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Prime: space for a small spare?

Discussion in 'Prime Technical Discussion' started by wjpm60, Feb 2, 2019.

  1. wjpm60

    wjpm60 Junior Member

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    Hi there––

    I am thinking of buying a Prime, but I will want to put in a small spare tire. If I removed the tire repair kit with the foam casing, would there be room for a small spare tire?

    Thanks, all.
     
  2. schja01

    schja01 One of very few in Chicagoland

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  3. mr88cet

    mr88cet Senior Member

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    Roadside assistance... Yeehah!

    Well, tire repair kit.

    You can certainly put a spare in the trunk area, of course, but would not be concealed, and it would chew up a fair chunk of the already-reduced trunk space.
     
    #3 mr88cet, Feb 2, 2019
    Last edited: Feb 2, 2019
  4. schja01

    schja01 One of very few in Chicagoland

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    I have a compact spare in my trunk. Not in the space occupied by the tire repair kit.
    I takes up about 1/3 of the trunk floor but you can place things like luggage on top of it.
    If you don't need to use one of the two rear passenger seats the compact spare
    fits nicely vertically stowed in the space between a front seat seat back and the front
    of a rear seat. If you do the latter and you decide to fold the rear seat down you'd need
    to fold or remove the rear seat's headrest.
    Personally I think it is totally worth it for peace of mind.

    Roadside assistance was mentioned. If you read the fine print that amounts to mounting
    the inflated customer provided spare. No mention is made of repairing the tire with
    the kit. So my guess is the car would be towed to a facility to repair the tire. Just my
    guess on that.
     
  5. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    i have a donut in my hatch, but it's 3" lower
     
  6. mr88cet

    mr88cet Senior Member

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    I had assumed that it pretty much meant towing...

    Ya know, in my 42 years of driving, I can only recall having to change a tire on the road once (perhaps actually twice, and I’d forgotten).

    That being said though, I currently have a slow leak I’m dealing with. Trying to find time to get it repaired...
     
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  7. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    none of my houses have burned down in 40 years, but i still carry insurance
     
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  8. JimboPalmer

    JimboPalmer Tsar of all the Rushers

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    I remember having a blow out in my 62 Ford Falcon station wagon. I do not think I have had a blow out since. (They invented radial tires) However, if I drove where I got flats frequently and also preferred a car with no spare tire, I would go with a receiver mounted full sized spare.

    www.amazon.com/dp/B079M8QKX6

    You will need to buy a 2 inch receiver and at least two pins to finish it, but consider a hack saw to customize the size, or just use the vertical portion horizontally.

    Torklift Central | 2017 Toyota Prius Prime Stealth EcoHitch

    www.amazon.com/dp/B007264ODE
     
    #8 JimboPalmer, Feb 3, 2019
    Last edited: Feb 3, 2019
  9. mr88cet

    mr88cet Senior Member

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    Oh, sure, that’s reasonable.

    I have life insurance too, but I really don’t need two million dollars worth.

    If I get a flat that the repair kit can’t deal with, I’m OK with it being “a bad day.” In other words, I don’t think I’ll burn much trunk space for a something that probably won’t happen more of than once in 20-30 years.
     
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  10. Salamander_King

    Salamander_King Senior Member

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    Wait.. Don't I remember your post on series of misfortune happened on your Bridgestone tires? Or was that someone else?

    Edit: I had to search for the thread. It was not you @mr88cet Sorry, my bad!
    Third flat with Bridgestone tires. Hello Michelins | PriusChat

    That said, I agree with you most part. Although I do now carry a full-size spare tire on the back of my PRIME, I have not had a flat incident that I had to change to spare in over 30 years. I did have two incidents of flat that I could use spare have I had it onboard. It was with AWD Sienna that came with run-flat OEM tires. No spare, no repair kit, but those run-flat tires did not run after getting flat. Called AAA.
     
    #10 Salamander_King, Feb 4, 2019
    Last edited: Feb 4, 2019
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  11. mr88cet

    mr88cet Senior Member

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    I’ve found my Bridgestone Ecopia Plus tires, on both our P.Prime and our 2009, to be a bit noisy. More specifically, as I like to describe it, they play road texture like phonograph needle: they’re quite quiet on a smooth road surface, really dreadful on rough roads. They are quite economical though.

    Anyway...

    Whose (what brand and type) run-flats were those? Were they the kind with a thick donut under the tread?
     
  12. Salamander_King

    Salamander_King Senior Member

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    Yeah, Bridgestone tire thread was not by you. I edited it. Sorry.

    The run-flat that came with our 2005 Sienna were “run-flat” Dunlop SP, Sport 4000 tires. There was a class action lawsuit for this year model run-flat tires. Toyota Sienna run-flat tires? Spare us. It ended up with settlement to have the tires changed for free within 40K, but with the same "defective" run-flat tires. I ended up having flat on both sets requiring towing and replacement of all four tires. Of course, after the second time, even if they would give me free, I did not want run-flat tires anymore. I ended up putting on conventional tires. The van run 60K more without an incident.
     
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  13. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    I dropped the life insurance when our finances came together.
    I suppose there is a psychological aspect to having a spare, especially on road trips. There are still some Barron wastelands to be crossed
     
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  14. mr88cet

    mr88cet Senior Member

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    Yes, and if I were to travel such wastelands, I would definitely consider putting a spare in the trunk!
     
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  15. mr88cet

    mr88cet Senior Member

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    And a jack!
     
  16. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk Senior Member

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    You should have a jack.

    Baron Von Wasteland, my new moniker...
     
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  17. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    It was a real eye opener for me, the first time we took 95 from Boston to Florida. 15 years later, it’s still the same.
     
  18. mr88cet

    mr88cet Senior Member

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    Yeah, I think I recall our P.Prime has one, and I know for sure our 2009 had one, but I’d definitely check before embarking on such a wasteland journey.
     
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