2010 15" wheels without covers

The salesman that I am working with pointed out that the 15" alloy wheels look great without the covers. I had been thinking of buying an aftermarket wheel to get a better look.

Is there a reason for the covers or is it just cosmetic?

Pulled them on mine, I'm averaging 62MPG for a 9.3mile commute to/from work.

FWIW,
Jay

IMO, the 2010 15" wheels without covers are the ugliest wheels I've ever seen.

But if you like them without covers, then by all means go for it.

Note that they will look A LOT better if you add the chrome center caps from the Gen II's 15" wheels. These chrome center caps are available from your dealer, but probably will be a lot cheaper if you bought them online, e.g., from Parts.com for $10.50 each:

2004 Toyota Prius Center cap - Parts.com

Jay C, could you post a closer photo of your wheel without cover? I want to buy a Pruis with the Solar Roof but I think the plastic wheel covers look cheap. Thanks.

The wheel covers do look cheap up close. Take the cover off and it looks similiar to a Scion TC wheel. I'm planning on getting the center caps and removing the covers.

There is also still the question of whether removing the covers increases road noise. This was brought up in another thread; I'd be curious as to what conclusions have been reached on this.

BOO! Wow, that get tiring, but I must say, you redeamed yourself by offering the link to lower priced ceter caps, so you are OK by me. Now, drum roll please, for IMO, the most Be A Youthful stock Prius rims to grace the planet Earth.







Weather you like the rims or not, you've got to love those sexy four wheel disc brakes being showed off and very well cooled.

Whatever you do, don't go with after market wheels unless you confirm they are same or lighter weight than factory. Many have lost 4 or 5 MPG by adding heavier Tire and wheel combinations such as the SION TC rims.

Oh, and to check the aerodynamics of the wheel covers, take them off one side and then drive down a straight road about 60. Hold your hands very loosly over the steering wheel and see if it now pulls to the side with rims removed. Now, don't anyone get upset, I am kidding. I suspect they make 0.5 to 1 MPG difference at the most.

Can you advise as to how to properly remove the covers? I'm scared that I'll somehow scratch the alloy wheels beneath if I don't do it properly. Thanks in advance.

Sorry, I haven't made it back here for a while, but the covers are not that tight and easy to remove. I just reached into one of the openings on the cover, grabbed the iner edge or the outer rim and pulled hard, probably about 10 lb. pulling force. I think this is better than trying to pry them off from the outside of the rim, becuase they just arre not that hard to pull free, so why pry against the rims. I wasn't worried about the covers cracking, and if the alloy rims cracked that easily, you wouldn't want to drive on them.

I got the 17" wheels on my Gen III because I think they look the best, even with the 2-3 MPG hit.

I ran my 06 without the wheel covers because nothing else stock was available that year and I hated the Gen II wheel covers. I'm not offering to give up my 17" wheels, but I think the Gen III wheel covers look better than the Gen II covers and the Gen III bare wheels look better than the Gen II bare wheels.

NoMoShocks - nice pictures.

Like Larry said or implied, just grab and pull on the inner edge of the outer rim (the part that's effectively the trim ring portion of the wheel covers). The mounting mechanism consists of clips and a round wire ring around this trim ring part.

Here's one of darelldd's photos on removing the Gen II's trim ring (you might also want to take a look at darelldd's webpage with photos about removing the Gen II's trim rings: Prius ):

[IMGLINK]http://evnut.com/images/prius/wheel_plastic/plastic_wheel02.jpg[/IMGLINK]

Having never been a fan of hubcaps, I intend to remove my hubcaps and go with the alloy wheels until my tires wear out. It should not take long to wear out the OEM original softies. When those are gone, I will shop for a 16 inch wheel and low rolling resistance tire. I bought my center caps on eBay for $16.

I think the hubcaps were put on to appeal to older Prius owners. The brakes would cool better without them and I don't care for the looks of the hubcap AT ALL! The MPG difference should be negligible. If those spokes interfeared with MPG, Toyota would not have used them.

Dan

Yeah, just yesterday I backed into the edge of a curb that had been pushed out about 6" by a large tree. One of those dang Ailanthus trees, which are taking over the world... So I'm trying to blame the tree/curb, but, really, 'twas a wanton display of dumb-a$$ery on my part:doh:.

HTMLSpinner, do you know a price for a replacement cover? (Looks awful).


On a related note, has anyone noticed the covers clatter annoyingly over bumps? Not a big deal, but makes one wonder if they might be prone to fall off.

Thanks,
Tim

One of my covers cracked when I turned a corner. Must not have been put on properly in the first place. Brought it to my dealer and they agreed to cover it under warranty. Took about two weeks before it arrived, and sadly I sat at the dealer (with an appt) for an HOUR for them to replace it.

Hey, they are wheel covers, not hub caps. The piece everone is buying to cover the hole is a "hub cap" (it covers the wheel hub).

Advantages to removing the wheel covers:
1. The wheel is lighter. This alone may offset the aerodynamic losses.
2. They will bug Boo.
3. One less thing to break.
4. You will be able to wash the actual wheel, which WILL corrode if you trap salt under the cover. For those in the north.

Yes, they are easy to remove and replace, by hand. I think I shocked the engineers at the car show when I pulled one off by hand, but I put it back carefully, also by hand, and I think I heard a collective sigh from them when it was on properly. The wheels on the Prototype at the car shows were different than the ones on the cars now being shipped. That's a good thing. Those wheels on the prototype were ugly and hard to clean.

I know...totally insane! I can't imagine how long I'm going to have to wait for an oil change when the time comes.