Wow - amazing car... I picked up my standard trim/base model PIP from the dealer this past Sunday and since then, commuting in the PIP has been a dream! I look forward to my daily commutes, even in the normally busy northern CA traffic in between Castro Valley and Santa Clara... The daily commutes will be even more awesome once I obtain a coveted green HOV sticker, then I'll be able to represent Prii community in the commuter lane amongst the Leafs. My previous commuter was a 1988 Pontiac Fiero, so the transition from an 80s car to a 2012MY (model year) was a huge leap in terms of technology . Things I love: 1) the LED DRLs (light emitting diode day time running lights) - I can turn the LED DRLs on/off with a twist of the control stalk... I see lots of Audis, Mercedes, and even the new VW bug has neat LED DRLs... In the PIP, I can play LED DRL with these cars, too... 2) EV/HV/ECO/Power mode control - very nice that I have control over when to go into any of these modes. In EV mode, I can accelerate (from stop) up a steep incline without the ICE (internal combustion engine) firing up... I did this once to see if the ICE would fire up, and it did not... WOW, what EV power... Note: so as to not drain the traction battery too quickly and to preserve its life, the car should not be operated in EV mode when accelerating up steep grades... 3) the 15 inch, 10-spoke aluminum rims look great. The 15s have grown on me, though I do have 17in Lexus CT220h 10-spoke aluminum rims sitting in the garage for the PIP. The 15s provide a very comfortable ride along with nice fuel economy... I'll probably still place the 17s on the car, but instead of going with the standard 215/45/17 size, I'll go with 205/50/17 which will provide for a slightly narrower tire for fuel economy purposes, along with a slightly taller sidewall height for ride comfort. 4) fuel economy - without having charged the car, in my Monday morning commute of 40-ish miles (with moderate traffic), I averaged 66mpg... 5) stealth PIP - I have a silver colored PIP, so the silver accents blends in with the rest of the car... Unless one notices the rims and/or the charge port door on the right side of the car, this PIP looks like a standard Prius... :high5:Oh what a feeling!:high5:
Interesting - 205/50-17 tires is actually what Mazda delivers on the nice handling Mazda3 hatchbacks. It's a good looking tire on a 17" wheel and like you say, a little bit more efficient and comfy ride.
When you go from a 15" to 17" rim, does the tire have a different circumference? Is an adjustment needed in the speedometer?
If he goes to 215/45R17, it's pretty close. With 205/50R17, there will be an error in speedo and odometer readout because the circumference difference is larger.
Here she is... 2012 PIP - standard trim The pic above may show the front paint protection film applied to hood and leading edges of the fender... I'll take more detailed photos!
It'll be a little bit oversized as Tideland mentioned... I use this site to compare sizes of tire diameters - Tire Size Calculator - tire & wheel plus sizing Here's the comparison: 195/65/15 - 832 revs/mile, actual speed 60 mph 215/45/17 - 845.1 revs/mile, actual speed 60.9 mph (1.501% too fast, diameter difference 1.49%) 205/50/17 - 829 revs/mile, actual speed 59.7 (.367% too slow, diameter difference .36%) 205/50/17 is a little closer in size to 195/65/15 than 215/45/17...
Since Prius already shows +8% of actual speed on speedometer, you should have no problem. In fact, you'll be closer to the actual speed of speedometer.
Oh VERY pretty! I think the lines of the car are really architecturally stunning, and the silver looks way better than I thought it would! NIIIIICE!
