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16 or 17 in wheels

Discussion in 'Prime Accessories and Modifications' started by vern748, Jun 8, 2017.

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  1. vern748

    vern748 Member

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    Hi All,

    Love my Prime. Love it love it, except for the wheels. Thinking of getting some 16in Enkei rims. Has anyone had experience with changing the wheel size on the Prime. Yes, there is a bunch of hot air on the Prius thread about things uninteresting and unrelated. I am interested in someone's first hand experience with changing their wheels o the PRIME.

    The plan is to get some 16in wheels running Low Roll Resistance tires. Not overly interested in performance or cornering but mainly impact of comfort and ride feel. I would assume the 17in would be pretty harsh and for me the 15in wallows and vague. Hoping the 16in are just right, with good feel and limited impact in overall mileage/performance.
     
    #1 vern748, Jun 8, 2017
  2. PT Guy

    PT Guy Senior Member

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    The standard Prius comes with 215/45-17 tires on certain models. The ride quality is good. You might even find a set of take-off wheels & tires. By the way, I do not find that the Toyo tires on my Prime wallow. I run the recommended cold inflation pressure, 36 front & 35 rear (I hope I remembered that correctly)

    tirerack.com is a great resource for many factors about tires. The Michelin Premier A/S is their pick in that size for the best ride comfort.
     
    #2 PT Guy, Jun 12, 2017
    Silent Propulsion and Prius from Dad like this.
  3. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk EGR Fanatic

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    In 215/45R17 my pref right now is Michelin Primacy MXM4, I think they'll do a bit better (Than Premier A/S) for mpg, and have rim guard.

    I've got a set of first gen plug-in rims (15"), think they look sweet. But unfortunately can't convince anyone else in the family to switch out from the 17" OEM's. I bide my time. o_O

    IMG_6656.JPG
     
    #3 Mendel Leisk, Jun 12, 2017
  4. Bob Comer

    Bob Comer Active Member

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    I absolutely hated the 17" wheels that came with my 2010 Prius 5 (V). They leaked, they had failures, they got less gas mileage than 15"s, the ride was rough and not particularly sporty to make up for it.

    I had my first ever blow out on one of those tires. (it's a scary experience!) It's one of the reasons I ordered a prime, just to get away from those wheels. And yes, I took care of them like you should.

    It was really the only thing I disliked about my Prius over 7 years of ownership...
     
    #4 Bob Comer, Jun 13, 2017
  5. a_gray_prius

    a_gray_prius Rare Non-Old-Blowhard Priuschat Member

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    Changing your tires should really be your first priority. LRRs are going to be kind of vague no matter what you do. Upsizing wheels is unlikely to make a huge difference in that regard. This goes doubly if ride quality is important to you since a lower profile tire is almost certainly going to be more harsh.
     
    #5 a_gray_prius, Jun 13, 2017
  6. Silent Propulsion

    Silent Propulsion Member

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    20170819_103218.jpg I just had these installed today. Tires are 225/45/17. 20170819_103218.jpg 20170819_103306.jpg 20170819_103218.jpg
     
    #6 Silent Propulsion, Aug 19, 2017
    Rashid K, RMB, Montgomery and 2 others like this.
  7. mhye01

    mhye01 Member

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    #7 mhye01, Aug 19, 2017
    Silent Propulsion likes this.
  8. Silent Propulsion

    Silent Propulsion Member

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    1503191903857.jpg

    Posted via the PriusChat mobile app.
     
    #8 Silent Propulsion, Aug 19, 2017
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  9. Silent Propulsion

    Silent Propulsion Member

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    #9 Silent Propulsion, Aug 20, 2017
  10. mhye01

    mhye01 Member

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    Looks amazing! The only thing i hate about the prime is that the wheels look way too small for the car. Glad to finally see one with shoes that "fit"
     
    #10 mhye01, Aug 20, 2017
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  11. a_gray_prius

    a_gray_prius Rare Non-Old-Blowhard Priuschat Member

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    #11 a_gray_prius, Aug 27, 2017
  12. Silent Propulsion

    Silent Propulsion Member

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    Koenig Illusion.

    Posted via the PriusChat mobile app.
     
    #12 Silent Propulsion, Aug 27, 2017
  13. Bob Comer

    Bob Comer Active Member

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    Have you noticed any change in gas mileage?
     
    #13 Bob Comer, Aug 27, 2017
  14. vern748

    vern748 Member

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    Hi All,

    Thanks for responding, and it is about time that I followed-up on my own thread.
    I have installed 205/55-16 on my Prime
    Wheels are from CostCo made by Velox
    Tires are Bridgestone ecopia ep422 plus

    Wheels.jpg
    Mileage:
    I have noticed a slight drop in mileage. Using Fuelly I reported
    64.7 MPG over 13,973 miles of driving from Feb - July
    On July I changed to the new wheels and tires. Since then I have reported
    63.1 MPG over the last 4,300 miles of driving from July - Sept
    This is a decrease in MPG of 1.6
    Some of this can be attributed to the wheels and tires and some to the change in temperature. Since the AC will impact mileage and these have been some hot months, the AC is likely the greater cause.

    Feel:
    The feel is much better, but was slight nervous at first. As the edges of the tires get worn in, there is no longer an over-steer feel. Corners are very confident at speed. With the 15's there was a bit of a wallow and squirm. Comfort is good, without being harsh. Based on the 16's, I think the 17's would have been harsh. Love it love it.

    Just an FYI;
    Stock wheels and tires were 34lbs.
    Opps, did not weigh the new wheel an tires.

    Hope this helps someone

    Vern
    IMG_20170909_120055.jpg
     
    #14 vern748, Sep 9, 2017
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  15. Montgomery

    Montgomery Senior Member

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    #15 Montgomery, Sep 9, 2017
  16. mhye01

    mhye01 Member

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    Are you lowered at all? The one thing i hate on the prime is the huge wheel gap but yours seems very minimal.
     
    #16 mhye01, Sep 9, 2017
  17. vern748

    vern748 Member

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    Nope. Gap should be the same, all things considered.
     
    #17 vern748, Sep 10, 2017
  18. 4rpr15

    4rpr15 Senior Member

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    You bought those from Cosco? What did you do with your old wheels and tires? How are things holding up because I plan on doing the same thing to my prime. I just don't know if I should get black rims or dark gray like yours.
     
    #18 4rpr15, Sep 11, 2017
  19. a_gray_prius

    a_gray_prius Rare Non-Old-Blowhard Priuschat Member

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    Suggestion: use your stock rims for snow tires and swap the wheels a couple times a year.
     
    #19 a_gray_prius, Sep 13, 2017
  20. Rashid K

    Rashid K Junior Member

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    What is the name of these Velox rims? They look great. I am on the Costco site and they have two that look similar to this.
    Also, what size tires did you put?
    Thank you
     
    #20 Rashid K, Mar 8, 2018
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