Mountain bike inside Prius

[wjtan]

Dear folks,

I don't currently own a Prius, but purchasing one's been on my mind for some time. I have read up about the fuel economy and other advantages of owning one but now would like to address other (much more mundane) aspects of ownership.

Are there any MTB riders in this forum? I'm interested to know if it's possible to put 2 bikes inside the Prius. (rear seats folded and bikes layed flat) I'm not really enthused about putting the bikes on top using the optional roof rack.

Also, here's another supremely mundane question.... I like the Prius in black. Any arguments against that color?

Thanks in advance for your replies and warmest regards.

_______
peace

[darelldd]

Yup, you can fit two bikes back there if you have the seats down. The less you like the paint job on the bikes, the easier it is.

As for black... nothing wrong with the color, just something wrong with you for liking it. I'd just hate to keep it clean, and I wouldn't be able to touch the car during daylight hours for about five months out of the year. Silver or white for me every time.

[Tideland Prius]

Hi and welcome to PriusChat!

I would show you a picture but I can't seem to get the website going so I'll simply give you the URL and you can browse it at your leisure.

Go here: http://john1701a.com/

and go to page 58 of the photo album for a picture of a mountain bike inside the Prius.

Also, black is sleek but I don't know how it'll do under S'pore weather. The others owners seem to have taken the lighter colours like silver.

Lastly, I'm assuming you're talking about the current generation that's recently released in S'pore right?

[galaxee]

welcome!

we've put 2 trail bikes in the back, seats down and blanket to keep the mud from getting on the interior

i think black is a fantastic color!! just prepare to spend an inordinate amount of time keeping it clean.

[qbee42]

Black is great! It does have all of the usual drawbacks of black: shows dirt and scratches, dust, finger prints, microscopic spores, and larger viruses. This is my first black car, and I have washed it more than any other that I've owned, but the Prius looks fantastic in black. It really sets off the lights and chrome.

You see more Prius in silver because Toyota built more Prius in silver. It's a self-fulfilling prophecy: marketing found that silver was the most popular car color, so Toyota made more silver Prius than any other color, and since they all sell, we have more silver Prius on the road, which proves it's the most popular color. The Prius was so hard to get, people took whatever color they could.

Tom

[daveleeprius]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(qbee42 @ Jan 15 2007, 06:55 AM) [snapback]375777[/snapback]</div>

Black is great! It does have all of the usual drawbacks of black: shows dirt and scratches, dust, finger prints, microscopic spores, and larger viruses. This is my first black car, and I have washed it more than any other that I've owned, but the Prius looks fantastic in black. It really sets off the lights and chrome.

You see more Prius in silver because Toyota built more Prius in silver. It's a self-fulfilling prophecy: marketing found that silver was the most popular car color, so Toyota made more silver Prius than any other color, and since they all sell, we have more silver Prius on the road, which proves it's the most popular color. The Prius was so hard to get, people took whatever color they could.

Tom
[/b]

We bought an 07 Barcelona Red because it was the only one on the lot at the time, but my wife's favorite color is also red. And I was thinking to paint my 1991 Civic Wagon red too, so red was cool with us. We would have preferred silver, but there are just so many silver Prii on the road, I'm glad we got red. Plus it's nice to have a red car here in the dark and gloomy Pacific Northwest!

[LMA]

One of my criteria before purchasing the Prius was that I had to be able to fit my mountain bike inside -- it's a size small Cannondale F400 and when I fold down the back seats and throw down a drop cloth to protect the interior, all I have to do is release the quick-release on the front wheel and it's in there with room to spare. I'm quite sure you could get larger sizes in there without a dirty bike ever touching the insides of the doors or hatch sides. I haven't tried putting two bikes in yet, but I'm sure it would work; in my case, I'd probably chose to throw down a second drop cloth on top of the first bike to minimize the rubbing of one frame against another.

The best part is blasting down the highway en route to the trailhead without having to worry anymore about whether a trunk-mounted rack was going to "eject" my bike off the back *and* also knowing that with everything inside the car, I'm not cutting down on my gas mileage at all.

[wjtan]

Thanks for the replies.

" without having to worry anymore about whether a trunk-mounted rack was going to "eject" my bike off the back "

My thoughts exactly! It's also quite a hassle to rig up the rack and bikes securely. It's feasible for me to own just one car, which means it has to do duty on multiple fronts. The reason I had to pose such a mundane question is that there isn't a Prius on the showroom floor for me to verify. They are quite scarce here and the low demand means the dealer (just one) can't justify putting one on the floor for display.

Darel you asked:
"...I'm assuming you're talking about the current generation that's recently released in S'pore right?"

That would be correct. The current 40% tax concessions are due for review end 2007, with currently no hint as to which way they might go. So decision time's this year in a few months. The price of a Prius gets me a Camry here, so it'll be a tough one. As you can tell, fuel economy is only one of a number of considerations for me when owning only one car. I'm glad Toyota recognises that and has made the Prius versatile. It can geniunely be marketed as more than just a green machine.

John, it's totally obvious that you're in love with your car! It is a lovely car. Thanks for sharing the photos. You do have a beautiful countryside. All the more reason to drive an ecofriendly car.

As for the comments on the black colour, yup, I totally agree with the comments about it being too hot to touch. I currently own a black Opel Meriva (not sold in USA, but if it did ever get there, it'll probably be a Saturn something-or-other.) and black tends to absorb more heat. What with our year round summers here, I guess some other colour would have to suffice.

Once again, thanks to all for reading and responding.

Regards.

[hyo silver]

I prefer to ride the bike and leave the car home, but yes, two will fit inside nicely. First I lay down a big plastic tarp on the bottom, and load the first bike, sans front wheel. Then I put in a layer of cardboard, but strategically placed soft luggage, or even carpet remnants, also works to keep the bikes from rubbing. The second bike goes on top very carefully, checking to make sure nothing's going to scrape or slide or scratch. Whatever you do, do NOT leave the front wheels on the curb!

[iiwi]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(mookieconster @ Jan 14 2007, 09:39 PM) [snapback]375733[/snapback]</div>

Are there any MTB riders in this forum? I'm interested to know if it's possible to put 2 bikes inside the Prius. (rear seats folded and bikes layed flat) I'm not really enthused about putting the bikes on top using the optional roof rack.

[/b]

When I went to the dealer for service, I put one mountain bike in the back. I put the seat down with a blanket on the bottom. With one bike I didn't even have to take off any of the wheels.