I have had my Prius II for a couple of years now, and am wonder what add-ons people have put on theirs, such as tires/rims, and other bits and bobs to personalize their rides. I am truly interested in finding out what rim/tire combinations people have used to give their Prius that little bit of distinction from the rest...

mine

Just for info, i asked my dealer today if changing rims would change the warantee any and he said no. One thing i was wondering, the shape of the stock rims on the PII might actually add to the flow of the car and let the air flow down the side. I wanted to put some trick rims on mine too but im thinking that 5 spoke or similar rims might actually let the air eddy on the side and change the aerodynamics. Any thoughts?

I was at a party a couple of weekends ago, and noticed a PriusII parked in the grass. Jimmy LaFave was leaning against it, holding his party-pooper dog on a leash. Now, I'd never met Jimmy, but I knew who he was because in these parts (central Texas) he's a celebrity.

Of course, I couldn't pass up the opportunity to accost a prone hybrid owner in order to pit my mileage against their own, no matter if his was celebrity mileage I meekly walked over and asked how he liked his hybrid.

"Oh! We LOVE it!" he exclaimed.

After a bit of banter, he told me he'd recently replaced his tires, and regretted his decision not to buy the Toyota-recommended tires. Apparently, his mileage was suffering. I am assuming it was because he'd bought tires with a different diameter than the stock Prius, which whould totally FUBAR the Prius' OBD's mileage calculation.

At any rate, I told Jimmy and his wife about this site, so hopefully they've surfed by here and gained some mileage tips from you guys

You are correct about the Prius rims being specially tuned aerodynamically. I do not know of the specifics about this design however.

Toyota left no stone unturned with regard to aerodynamics. Consider, the impressions in the roof are there to create vortices which help the air go past the roof easier, and the spoiler on the rear is functional in that it prevents the air coming off the roof from sliding down the back side of the vehicle creating a negative pressure area.

It has been said:
Hybrid drivers come in 3 flavors, greenie, techie and cheapie. Pick any 2.
2005 Prius, Melinium Silver over gray, package 5 (AI)

You hardly notice it in a car, but putting heavier rims on a car impacts a car's ability to brake and requires more energy to get moving. I'd guess if you put alloy 17s on your prius with low profile tires, it would be tough on milage.

Where it gets painfully obvious is on vehicles running 20s or 22s. Most reputable shops will tell you that you should upgrade your braking on a vehicle if you stray far from the stock wheel/tire size & weight.

I put splash guards on my 05 prius and plan to order the sirius receiver that integrates with the display to trick out the car.

Given the smooth contours, a Prius wouldn't be a bad canvas for add-on graphics if that's your thing.

I have been thinking about putting racing stripes on my Prius (I thought it would give lots of people a good laugh).

http://www.greenhybrid.com/compare/m.../signature.png

Hmmm, I suppose I will stick to graphics then...

mine

That's as bad as my niece, putting a FEAR THIS sticker (one of those see-through jobs) across the front windshield of her Geo Metro.



Eric the Grey