The first-generation Toyota Prius went on sale in Japan in 1997.
Toyota introduced the original NHW10 Prius on December 10, 1997, after unveiling a hybrid concept at the 1995 Tokyo Motor Show and conducting development testing in 1996. The sedan was sold only in Japan during its first phase, giving Toyota an early lead in bringing gasoline-electric hybrid technology to mass-market buyers.
The Prius was designed around Toyota's Hybrid System, which combined a 1.5-liter gasoline engine, electric motor-generators, a nickel-metal-hydride battery, and a power-split transmission. Regenerative braking helped recover energy that would otherwise be lost as heat, while the electric motor assisted the engine during acceleration.
People sometimes confuse 1997 with 2000 or 2001. Toyota began broader overseas sales with the revised NHW11 version in 2000, and the Prius carried U.S. model years beginning in 2001. Those later dates describe international availability or model-year labeling—not the car's original Japanese launch.