Advise before I buy my first Hybrid

US Model 3 Touring (with 17" rims) has the spare. All but one Canadian models, 15" and 17", have the spare, except one model with optional equipment. FWIW, the same spare works with both 15" and 17".

US model summary:

Visual Tables of Gen4 Package Combinations | PriusChat

 

You need to test drive 15 tire car vs. 17 and make your call. Rent each for a day so you can take them on roads you want
15" tire is probably a little less noisy, but the Touring I drove was pretty quiet on freeway
17" tire car is going to handle better: wider tire on pavement, less sidewall flex when cornering
15" tire will give little better fuel economy, but really, my rental with 17' was showing over 60 MPG. It's just splitting hairs at that point and only the most hardcore about saving drops of gas care I suppose.

Ask a good service advisor if the 17" , 45 series tires are usually repairable if you get a nail in them. I had a 17 year veteran service advisor at Honda tell me her 19" wheel car always needs a new tire when it gets a nail. But that's even bigger wheel.

I personally wouldn't buy a new car and change out 15" wheels and tires to 17". You get almost nothing for the take off wheels and new ones will cost a bundle. Plus, the suspension tuning and probably the steering ratio is different between the touring and non cars. I wouldn't do it, but that's me.. Lot of people change their wheels and tires to 17" though.

So much debate between leather (like) seats and cloth. I say the Softex (imitation leather) seats should be easier to clean. I've heard Softex is designed to be little cooler than real leather. I live in moderate weather and leather not a problem on 90F days. If I was going to wear shorts and wanted to avoid sweaty legs on leather, I'd just put one of those T-shirt seat covers on temporarily. Google them.

If one gets chocolate on cloth seats, I think it's a lot harder get out. I have real leather seat covers in my Prius and I was able to get tape adhesive residue off them easily. (tape residue has to do with my jerry rigging seat to make me happy but that's another story). It would been very difficult to get tape residue off cloth seats, I believe.

 

Buy, drive, report