So I recently moved my family. I'm learning to navigate my new neighborhood and I parked my 08 Gen 2 next to a Model Y at the grocery store and when I got out..the length and shape of the car body caught my eye. My prius was in the foreground and with the Model Y next to it. The body shape was strikingly similar....I never noticed that before and with all the Model Y's around I will take some pictures next time. It is not a surprise given laws of aerodynamics and when seeking the lowest drag coefficient cars will all look the same eventually. With the gen 3 prius I know more buyers wanted sunroofs, leather, heated seats...etc and thus they changed the body styles.....i wonder if the 2024 Prius from the spy shots we have seen will look more like the Model Y and the Gen 2. We shall hopefully soon see.
Update. Well the Gen 5 looks a bit more like the Model 3. Still trying to get that photo someday but I am Travelling a lot and only go to the store once a month or so... I need to find a neighbor with one.. and do a photo shoot.
If you are designing for aero, how much variation is possible? Thought I heard/read that the 3 and Y were having some light aero mods soon.
Traditionally all manufacturers buy the other company's car so they can check out what's going on. But it when it comes to an aero shape, and you look at the different manufacturers' sedans like the accent, volt, Civic, model3 etc - the new Prius is similarly shaped. That's no coincidence. You want to have passenger room and cargo room as well as the right shape to cut through the air. .
