Join us this week as we take a closer look at the exciting 2026 Prius Nightshade edition. We delve into its distinct design featuring the exclusive Karashi Yellow color, which guarantees to turn heads. Whether you find yourself loving or questioning it, the unique hue sets the Nightshade apart from other hybrids on the road. Discover how the latest Prius continues to innovate with its plug-in hybrid variant, offering a blend of efficiency and style.
Okay, we are back in that time of the week where we do our car reviews. We play these again on Drive Radio on Saturday mornings, typically around the 1130 mark as well. So, Richard, what have you driven lately?
SPEAKER 02 :
Yeah, Dad, so I’ve driven a, I guess kind of a different car, but a fun one nonetheless, and that is a 2026 Peugeot. Toyota Prius Nightshade. This is the plug-in hybrid variant. And some of you are going to say, well, Richard, why is that any different than what you normally drive or whatever it might be? Well, this has an exclusive paint that’s exclusive to the Nightshade, a Karashi yellow. And I will say if this does anything bad, it stands out. Now, I’m going to say this. You will either love it or hate it. If you’re like my kids, I pulled up and they thought it was an exotic car just based on the color of it.
SPEAKER 01 :
Got it.
SPEAKER 02 :
If you’re other folks, maybe an adult, whatever it is, it looks like something else but you know what you’ll have to be the judge you’ll have to look it up again karashi yellow not good bad or otherwise just maybe not your preference or maybe it is your press preference but dad what’s on the night shade well this the night shade is new for 2026 and obviously it gives special trims and we’ve talked about this frequently dad right where a lot of these manufacturers kind of put out these specialty trim levels right that sort of get have a little bit different options on it as far as mechanically The car is pretty much the same, right? Cosmetically is where you find the differences, where it’s got blacked-out wheels, black trim pieces, certain things in that regard that is just a little bit different. It helps differentiate this model from other trim levels, which can be a nice thing for resale dad or just if you want to stand out a little bit down the road, right? You just don’t want to kind of run-of-the-mill Prius. Outside, as far as that can add, you’ve got some carbon fiber-like stuff on the interior. Just kind of sets it apart a little bit. I guess I mentioned black wheels, some black accents, door handles, things of that nature that just helps this car set apart. Outside of that, folks, if you haven’t seen a Prius dad in a while, I encourage folks to look at them because they’re different from years past, right? They’re not quite as… I’ll be honest, they’re not as ugly as they used to be. I actually think they sleeked them out a little bit. They’ve made them a little bit more attractive to drive to where it kind of feels like a little bit more of a traditional sedan. This is the plug-in hybrid variant. And for us, we’ve been able to get about 35 to 38. miles of electric only dad on the, I guess on the driving, right? Plug in. I’ve been on a level two charger for the past, uh, for the past week. And I recharge in about two to three hours. I think the specs are that it’s about four hours of driving or of charging, but I’ve been able to get two or three. What does that mean for you? Well, what it means for you is you can actually kind of get home. Maybe, maybe you’re going to go out for a date night later that night, that plug the car in, you’ve driven the car during the day. And you have the ability to get charged before you leave for the date night or at least get you another 15, 20 miles worth of electric capabilities, which is a really great feature. As far as overall fuel economy, dad, I think it’s on gasoline only. It’s right around 48 miles per gallon. It’s got a two liter four cylinder engine in it. It’s got 220 net combined horsepower. I mentioned that it was plugged into a stage two that it does come with. The options for both options, right, 120 volts and 240 volts in terms of a power connector, which is really, really nice. And depending on which aftermarket brand you’re looking at, that can actually be potentially about $1,000 in terms of an added value there. Outside of that, Dad, as I mentioned, if folks haven’t checked out a Priest in a while, I’d encourage that they do so. And I know you kind of Driven 1, it hasn’t been relatively recently, but you’ve done it since they’ve done the kind of, I guess, the updates to it. And they’ve really improved it quite a bit.
SPEAKER 03 :
They look a lot better. In fact, nothing against Toyota because I think this is actually a good move. It’s starting to look a little more Tesla-ish, if you would. In other words, it’s kind of taking on more of a Model 3 look. uh look to it which again isn’t all bad it’s sleek the front end is better i think the back end looks better this is by far the best looking prius they’ve had yet so yes they’re doing much better as far as their styling and all of that goes and and not saying it’s ever been an embarrassment to own a prius they’re a great car they work well a lot of people have them love them but it’s getting to the point now richard where it really does fit into every other car on the road and it’s hard to even tell it apart from others
SPEAKER 02 :
It does, and, well, Dad, actually one thing that’s kind of actually, in my opinion, helping this car set apart from others is the price point, and that is this vehicle base price is $37,795, and as it sits, $41,000. And again, Dad, that is including that special nightshade trim, which sets it apart. So you’re just over $40,000. You’re getting a car that’s maybe not a run-of-the-mill Prius, a little bit different, and like you said, Dad, kind of differentiating itself in a way. As far as – it’s got all the safety features that you want as far as the – I think it’s the Toyota Safety Sense 3.0 now. It’s got an optional touchscreen, JBL audio. It’s got an optional panoramic roof, which we’ve got in this test vehicle. It’s kind of like a dual-pane kind of sunroof in that regard. Really is a great – like I said, Dad, I just can’t say enough about it. And some of your listeners are going to say, well, it’s a Prius, Richard. Yes. Yes, Dad, it is. But again, I would encourage folks to get out and test drive them and look at them. Because I will say this, as far as size-wise goes, I do have to scoot the seats a little bit further forward in order to get kind of full boosters or your car seats in the second row. However, could you drive around four adults in this vehicle and not be hampered at all with it? Absolutely, you could. And it’s got a good front trunk space. It’s almost kind of like a hatchback in a way, Dad. I don’t think it’s a full hatch, although maybe I guess Toyota may disagree with me. But it does have a good amount of room in the trunk that allows you to carry some boxes and some soccer gear, football gear, whatever it might be that you’re transporting. So I encourage folks, check this vehicle out, Dad. I think they’ll be very surprised by it. Again, 2026 Toyota Prius. This is the nightshade edition, the Katashi yellow plug-in hybrid, as far as that goes. Head to your local Toyota dealer, test drive it, and when you do that, let them know that John and Richard Rush from Drive Radio and Rush to Reason sent you.
SPEAKER 03 :
This is John Rush from Rush to Reason and Drive Radio. Thank you so much for listening. Check out more of our podcasts at RushToReason.com or Drive-Radio.com.
