What It Is: The 2015 Prius traversing Los Angeles surface streets with every last inch of sheetmetal obscured and looking a bit like a cloth-skinned armadillo. Even the wheels are covered. It’s been some time since we’ve seen a test mule wearing fabric cloaking this extensive, which indicates to us the exterior styling is either finalized or close to it. If it were just a matter of testing a mechanical or electronic component, any old test-mule camouflage would suffice.

Why It Matters: Despite growing competition from nearly every manufacturer, (hello Ford C-Max hybrid) the Prius is still the queen bee of hybrids. Each new generation of Prius demonstrates how far Toyota’s hybrid technology moves the bar, and how adept the automaker is at packaging it into a virtually invisible and user-friendly interface. Although it may have just barely missed out on achieving brand-synonym product status (à la “Coke” or “Kleenex”), the Prius still has a reputation—some may say stereotype—as the “go to” vehicle choice for the thrifty intellectual set. It’s probably not the sexiest demographic in consumerland, but one that’s often loyal to a fault, and Toyota isn’t going to risk losing them.

Platform: Although early reports indicated that the Toyota NS4 Advanced Plug-In hybrid concept it showed in Detroit last year offered a sneak peak at the styling for the fourth-generation Prius, you’d never guess it by the silhouette of the car in these photographs. Aerodynamics play a major role in any car focused on efficiency, so we expect it to be sleek, but the profile of the car pictured above is a near carbon copy of the current model.

View Photos BRIAN WILLIAMS FOR KGP PHOTOGRAPHY , THE MANUFACTURER

It does appear that the cowl is higher, and the forward rake of the A-pillars seems to be a little gentler, both of which would add to interior room, but this of course could simply be an illusion afforded by the cloaking. The tall rear end and sharp drop-off appear to be within spitting distance of the current car’s dimensions.

We also got a look at the dashboard, and the instrument panel appears more like a traditional multi-dial setup, not unlike that of the Lexus CT200h. Of course, under closer inspection the dashboard appears to be secured entirely with gaffer’s tape, so take that observation with a grain of salt. The center stack is also covered in tape, but we can still see a dash-mounted shifter as present in the current car.

View Photos BRIAN WILLIAMS FOR KGP PHOTOGRAPHY , THE MANUFACTURER

Powertrain: Automotive News recently reported that Toyota is planning to increase its production of lithium-ion batteries by a factor of six, but most sources indicate the next-gen Prius will still run nickel-metal-hydride batteries with mild updates to the powertrain and software. It’s likely Toyota will eventually switch to the more efficient lithium-ion battery pack, but the challenge will be to avoid a retail price increase.

Competition: Ford C-Max hybrid, Nissan Leaf, Chevrolet Volt, Honda Insight

Estimated Arrival and Price: Current thinking is the Gen IV Prius will debut on the show circuit this fall or early 2014 as a 2015 model. The base MSRP for a 2013 Prius is $24,995, and with increasing competition in the segment, Toyota won’t have much wiggle room to raise prices.

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