It looks to be a long and slushy winter here in CO, and as I recall, most or all of my flats have been in the snow, because nails easily sit pointy side up in the snow. I'm horrified to think of it happening in my spare-less AWD-e because (1) the tire repair kit only works on certain kinds of tire damage, (2) there are TWENTY pages of instructions on using the kit in the owner manual, (3) it's a single-use kit so if you screw up, you're screwed. So my idea is first, go to Toyota and purchase or place an order for a spare tire. Then, I'll just keep it in the cargo, next to the bags of groceries or whatever. If I need more cargo space (e.g. a trip to the airport), I'll leave the spare in the garage, but that's no worse than the way it is now (with just the repair kit). I also have a roof rack, so if there's an easy way to tie it up there, might be a nice way to do long road trips without worry. We have many areas with poor phone reception so no way to get roadside assistance; a flat could be a disaster. Tying it to the rack might really wreck my MPG though, but it seems worth a try. Is it feasible to do this?
It's a ridiculous idea - the repair kit. A spare really needs to be tied down safely somehow. There was talk when Gen 4 first came out that a USED Corolla steel or alloy wheel (from a wrecking yard?) will fit - maybe someone will chime in and confirm that. I was planning (didn't happen due to ill health of parents) to drive around Australia, and my idea was to strap a wrapped full-size spare wheel behind the passenger seat - that way I'd have a donut as well as a full-size. In the remote parts of Australia, it could easily be in well in excess of 80km from tyre service (the limit of a donut spare - and limited to 80km/hr).
For our Prime I bought a donut spare off of a 2015 wrecked Prius and keep it in the back. It isn’t tied down as I think of it as carrying other goods from a store or taking luggage to the airport. Do you tie your suitcase or groceries down in the back of the car? I think using the goo kit is a bad idea as well, which is why I bought the spare tire. Good luck and keep us posted .
I agree with this.... Not sure I agree with this approach. Sure, we all put things in our vehicles and take the risk that we could be in an accident and those things could become projectiles or damaging objects. But, that's day to day living. I'll take my chances that on the way home from the airport, I'm not killed by Samsonite or Grandma's undies. Even though yes, the risk exists. But if you can be safer? Why not be safer? If you have an object that you KNOW is going to be left in the vehicle, that is heavy, contains metal, and could be damaging with an impact? And is going to exist in the vehicle..daily, weekly, monthly... Why not make it safer? Creating tie downs, and securing a tire and metal rim, within your vehicle is little work, for potentially great benefit. If it prevents any level of injury, in any single incident, then it was worth it. We don't have too much choice with luggage or groceries. But we have the choice with a voluntarily added, full size spare tire. If I was going to be driving around with a fully inflated, tire and rim? I'd definitely look at ways to try to make sure it's secure.
I am a "worry wart." Just months after I purchased my 2012 v, I found a nearly "take off" full sized wheel on eBay and had a new tire mounted on it. It has sat in the hatch area since then, securely fastened with the Toyota supplied hold down buckle strap used to hold a "flat tire." I placed the face of the wheel in the down position, so I could fill the resulting cavity with additional emergency supplies. A cheap $12 RV spare tire cover fits over it for a net appearance.
You do realize the gap between the back seat and the roof is less than the width of the tire, let alone the diameter? And that assumes the spare tire gets airborne just in the width direction in said accident . I deal with potentials all day and you can pull “what if’s” out for everything that happens. Think of all the Uber’s and taxi’s traversing the country everyday and how much of their cargo is secured. While the risk isn’t zero, it’s a very low value. I’ll worry about other things like flying projectiles that come from in front of the car from other cars or road debris.
There is a really good thread on this site for fitting a spare tire in your boot where it should go. Your car has a well for one and even a hook for a proper tie down. The trick is to either purchase the foam that goes in there or to cut a tire sized hole in your foam. If you are going to purchase a tire, you may as well store it where it will ride securely and out of the way. The thread also has the part numbers for what you need to buy should you decide not to cut your foam.
It comes down to this basic for me. Secure is better than unsecured. And securing the spare tire, really should be relatively easy. You can measure all the gaps you want. I recommend securing your spare tire.
if you get in the kind of accident that could lift the spare off the hatch floor and send it hurtling forward, i think you have more to worry about. but i'm open to test data if anyone knows where to find it the squeamish wouldn't want to see our hycam loaded for bear on the way to florida
I didn't think the awd Prius had a spot to put a spare as the space was used for the awd components. Its been a deal breaker for me I need a spare that's tied down. Not giving 32,000 dollars for a car then just throw a spare any place inside the vehicle Posted via the PriusChat mobile app.
Secure the spare tire, and it's one less thing to worry about. I actually agree with Raytheeagle, in so much as the quantifiable risk is low, but it just seems like nearly common sense. If you have the time and opportunity to secure the big heavy metal, inflated hunk of rubber in the back of your vehicle, why not? Plus, you could have passenger sitting in the rear of the vehicle, that would appreciate the effort of securing the spare. It's not JUST about the unlikely scenario that the tire would be hurled all the way to the front seat. It's kind of about...better safer than sorrier.
You crazy daredevils!!! Living life on the unsecured edge! Already gave my viewpoint on this particular angle...
i know, thats why i mentioned it. if one is risk averse, they'll make sure everything is safe. if you google the issue, you'll find plenty of concerned citizens asking what they can do to protect occupants from every kind of possible projectile in the back of any hatch type of vehicle.
Not sure that's a good idea - you don't carry a suitcase forever - and it's not as heavy as a wheel (unless it's full of heavy stuff!!). Dad got hit hard from the side in his Holden Wagon: it rolled three times, on the way home from a Church working-bee - had metal watering can and garden fork among other things - and 2 children. Cleaning out the stuff on the way home, the garden fork had impaled the metal rose on the watering can - they were glad it wasn't my brother or sister.
Michelle - I could be wrong, but I think that won't work on the AWD-e, as there is some gadgetry (inverter?) in the bottom of the wheel well. And yes, for non-AWD-e, what you've suggested is correct - there is even a modification mentioned somewhere about fitting a full-size spare.
i'll try to remember not to carry my pitchfork around, but a great point regarding random items you may not carry all the time. it's just something most of us don't consider. probably cause accidents are so rare, but they do happen.
I'd like to find something large, flat, and rigid, like a piece of plywood or metal, that has almost the same dimensions as the floor of the cargo area, and has a couple slots in it to which the spare tire could be tied securely. Such a setup would be completely safe, although it would decrease MPG a bit. I might not use it all the time, but I tell you what scares me most. It's going on a road trip with the wife & dog, and ending up somewhere in the remote mountains with a flat. I'd definitely bring it on trips like that.
I have a visual aid. I'd like to have been a fly-on-the-wall, when Toyota's engineers first presented this "solution" to the bigwigs...
