufacturer has made recently to deliver a hybrid model that could actually be fun to drive.
I was thinking more at the lower end of the scale! Big fan of both the NSX and the BMW i8, and for that matter the i3, but the idea of a hybrid hot hatch has been notably absent aside from the Golf.Exactly - the new Honda NSX is so boring, right?
I get what you mean though, it is nice to have some excitement injected into more mainstream hybrids without sacrificing practicality (I'm looking at you, Honda CR-Z!) If the upcoming 180hp Corolla Hybrid is given the GR Sports treatment, it could be the first direct competitor to the Golf GTE.
It's the same over here. The 5-door hatch rules. A Mazda 3 sedan, Yaris sedan, Corolla sedan, Jetta, etc, are a rare site, compared to their hatch siblings.I mean, I guess that makes sense. If you're busy trying to fit your two shopping carts' worth of Costco into the hatch in the middle of winter, it's going to get cold in the car.
Perhaps it's the Canadian — or at least, Montreal/Toronto — desire to appear more European that hatches are more popular here. I see way more Fiesta hatches than the ungainly sedan (not that I see a lot of either, but still), and while I don't have exact numbers, I'd say the Mazda 3 is probably a 50/50 split. The only one that seems to be a holdout is the Civic hatch, where I'd wager it's something like 80-1 in favour of the sedan.
Hope you win that bet.
Haven't heard anything or seen any spy shots. There must be one in the works as the current model is really getting on now (eight years, two major facelifts and counting), but I imagine as small cars go it's doing fairly well for Toyota. It must have paid for its manufacturing costs long ago now, and in Europe at least the hybrid is the big seller, and given that essentially uses the drivetrain from the second-gen Prius it too must be pretty much all-profit now.
