LRR tire 195 55 R15

Why are you wanting to go smaller in diameter?

The 195/55/15 is approx. .6" shorter than the 175/65/15.

You'll likely see better handling than if you went with a 195/60/15 but your tire choices are more limited and fuel economy will likely be worse partially because of diameter and mostly because of a lack of really efficient tires. Would a 185/60/15 series tire be a better comprimise? What are you main goals?

 

Yes 195/60 will be closer to OEM and there are several choices: conti, avid ascend, e422, assurance fuel max, etc.
BUT I would not advice to change tire size, unless you are willing to give up on spare. It would be rendered useless as it will be size mismatch.

EDIT:
Just looked at the included spare; It is Bridgestone Tracompa-3 (TR-3) in 125/70R16. It is substantially smaller than stock 175/65R15, -4.6%. The closest size matching spare is 185/55R15 (-0.4%). The Prius C Four 195/50R16 is smaller; still 3.4% bigger than spare.

So basically if you choose different size you wanna error on smaller side.

205/50R15, 195/50R15, 185/55R15 will work. 175/60 too.

Tire rack has following LRR in these sizes:

Ecopia EP150 -185/55R15
Dunlop Enasave 175/60R15

tires-easy have Nokian eNTYRE in 185/60R15 for $91.7 with free shipping..
eNTYRE isn't marked as LRR but it suppose to have better MPG than Conti Pro Contact.
Nokian WRG3 is marked as LRR and available in many sizes

tirerack has General R43 in 185/60 for $67. Another non-LRR good rolling tire.

185/60 LRR: Ecopia EP422, Mich Defender, Avid Ascend, Assurance Fuel Max

Bridgestone Tracompa info:
Sturgeon Tire - Tires Catalogue - Temporary Spare "Tracompa"

 

"advise".....and the spare will still work on the back.

 

first, the UTOG of 380 really isn't that much worst than 500 and remember those comparison ratings are between tires of the same brand, not between branded tires of same size. more often than not the higher the tread wear the lower the cornering traction
neither of the Solus and Hancock tires are Low Rolling Resistance tires so are not so labelled. we have found here hat LRR tires are a bit hazardous as their cornering traction is somewhat less than typical; for the troops here that got LRR tires off the table but we did try.
As for size the 195/55x15's are an excellent choice. while they are a little heavier than 175/65's their smaller diameter will somewhat keep the mpg's or acceleration from being worse and offer better handling at no real affect on odometer or speedometer.
we don't recommend 195/50x16's because they are heavier yet at a larger diameter so mpg's and accel take a hit. handling is not quite as good thanks to tall sidewalls.
you can check dimensional and weight daa on tireracks specs tabs; and lap times too for some they have tsted. we have yet to disagree with theirs in our testing which includes laps around a 3.27 mile race track.
PS we find tire pressures and alignment have more effect on mpg than LRR vs typical grade tires.
good luck.

 

ok i actually like the 175/65/15 stock tires & rims (minus the plastic hubcaps). and i run my pressures at 44psi all around on my OEM Bridgestones. because the car is light at 2500 lbs i think there isnt enough downforce to dig in the traction to justify wider tires ,,, in other words the wider tires would slide too much. fellow Prii c owners: your comment on this, any thoughts or criticisms are appreciated.

 

IMHO it isn't as much about tire width as about availability. OP changed rims and they are too wide for OEM tires