In the Toyota Prius c name, the letter c stands for “city.”
Toyota described the Prius c as a city-centric vehicle: smaller and easier to maneuver than the regular Prius, with less cargo space and a stronger emphasis on urban driving. The subcompact hatchback was designed to give buyers a more affordable entry point into the Prius family while retaining Toyota’s gasoline-electric hybrid system.
The “c” does not mean commuter, clean or compact, although each of those words might seem plausible. “Compact” is especially tempting because the Prius c is smaller than the standard Prius, but Toyota’s stated meaning was city.
The concept version appeared in 2011, and the production car went on sale in several markets from late 2011 into 2012. In Japan it was called the Toyota Aqua rather than Prius c, while markets such as the United States used the Prius c name.