--- title: "I Drove a Yellow Toyota Prius and My Whole Town Fell in Love" date: "2026-01-28" modified: "2026-01-28" authors: - name: "Andrew P. Collins" job_title: "Executive Editor" link: "https://www.thedrive.com/authors/andrew-p-collins" url: "https://www.thedrive.com/news/i-drove-a-yellow-toyota-prius-and-my-whole-town-fell-in-love" categories: - "Car Reviews" - "Culture" - "News" - "News by Brand" - "Toyota News" - "Toyota Prius" - "Toyota Reviews" tags: - "compact" - "Prius" - "Toyota" --- # I Drove a Yellow Toyota Prius and My Whole Town Fell in Love ![People loving the Prius.]() *\Andrew P. Collins, stock.adobe.com\* The current, fifth-gen, [Toyota Prius]() blew a lot of minds [when it was revealed]() at the end of 2022. I figured that, by now, people would have gotten used to the design. At the very least, "Prius looks cool now" is hardly a hot take in 2026. But the public reactions I got to the yellow [2026 Prius Nightshade]() ... I'm telling you, people went absolutely nuts for this thing in a way I really did not expect. Where I'm based is rural. But, as much as I like to joke about being a boondocks redneck, I'm really not that deep in the country. The relevant context being: Brand-new Audis, Bimmers, Teslas, Rivians, and other six-figure luxury vehicles are not uncommon sights on the road around here. Heck, I had a [McLaren 765LT]() loaner for a few days this summer and did not notice a single reaction from randos and passers-by. Meanwhile, less than five minutes into my test drive of the Karashi yellow Toyota Prius Nightshade Edition, a woman in an oncoming Subaru gave me a big smile and thumbs-up as I idled through our tiny downtown's main street. Mere moments later, when I pulled into the gas station to raid the beer cave, a middle-aged guy climbing into a late-model Hyundai gave me an earnest "nice car!" ![Yellow Prius from the back,]() ![Yellow Prius from the front, high-angle.]() ![Yellow Prius from the front three-quarter (high-angle).]() "Ha, yeah, thanks, I like it too," I replied jovially. I always feel a little weird accepting compliments for a car I don't own and didn't design, but I also figure it'd be weirder to make a whole speech about my job here. Anyway, a car as normal as a Toyota Prius getting props twice in ten minutes is pretty wild. And over the next six days I spent with the car, I had no less than three more interactions with strangers expressing similar sentiments. An elderly lady coming out of a Walgreens actually stopped me as I was parking to tell me the car was "cute." I ended up talking to her for a bit; she regaled me with a story of a "cool Toyota" she once had but couldn't remember the name of (I think she was referring to an early Celica). Later, a dude in a third-gen Prius gave me a big nod and thumbs up as we passed in a parking lot. Finally, I took the Prius to talk to a local guy about buying a [go-kart]() from him, and he called it "one of the coolest things he'd seen on the road." So, yeah. I've been lucky enough to drive more than a few eye-catching new cars where I live now, and not a single one of them has garnered as much attention as the now three-year-old Prius design sprayed in a cool color. The experience reminded me of another test car I once had, years ago, that also got a surprising amount of love: A V6 Dodge Challenger in a hot-hot red. All this to say—you don't need a supercar to stand out on the road. A cheerful shade of color on the sheetmetal goes a long way. Karashi yellow is only available on the [Nightshade Edition of the 2026 Prius](), which starts at about $34,000 as reviewed last year. The name refers to [Japanese mustard](), and indeed, the hue is more mustard-y than banana. To my eye, it's brighter and glossier than CAT construction-vehicle yellow but not quite as loud as, like, Pittsburgh Steelers yellow. I dig it, and my neighbors did too. Here's hoping it inspires more people to buy daily drivers in fun colors. ![Prius in a majestic setting.]() *Andrew P. Collins* *Ever have any interesting experiences driving a brightly colored car? I'd be interested to hear about it—andrew.collins@thedrive.com.* ## Author As Executive Editor, Andrew touches everything on the site from daily news coverage to feature stories, sponsored content, product reviews, road testing vehicles, ecommerce, and more. He's held pretty much every role there is to have at an automotive news site and has been with The Drive's publisher Recurrent since 2020. Andrew's a lifetime gearhead and longtime writer with a particularly strong penchant for road trips, off-road adventures, and archaic vehicles. His passions outside of the automotive world include skiing, obsolete video games, and his dog Bramble who occationally helps review cars. ### Author social links [Instagram]() [LinkedIn]()