I am venturing into an area that am I am ignorant of and would welcome any feedback. I was planning on getting some Michelin X-Ice Snow tires for my 2012 Prius. They would be on the vehicle for about 4-5 months each year. I have read that it is generally best to buy wheels with any second set of tires if not for the ease of installation then because the mounting and remounting of tires over time can cause some damage. Is that accurate? Do most folks buy wheels for a second set of tires? If so, is there a cheap source of wheels either new or used beyond a junkyard? Thanks for any responses!
Yes, it's easier to install (you can do it yourself if you have the tools) and it does reduce wear and tear on the beads and seals on the wheels and tires. Plus, why damage the factory alloys (from all the salt)? The cheapest option is a set of steel rims. The Prius' 15" wheel size is a popular compact car size so any used wheel from a Corolla or Cavalier (if you want to go that far back) will work. Just ensure the specs are 15x6.5 (15" diameter, 6.5" wide) and PCD: 5x100 (5 lugs, 100mm spaced apart). New steelies aren't too bad although I don't know what the price is now with inflation.
I bought some steely's not too long ago for ridiculously cheap actually I think the 15x6 or whatever it says up there but if the guy just posted previously for the sizes I had the 15s and they were like $47 a pop nice black straight and my tire and wheel mounting guy said they were great no problem and then I did the same with some 17s
My set up: Winter rims | PriusChat Also, avoid TPMS sensors if possible; your state doesn’t require them.
Yes I've spare rims all have tons sensors . The only units I've programed to put lite out is the set that stays on car mostly . I haven't tried to swap the TPMS codes back n forth yet. Seems more trouble than worth. I'd like to remove Tom's LED . But that's not a thing . Tape .
Appreciate all the replies, so wheels it is. Can anyone recommend any reliable internet site for cheap and/or used rims?
If you're going steelies, your local tire shop will have a set and they're not usually marked up. If you want a tire/rim that's already mounted, Tire Rack (.com) does it and ships it to you.
I bought steely's the regular Toyota style steel wheels off eBay or Amazon and paid 47 a pop they arrived in great shape My tire guy had no problem they took minimal amount of wheel weight and everything is good with them they're stamped with a bunch of numbers look like they're made in Asia somewhere they were brand new
If you have not purchased tires yet, it is worth looking into the wheels and tires set for sale from online tire retailers. They often give you a huge discount, at least they did when I purchased them. Also they will install the tires on the wheels and balance them free or at a much lower price than would cost if you bring your wheels and tires to a shop. I ended up buying 15" MB ICON wheels with 4 Michelin Xi3 from Discount Tire Direct online shop for less than $600 total after all rebates and discounts (tires, wheels, valves, lug nuts, valves, installation, balancing, and shipping included) ~5 years ago. You are not likely to find a fantastic deal like that in today's market, but worth checking. See it on my PP in this thread. Winter rims
I bought the previously linked rims, lug nuts and Michelin snows through a dealership; doing a package deal like that is worth entertaining. Rim and nut prices in my link, though that was in 2010.
If I entertain slum wheels I have purchased alum wheels I liked for my toyz in 15 for like 88 bux a pop 2017 or so looked better than factory alum rims from factory and got 6.5 wide vs 5.5 or so . Offset like factory . Hubcentric
So I have decided that I am just going to go with black steel rims to save cost. I plan to just swap out my OE wheel covers each time I switch tires, but it seems that a lot of aftermarket steelies may not accept the OE hubcap. Is there any way to know in advance if my existing wheel cover will fit?
Also, will the OE hubcap from a 2012 Prius two fit on Corolla steel rim, part no: 42611-02471 (2003-2008 corolla or matrix, CE, LS, S)?
I am on my second set of the ICE X's, I easily got 42K out of my first set, left on year round! Rotated every 5 kmiles, and 45 psi. In the past I have gone the extra set of wheels route on other 2 wheel drive vehicles, back when I was using studded tires, but tire tech has improved since then and I don't feel it pencils out.
I doubt it. See my link for covering the hub opening though; it uses a 2” ABS end cap (plumbing item, readily available at hardware stores). Definitely read the link; it take a little finagling to work, does make it look more “complete”, keeps the hubs from rusting. Still pretty ghetto though, as they say.
I checked my logs, I actually got 47 K out of my first set of ICE X's, while leaving them on all year.
For my Prime, I bought Corolla wheels from Santa Ana and had my XIce Tires mounted on them where they were purchased - at BJ's: Santa Ana Wheel - We Buy & Sell OEM and Factory Original Wheels/Rims I found some Toyota medallions to fill the center slot - it took a couple of trys to find the ones that fit properly. So, in the winter, the Prime runs with just the wheels, and the medallions that stay with the rims. In the spring, the factory tires, wheels and hub caps are installed. When we got the 2015 V, we bought tires and rims at Tire Rack (Tire rack steel rims) and all of the mounting and change overs are done at a local Firestone shop. I wrongly assumed that the tire rack steel wheels would take the same rims from the V. A couple of years ago Tire rack started offering plastic wheel covers to fit their steel rims. They are flimsy and crack easily (I know - yes I use a rubber mallet) Buying some decent rims together with the tires as a package is a good idea.
At this point in time I am so far in the rabbit hole that I just would like to know if the rims which I provided a link for would fit my car This has consumed way too much of my time....
Well, I think most would agree that going with the Wheel/ tire package is the best bet without going to the junk yard, however your Prius is 10 years old, so depending on mileage how many change overs do you anticipate?
