Toyota Prius: 'Plastic' plants better for the environment

Read our Toyota Prius news report here.

You may never have heard of Kenaf and Ramie. Here at the Carsales Network, we certainly hadn't, until Toyota mentioned in a press release that the two crops were the source of their new 'eco-plastic' materials used in the production of "scuff plates, deck trim and seat cushions" for the new Prius.

The picture here shows -- in green -- the parts made from eco-plastic for the new model. While the content is small, across tens of thousands of cars produced at Toyota's Tsutsumi plant each year it represents a substantial reduction in petrol-chemical resource and CO2 emissions.

It might be inferred from Toyota's use of leather trim for the seats of the Prius i-Tech that that's another biomaterial used in the production of the Hybrid's interior -- although leather is notoriously toxic to produce. Any good for the environment done by adopting the (literally) 'organic' materials is at least undone by trimming the seats in leather.

But as a precursor to the wider adoption of the eco-plastics in future, what does the new Prius tell us?

We asked two of the Carsales Network editorial staff, Stephen Ottley and Feann Torr, for their considered opinion. These two blokes can be relied on to argue whether the sun will rise in the morning, so we felt confident that their thoughts on the general fit, finish and feel of Toyota's Prius, would be polar opposites.

So, did they like the feel of the eco-plastics and the look? Does the new material shape up to be durable? What are the prospects of it coping with the UV in our harsh sunlight? How does it compare with traditional petroleum-based plastics? Are there any passive safety concerns? Will it crack and splinter rather than bend in an accident?

"A soft plastic dashboard is not going to save your head," said Ottley, arguing on behalf of the hard plastic used for the dash -- refuting crash-safety benefits in soft plastic trimmings. But Torr was unconvinced, also citing aesthetic and tactile grounds in favour of a softer trim material.

"This to me feels hard and abrasive -- and it's not welcoming," he said. Torr admitted that he would be more tolerant of the dash material if he had been told that it was a bio-material rather than a petrochemical material. Both men were reasonably accepting of the textured pattern in the plastic though.

"I don't mind the [two-tone] colour scheme," said Torr.

"These are better plastics than [in the Kia] Cerato," observed Ottley.

Neither man could pick the eco-plastic parts from the conventional plastic and both were of the opinion that the eco-plastics should prove to be as durable as the conventional material.

"These would last a long time," said Torr. "You could bake these in 40 degrees."

The general consensus was that while the eco-plastic materials used in the new Prius are currently limited to such things as seat cushioning and scuff plates, there's no reason to believe that the biological material won't be used more extensively in future, as production methods improve and companies like Toyota are reassured that the new materials will match the conventional types for cost, durability and comfort.

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