The Prius has more storage space than I thought.

One of the considerations when I was car shopping was that I coach youth baseball (13/14 year-olds this year) and that often involves lugging a fair amount of gear around. It's hardly a challenge to pack a large equipment bag (big enough to hold 3 sets of catcher's gear + 6 batting helmets), 4 buckets of baseballs, a couple of pop-up nets, my son's equipment bag and a moderate sized ice chest in the back of my Prius - with room to spare. Plus the storage area under the cargo deck has enough room for my full set of umpire gear/clothes/shoes and a small first aid kit.

As a bonus, since the back seats are folded down I don't have other parents asking me to give their kids a ride

 

I'm wrong (brain cramp!). It is actually 23" W x 24" H x 11" D. I lay it on its side in my Saturn. I will have actually try them, as you say, and see how and if they fit.

 

I can fit my entire drum set along with the guitars and mic easily. In fact the entire rock band fits in the backseat without being folded down.

 

just as a side thought...

if all your equipment doesn't fit into the Prius.. have you thought about pulling a small trailer? you would only use it to haul large assortments of items. it would be pure cargo room. (you would sacrifice some mpg)

i used to pull a trailer when i did construction as a general contractor. i was tired of putting lumber and concrete into my car. eventually it was a great accessory for helping friends move as i could fit a few queen sized mattresses along with cabinets. when all said and done, simply disconnect and go on your way. be sure to get a locking hitch pin and a lock for the hitch release mechanism. (so no one can steal your trailer)

or... if a little bit of extra is needed, they do have the roof cargo units. i heard they are easy to put on and off too...

 

I use my Prius to go surfing. As a silver surfer (over 50), I tend to use longer boards, mostly 8 ft or 9 ft in length. I can easily fit an 8 ft and a 9 ft board inside my 2005 Prius, on the right side with the seats down. This means that if I have a friend along, they have to sit behind me, but it still beats messing with surfboard racks. I do not own a 10 ft board. However, since I have room to spare with a 9 ft board, I am sure that most 9.5 and even most 10 ft boards would fit inside.

 

fyi... 10 ft items do fit in the car if they are on the passenger side with the 10th foot resting on the dash. (cover the dash with a towel or you'll scrape it)

this is how i used to transport 10ft long pieces of pvc for irrigation systems.

even 10.5 ft may work...

 

* Update * - I tried it this past weekend in a friend's Prius, and my drums fit with no problem. Amazingly, the width and depth dimensions of my Saturn VUE and the Prius are almost identical (Saturn a bit deeper; Prius actually a little wider). The biggest disparity was in height. The Saturn has at least 6" more vertical space than the Prius, so the drums sat "higher" visually. All in all, I was pleasantly surprised. The countdown to November has begun...

 

Yeah, we'll be another Doobie Brothers or Grateful Dead! Let's see...Grateful Brothers? Doobie Dead? LOL.

I trust you were on vacation? Hope you had fun.

 

My friend told me they bought a Prius for their son too and he uses his to carry his kayak and sleeps in the Prius on camping trips.

I carry gardening supplies like my fully assembled garden cart, bags of potting soil and lots of pots of flowers. Still had lots of room left.