The third generation of Toyota's flagship hybrid, the Prius, will debut in January 2009 at the Detroit motor show. The new Prius may be based on the Hybrid X concept, which was shown at the 2007 Geneva motor show.

It is expected that the new Prius will actually be cleaner than the current Prius. However, it is also expected that the new Prius will give up some of its fuel economy and environmental friendliness in favor of more sporty performance.

This change comes, in part, as other auto makers enter the hybrid field, or as they step up their efforts to put out new and improved next-generation hybrid vehicles. The Prius has faced very few rivals over the years since it was first released in 2001, but the new Chevrolet Volt from General Motors and the new, second-generation Honda Insight are going to try to give the Toyota Prius a run for its money.

Fans of the Prius are anxiously awaiting the release of the next generation of their favorite vehicle. It is believed that the new sportier Prius may help to reshape the image that other people have of the Prius into a more performance-based hybrid.