When the “World of Toyota” automotive exhibit opened last week, President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo rolled about on the main stage in what looked like a hairdryer on four wheels. Futuristic, to be sure. Realistic—not yet, unless you want to get a perm on the highway. The more significant vehicle at the event was a comparatively ordinary-looking hatchback; the President is expected to take much longer drives in this one—the world’s best-selling gasoline-electric hybrid car, the Toyota Prius.

The Prius may look sedate when placed beside futuristic concept vehicles, but the car itself looks decidedly high-tech when compared to other showroom offerings. Rather than installing an innovative drivetrain inside an ordinary vehicle, Toyota designed a unique body for the Prius. That’s good marketing sense. If we were to buy a car whose main selling point was its being extremely fuel efficient and environmentally friendly, we’d want others to know about it, too. (Then we could also join the Prius owners’ club to hobnob with Cameron Diaz.) With only two known examples in the country, the Prius is the only Toyota that can attract as much attention on the streets as a Ferrari.

The ultra-modern appearance is partly due to the demands of aerodynamics. The single-plane hood and windshield, sharply sloping rear (resulting in an unusual triangular greenhouse), and a minimum of apertures in the bodywork allows the car to slice through the air with a minimum of resistance. Its coefficient of drag is among the highest of today’s production cars, at 0.26. The Prius not only looks like a dolphin; it’s apparently as slippery as one too.

The key technology of the Prius is its hybrid drivetrain. Under the hood, the Prius has two power sources: a gasoline engine and an electric motor. The engine is a 1.5-liter inline-4 with variable valve timing, good for 76 horsepower and 111 Nm of torque. The engine follows the Atkinson combustion cycle. The intake valves are held open longer than usual to effectively reduce the compression ratio and lengthen the power stroke. The result is greater efficiency to the detriment of power output. To make up for that, there’s the secondary power source, the electric motor. The motor provides a maximum of 67 horsepower, and impressive torque of 400 Nm from 0-1200 rpm. The torque is what you’d expect from a 5-liter V8 gasoline engine.

The Prius is designated as a “full hybrid,” meaning it can run on electric power alone. In low-speed (particularly stop-and-go) driving, the electric motor drives the car, getting its energy from nickel metal-hydride batteries located under the trunk. The gasoline engine fires up when more acceleration is needed, or to top up the batteries. When full acceleration is called up, the electric motor assists the gasoline engine to deliver a maximum of 110 horsepower.

 Getting the Prius ready for a drive is more like powering on a laptop than starting up a regular car. The Prius incorporates a convenience-entry system similar to the new Camry’s. We approach the car with the key in our pocket and the door automatically unlocks as we tug on the handle. With the key still in our pocket, we push a big power button beside the steering wheel. What happens next is…nothing. Or at least it seems that way, because there’s no sound and no vibration; the internal combustion engine has not fired up at this time. In reality, the battery and computers have begun supplying power to the various components, including the drive motor. Even with the engine off, we turn on the electrically-driven air conditioning.

As far as designs go, the Prius is a sleeper.  It's clean and crisp, but not fairly exciting. Badge on the boot gives a clue to the technology underneath.

Synergy you say?  Underneath the hood sits in tandem a Miller-cycle 1.5-liter inline-4 and an on-board electric motor. Computer does wizardry to pump utmost efficiency from these two powerplants.