‘23 Roof Racks

Curious about this too

 

My dealership said they dont have roof racks at Toyota. I've seen aftermarket that say they fit but I'm skeptical. Also, you can't get custom seat covers, jic you were wondering.
I wouldn't go too crazy on accessories as everything in my LE is slightly different than most cars. I bought a standard steering wheel cover -- too big. Seat covers -- there is no crack between the back and seat to pull through to make them tight so they looked awful. A standard visor organizer -- too small. Even the sunglasses holder clips I got were too small to clip on the visor.
Also, dont rely on a cell phone holder that fits on vents--- they won't work.
I know that's way more info than you asked for but I hope it helps.

 

Right. I can’t even find a air freshener that works on these weird vents. Hopefully somebody is working on specialized accessories for the new kid in town.

 

A few years back I bought an inflatable roof rack, has worked well. The brand I have is "HR2O Inflatable Roof Rack" but a google search shows that there are others. We've carried a kayak among other things on it. Bonus is when not in use it's deflated and sits in the trunk and doesn't affect the aerodynamics of the vehicle.

 

I just chatted with Yakima about this. I own a 2023 Prius prime. It’s sweet! Anyways, Yakima told me there definitely would be a roof rack, from Yakima and OEM. He said he thought mid summer. He also said that Yakima works closely with Toyota, and apparently manufactures racks for them. so I’d imagine that around the same time Yakima produces a rack for the new Prius, Toyota will as well. No guarantees here, but he was very confident that a roof rack would exist for this car, although not exactly sure when.

 

Also, Yakima put me on an email list, and will apparently email me when this rack is available. So I’ll post back here when I get that news, hopefully soon. It’s kayaking season and I have no way to transport my kayaks!

 

New user to the forum. Had to chime in on this...there is a car share program where I live (Vancouver) and they are starting to get some new Prius cars. Actually, their entire fleet is almost all prius, but of the prior generation and the smaller hatch.

Anyhow, I saw one a few days ago and they outfitted a roof rack for it. If you zoom in, it says Thule. All the cars in their fleet have the same or similar style of roof rack. So either they got one specific to the new prius or were able to install an existing roof rack system.

 

huh! That’s pretty interesting. Thule told me a few weeks ago they hadn’t yet fitted racks for the 23 Prius.

Also, that Thule logo looks to be on a ski rack and maybe a bike rack, not on the roof bars.

And the roof bars appear to be blue? Unless that’s the light? I don’t think they are Thule roof bars if they are blue. Def I’m interested in who makes those roof bars.

 

I had a closer look at the roof rack of another prius in the car share program. The bars are Thule also, so it's likely the ones on the new prius I saw were also Thule?

And yup, the roof bars are blue! It's part of the branding of the car share. All the cars are black and lettering is this blue. There are several hundred cars in this program, so maybe it's a customized thing Thule did for them?

 

I know I've seen one like this on a Gen 5....

 

Anyone have any updates or were able to find any fitting ones/custom? Been scrounging online for a while now, and been seeing sellers on ebay claiming that they have roof racks that can fit gen 5. I'm too skeptical to buy right now.

 

It looks like a custom installation right onto the roof without clamping onto the window. That would be my preferred installation for sure.

 

When I first saw this thread (before actually coming home with my 2023 Prius Prime XSE), I was smugly glad I already had a Saris Bones rear bike rack I used on my 2009 Prius.

Yesterday I decided to adjust said bike rack for the new car. OH NO - THIS IS NOT GOING TO WORK! - The front lip of the hatch is glass!

I didn't really want to put the bikes on the back of my shiny new car that bad anyway. Guess I'll keep watching this thread.

 

Bummer about the seat covers. I want to cover the steering wheel too. Can’t imagine daily use of a Softex steering wheel. Hopefully suitable covers will be made soon.

 

I reached out to EVO about the roof racks and this is the reply I received:

Thanks for the email to Evo. I’ve checked with our fleet team, and they advised it’s Rack Attack that does the installations of our bike racks. He also mentioned that BCAA members might get a discount with Rack Attack. He isn’t sure, but it doesn’t hurt to ask if purchasing a roof rack

 

I’m also looking for a roof rack. Avid kayaker and had a great rack for my 2012 but just traded it in on 2023 XLE with glass panel. I can’t give up kayaking so I’ve got to find a solution. Anyone find anything that won’t damage the car?

 

I sent detailed measurements to RackAttack to be certain their two "2023 Prius Prime XSE Naked Roof" solutions really would work. (They have a closed end cap and a slotted end cap solution that is $100 less expensive.)

They replied that the web solution finder are the correct parts:

1 x Thule Wingbar Evo 135 cm (53 in.) Black (Pair) $259.95
1 x Thule Evo Clamp (Set of 4) $249.95
1 x Thule Evo Fit Kit 5029 $149.95
1 x Thule 544 4-pack Lock Cores $69.95
1 x Rack Install $120.00
Shipping + Handling $0.00
Sales Tax $54.74
Total $904.54

If I drive over to Tampa to have it installed...

That's before the two bike trays I would need, so the cost becomes astronomical but it is a solution.

 

It is indeed VERY pricey considering my last set of crossbars for my Sportwagen cost about $200.00 total. Granted, the VW came with roof rails, so the mounting system/cross bars was quite easy.
I would like to have a cargo box for my PP and I see at RackAttack, that the kit you describe is what is recommended for the '23 PP, however, when you check out some of the details, it refers back to a '22 PP. All the accompanying photos are of installations on Primes that are prior to 2023. I believe the pre-2022 Prius have these little grommet holes on the underside of the roof edges (where the doors close on them) and these holes have something to do with a roof rack mounting system. My 2023 have no such grommets. This has me concerned since we see several YouTube videos on "How to repair dented roofs on Pruis's from the pressure and weight of roof mounted carriers".
If you do end up installing this Thule system, could you return and comment on how you feel about the efficacy of it in terms of undue pressure on the roof edges? Thanks.