Here's my NEW 2023 Prius LE (with aftermarket wheels)

From a distance, I really think the LE hubcaps look cool - kind of futuristically mean even. The closer you get the less their appeal. But they've grown on me now, it wouldn't be worth it to me to change at this point.

I will say this, my VERY first impression of the wheels up close was quite negative. But we are amazingly adaptable creatures.



It really wasn't that hard...

 

What did the disclaimer actually say?

 

There is no long term or short term benefit to doing a “break in” oil change.

 

Cheap enough insurance...

 

Against what? We are long past the days where engine break in entailed the engine self machining parts to mating.

 

Particularly with Japanese cars. Their tolerances are legendary.

 

I wasn't sure I'd like them either but I think they make the car look more aggressive. They also work well with silver. My previous car, a 2008 Civic Coupe, was also silver but the Cutting Edge is considerably darker than the silver Honda used on the Civic and I think that's a factor too.

Black wheel covers must be a trend as I recently saw a Tesla that had them too. Theirs didn't look as good, IMO.

Owners who don't like black and don't want to spend the $$$ on new wheels can always paint them. The stock wheels used on the LE look nice without the covers too but I suspect you'd lose a bit of mpg on the highway.

After I've had a car for a while I don't spend much time looking at the exterior styling and I couldn't care less whether other people like it or not. Wheels have never been a priority for me but I realize that for many people they are - especially people who post on car forums.

 

Since we're talking about wheels here, does anyone else find the lug bolts to be a turn-off? I prefer to do my own tire rotation and winter/summer swap, so for me the bolts are a huge drawback. Apparently it's possible to install an after-market stud/lug nut kit; I'll have to look into that. What's the recommended torque for tightening the 2023 PP lugs?

 

So for the plug-in, I assume that this translates into 1,000 miles driven in HV mode, because if driven in EV mode that would be irrelevant.

 

Have you confirmed that your PP actually has lug bolts? I'm just asking because my Prius HEV has lug nuts.

 

My Prius right now is just a twinkle in the eyes of the production scheduler in Japan. I was just going off of what the Car Care Nut was showing in his 2023 Prius introductory video, and I took it as a given. He was showing a pre-production vehicle, so I'm hoping that Toyota came back to its senses and reverted back to studs and nuts. Glad to hear that this is actually a possibility.

 

I had an opportunity to weigh 15" Corolla steel rims, and 15" Plug-In Prius alloy rims. Pretty close:

15" Plug-In Prius alloy rims: 18.17 lbs
15" Corolla steel rims: 18.32 lbs

 

After what happened with the bZ4X release, it appears Toyota delayed the switch with other models.

 

Good luck with those; they do look great. I'm of a different mindset; I think the standard wheels look fine but that's not an important factor for me. I would insist on keeping 17" wheels for better MPG in any case. As an aside, to show how differently I think, I bought a 1997 Ford Taurus G in 1997 which had optional aluminum wheels added to it. They looked fantastic but I had the dealer remove them to save me $1300. $1300. was relatively chicken feed even then but I didn't care. I didn't need those fancy wheels and I was happy to save the $1300. But I think you made the right choice for yourself; they do look terrific!

 

It's your car and your choice and again, it looks great. I'm just too frugal to indulge myself this way; perfect example, my 1997 Ford Taurus.

 

So you get the oil changed right away after buying it?

 

Nice!!