Okay, newish. I've had her for 2 weeks now and I need to make this thread to gush about her. Firstly my Prius is the 2019 Technology AWD-e with Advance Tech pack in the Blizzard Pearl color (my original first choice was silver but the dealership I went to didn't have). This includes auto leveling headlamps, HUD, parking sensors and other goodies thrown in. I come from an 8+ year old FWD hatchback and basically my requirements were: 1) It had to have a hatch: I moved like 3 houses with the hatch and I could just keep stuffing it with things and it took it all like a champ. 2) Fuel savings: I drive like an old man, and I liked how my hatchback was cheaper fuel wise than some of my friends. 3) AWD: I got stuck many times at the parking lot at my workplace. I needed something that wouldn't leave me in that situation again. Now at this point it had come down to a Rav4 hybrid and the Prius AWD-e. My reasons for not going for the Rav4 was simple, it was first much more expensive, it had a massive waiting time, and it was a bit too large to fit in the smaller side of my garage. Plus while the added height would be better in really bad snow conditions, I live near Toronto so the snow's height isn't much of an issue, even for my old hatchback which had about the same clearance as the Prius and I was running all season tires on it (not counting my workplace parking lot). Hence my decision to go with the Prius since 99% of the time the streets will be plowed and during the summer the Prius's better fuel economy would be even better. With my background out of the way, I will now proceed to gush about my Prius so feel free to just skip the rest. I love pretty much every little thing about her. From the entry way illuminations, to the HUD to the auto parking system, I spend most of my lunch breaks checking out her settings and features. One of my favorite features is the HUD. The hybrid indicator and the current speed are displayed there so I can keep an eye out on both without ever taking my eyes off the road. It's also slaved into the in-built nav system so it will tell me about upcoming turns on my route. Though probably the biggest issue I have with her at the moment is the lack of Android Auto, which I quickly got over since I just have a phone mount on the vent. This does however give me access to 2 maps that I can configure for 2 types of views. I use my phone for nav purposes, and I have the in-built system to check for roads and where I'm heading. The compass is also better on her than my phone which some times has a tendency to suddenly reverse my heading or tell me I'm on an adjacent road. Also having a 2nd nav system is a nice back up and is also nice if I need to head to areas where my data service isn't playing fair. The space on her is also a dream. She has twice as much space as my old hatchback and I can put all sorts of things in her without worry. I was able to put 4 tires (with their rims!) load a weeks worth of groceries, and ferry 2 passengers with her and still had room to spare. Even if I manage to block my view of the rear, her sensors made sure that I was never blind when parking or driving. Since I had the Advance tech pack, the sensors would tell me everything from nearby walls, to cross traffic, and if I'm backing up, the rear camera is more than enough for me to see what was going on. Though she is quite a bit bigger than my old hatchback, so she fits really snug in my garage spot. I would probably have preferred her to be maybe an inch shorter, but I love her nonetheless. Finally, the main attraction. The AWD-e system. Frankly I have no complaints. I feel much safer in her and much less stressful even during a storm. Her launches are confident, her turns are snug, and I never once felt like I was losing control. Since its an on-demand system she doesn't need to expend power to run them all the time so I still get that great Prius mileage. Of course she's not perfect, but to me she might as well be. Also heated seats and steering are a god send.
If you haven't, and can swing it, a set of snow tires will make it even more sure footed. Here's our set up, very happy with it: snow tire: Michelin X-Ice2 195/65R15 Corolla steel rim, part no: 42611-02471 (2003-2008 corolla or matrix, CE, LS, S) steel rim lug nuts, part no: 90942-01007 (plain, open-ended, galvanized) You don't have to have TPMS on them, in Canada, just food for thought.
I had a deal for free snow tires when I bought her, so I left the dealership with my pearl baby in new snow shoes.
Just curious, black steel rims? Likely the Corolla rims then. I noticed my local dealership had a snow tire display, and all the tires were sporting those steel rims; looks like they're plentiful. If that's what you've got, and the centre hubs are exposed to the elements: I have a tip.
I believe the dealership actually covered those up for me. I didn't notice anything exposed when I did my walk around of the car.
Love your enthusiasm and admiration for your new baby! I must admit I’m right there with you with all the praise. I admittedly set very low expectations for the AWD system (my last 2 cars were Audi’s) but overall it does exactly what you need it to and will inevitably take you places a fwd would never be able to go.
Nice to read this. Just purchased my first Prius and first AWD on Monday. Living in Cincinnati, where winter conditions can vary quite a bit from year to year, I'm considering putting on winter tires since I've read that the OEM Toyo tires aren't very good in the cold/snow.
Congrats on the purchase! From first hand experience, the factory tires are definitely not the best in the snow. Which is to be expected with any low rolling resistance, high mileage tire. Your next issue will be ground clearance. I’d suggest a snow rated 215/70r15 tire and a 1.5” strut spacer. I went with the 205/75r15 General grabber which does incredible in the snow but takes its toll on fuel economy. All in all it’s an incredibley well rounded package!
Snow tires and AWD is a good combo. Assume you mean an extra set of rims with separate snow tires? For utilitarian, these'll work: Corolla steel rim, part no: 42611-02471 (2003-2008 corolla or matrix, CE, LS, S) steel rim lug nuts, part no: 90942-01007 (plain, open-ended, galvanized) Note also, without centre caps it'll get rusty real fast. Research what you can get, or at least give it a spray of something like Liquid Film. 2" abs end caps work with a slight amount of shim, say a rubber band pushed on first. Some extra Prius rims and centre caps (or just transfer over the wheel covers) will look a lot better, fwiw. If you can find used ones reasonably priced. They're typically under $400 for a set of 4. If you can dodge having extra TPMS sensors I would, it can be a pain. Without extra electronic tools, you're force to have dealership initialize the alternate sets of sensors, every time.
Great post - do you still use all the features of the Advanced Tech package? It adds a fair bit to the cost and I'm not sure HUD and the parking assist is worth it.
I love the HUD. I don't think I'd like to be without it. Particularly with progressive lenses. The HUD is at the same focus as the road, the traffic etc. I've never had Park Assist - it isn't available in Australia.
I definitely enjoy the AWD-e feature as well, living in snowy area. although it's not like your traditional awd, it has made winter drives much smoother.
