Can I put 17" after market wheels on my 2010 Prius II?

There were some other threads saying the 17" wheels are too wide and that the Prius V has a wider turning radius to compensate for it. But also there is some possible fix coming in September 2009.

So you might want to be mindful of the width when selecting a new tire.

 

There's no problem at all in getting larger wheels if you do it right. It may be hard to find larger wheel in the narrow width of the stock tire, so there may be some clearance issues but usually it's not too bad. You'll want to stick as close to the same outside diameter for speedometer accuracy and width for body clearance, but there is usually some play in both. If you don't know what you're doing find a competent shop or talk to someone at a reputable online dealer and not a BLING RIMMZZZ shop and you'll be fine.

I'd guess 205/50R17 is going to be the best tire size to use for 17" wheels to keep the clearance issues down. This is 10mm wider than the stock, and only 2mm larger diameter. It may not even be that big of a deal anyhow- it just depends if you want absolutely no rub ever or if a little rub when turning hard out of a driveway is acceptable.

The 17" tires are 215/45R17
The 15" tires are 195/65R15

There will be no fix for anything steering related. The only "fix" which may or may not be coming is a very slight change in the power steering mapping software. The prius, like all toyotas, have numb steering by design.

 

I can't imagine it being a problem durind normal driving. Perhaps when parallel parking ar as mentioned when pulling out of a driveway (but at least there you can probably compensate by taking a somewhat wider turn).

I had planned on putting some Scion TC 17" wheels on mine but I've upgraded my order to a V. I already own the wheels so I will either sell them or put snow tires on them. It may be cheaper to get new wheels for the snow tire duty as the 17" snow tires are expensive.

I really like the Scion wheels though. Sort of a chrome graphite in color. I think they would look great on my Blizzard White (and I shouldn't have the rub concerns with the level V)

 

Just go to Tirerack.com and surf around.
If you cannot get an answer right then and there give them a call. They are the real experts on tires and wheels.

 

YES just like on this SE toyota pkg 4

Fuel Surcharge $050 State Emissions-FEAT $0Cargo Net-PC10 $79Special Color-PCAT $220Carpet Mats and Trunk Mat-PV50 $229Solar Roof Package:-SRAT $3,600

17" EFPC Wheels w/Pirelli Tires-WB70 $1,699

• Replaces Factory Wheels Listed

6-Gallons of Gas-UF60 $0Southeast Toyota Distributor Plus-FP50 $0Threshold Protector-PD90 $279
MSRPBase$25,800Options$7,553Manuf, Delv, Proc & Hndlg$775Subtotal$34,128Dealer Fees$499Total$34,627

 

and here's a pkg 2


Fuel Surcharge $050 State Emissions-FEAT $017" EFPC Wheels w/Pirelli Tires-WB70 $1,699

• Replaces Factory Wheels Listed

Special Color-PCAT $220Carpet Mats-PV40 $169Rear Bumper Protector-BP30 $99Electrochromic Mirror-CM50 $2996-Gallons of Gas-UF60 $0Southeast Toyota Distributor Plus-FP50 $0Window Tint-TW50 $249Toyoguard Plus Protection Group-XY70 $699

MSRPBase$22,000Options$3,434Manuf, Delv, Proc & Hndlg$775Subtotal$26,209Dealer Fees$499Total$26,708

 

For 17" wheels, does one have to get new rims or can you just use the stock rims?

 

When 15" or 17" wheels are being discussed, 15" or 17" is actually the diameter of the rims, not the overall wheel. On the 17" rims, you put low profile tires, so the overall wheel diameter is about the same as the 15" ones.

So yes, you get new rims.

Roy

 

Here's some general information in summary:

As James mentioned below, SouthEast Toyota is putting 17" wheel / tire sets on many of their II through IV Prius at the Port, so I wouldn't worry about the safety of going to the larger wheels.

Also the link below gives you an idea as to the differences in basic tire dimensions

Tire Size Calculator - Discount Tire Direct

Typically when you go +1 in wheel size you'll go to the next wider tire width and next smaller sidewall ratio. Type in the two tire sizes to compare and you'll see the differences in dimensions. Try using the two Toyota tires to start with to get familiar with the calculator. One goal is to keep the outside diameter of the two tires the same or close to minimize the speedometer and odometer error. They don't really care how wide your tire is as long as you travel the same distance per rotation. Keeping the diameters close will give the same circumference, which is the distance traveled per rotation.

Since going from a 15" wheel to a 17" wheel is a +2, then the standard tire on the 15" is a 195/65R15 so Toyota takes the 195 up to a 215 (+1 would have been 205). taking the ratio down 2 goes from a 65 series tire to a 45 series tire (+1 would have been a 55 series tire)

Some have mentioned that in order to minimize the possibility of rubbing since the II thru IV does not have the same turning radius as the V (that has 17" standard plus the tighter steering ratio) that they recommend the 205/55R17. . Beside being more narrow, this tire would have more sidewall and may provide a minimally softer ride as you have more rubber between you and the road.

Wheel weight is important. You typically want to reduce the unsprung weight for better handling and FE. Being as this is a Prius most will recommend a wheel much lighter than a typical stock 17" wheel. However I prefer the OEM wheels over am aftermarket in most cases for quality but there are some quality aftermarket wheels out there too. However some of your aftermarket wheels may indeed be heavier than the OEM's so beware. I believe somewhere in these threads someone has addressed the weight of the wheels.

When looking at OEM tires you will find many Toyota's and others that have the 5x100 bolt circle pattern of the Prius. There is a measurement called offset, of which I am certainly not knowledgable enough to tell you what works. With different offsets, one wheel may stick out further from the hub and possibly the fender lip could interfere with the tire causing it to rub (perhaps seriously so). I had been looking for advice on the Scion Wheels and after looking at spec's on wheels I think they would be OK. Corolla wheels as well would probably work. That's something though that you would want to verify before purchasing a set of wheels and tires. If you go throu Tirerack or Discount Tires they will size them correctly for you. However ebay provides some great opportunities for OEM wheels and sometimes tires.

Hope this helps for those of you considering the upgrade.

 

In the owner's manual Toyota cautions about not changing tire sizes because if you do vehicle stability control will not work properly.

 

I know they systems are "smart" but if the tires have approximately the same diameters, I don't see how the system would know the difference. Beside, all we have talked about so far is using the same tires that are the optional 17" size Toyota puts on the V.

 

Thanks for the info, but when I click on a link, I get a message that it can't find the website. Can you give me the URL on the Wheels with Pirelli tires??

 

Those are not links. Try Tire Rack - Your performance experts for tires and wheels