The Toyota Prius is still the most popular and best-selling hybrid car in the US and world today. When the Prius was released back in 1997 it pioneered the trend towards hybrid vehicles.
Purchases of the Toyota Prius started to rise as more models were released, even though, initially, sales of the now-popular hybrid vehicle were not very good. Toyota released its second-generation Prius in 2003 as the first midsize hybrid available to the public, and that year it was named Car of the Year by Motor Trend magazine.
