Frustrated!

Depends on which trim you have. (edmunds link to explanation)

 

who is raiding the c?

 

No...it's not dangerous.
Meaning the turning radius.
Illegal U-turns ARE dangerous, but that's between you and the Chippies.

The good news for you is that cars can be modified, and since you live in LA there are lotsa people who swing wrenches on cars to get them to look or drive a little more differently than stock.
I mean....there HAS to be SOME benefit to living in LA, right?
Well....OK, you have In-N-Out burgers too but I'm a plant eater these days, so my double-double days are in the rear-view mirror.
So.....
You can change your control arms, and do some work on your steering rack to give your car the approximate steering radius of a shopping cart---I guess, if you really want to.
Sometimes even, the mods can be done more cheaply than the thousands of bucks that you might imagine.

JUST beware that in a state where they don't even let you drink with a single use a plastic straw or use an oil catch can, yanking the rack limiters out of your car is probably risky too.....

The BAD news is that the trial-size Prius is what we in the telephone industry call MD - or Manufacturer Discontinued - so Yota isn't going to be making any more OEM changes to the platform.

AND....there's more bad news....

I don't have any stick time in a Priussy (yet) but I do know that their turning radius is > than a 12-foot standard road...because most all cars are thusly limited.
If I ever find myself looking for a used car however, I'll be sure and put the Priussy on my short list because this little car has won my respect by being one of Toyota's most reliable cars, if not the most fun to drive.
HOWEVER (comma!) I will test drive one THOROUGHLY before I write a check for the car!


According to the interwebs, the pint-sized Prius has about a 15-16' turning radius.
Tesla's not-a-$35,000 car has a turning radius is more than 3' BIGGER, so make sure that you test drive one thoroughly before you plunk down whatever they charge for the things.....otherwise you'll be frustrated in a much more expensive car.


Good Luck!

 

LOL. Thanks for clarifying.

So, how bad is the turning radius on C, say compared to regular Prius? I haven't driven compact or subcompact car for a whole. Neither Gen3 nor PRIME feel that nimble when they come to turning around on tight streets. The article sited above seems to point this is only problem for the trim fitted with 16-inch alloy wheels.

 

How is the size of the tire going to change the turning angle?
The RIMS might cause rubbing and require another mod - meaning there's a chance that the folks in Aichi put thicker rack limiters in to keep the wheels from rubbing - which is ironic since kids put 17" (and larger) rims on these cars all the time.

THAT's why you do test drives.

 

That's exactly what they did, on cars that came with the optional 16" wheels with larger tires.

The small-wheel models have a 31.4' circle, the big-wheel model is 37.4'

For those unfamiliar with these numbers that is a HUGE difference.

 

Well then I would recommend putting 15s on the car and yanking the rack limiters, MAKING SURE that the new setup doesn't rub you the wrong way.
You'll get better mileage too....always important if you drive your own car for a living!

Wheel spacers might also be an option albeit a riskier one if you get cheap or poorly made spacers if you want to keep the 16s but really......I've seen both and don't really appreciate the difference aesthetically.

One of the many advantages of being an old fart.

 

I have owned both a C and a Gen3, not sure what the issue is! How often are you doing U-Turns in the streets??

 

This isn't a tall order for a lot of shops. Out there in LA you're surrounded by mechanics capable of taking care of this.

A wheel/tire/suspension place might be best just because they'll understand the problem immediately and they will probably stock appropriate choices for replacement wheels and tires.

Get it done, you'll fall in love with the car all over again. Given that LA has standardized its small streets on 36' width it's easy to see where a 37+' circle is a real handicap. A U-turn goes from 3.1 lanes down to 2.6 lanes. That gives you a lot more chances to flip.

 

+1.

This isn't a heavy lift.
Just make sure that if you go from 16s (if you have them) to 15's that you have somebody re-program your car for the smaller rims.
I don't pretend to know what this involves in a Prius C-type but somebody here does.
You'll probably get a lot better gas mileage with this method.

LA probably has 1,500 shops that make their living selling kids rims for their rides.
Some of the better of these will be able to fit your car with spacers and dial in the rack limiters to help with your U-turns.

If it were ME, I'd get a quality set of spacers and yank the rack limiters myself as done in the video, but that's me being me again.

Good Luck!

Make sure you test drive that Tesla thoroughly before you sign your life away so that issues like this don't get between you and your NEXT car - or - see if you can rent one for a weekend before hand.

Good Luck!

 

Also it is dangerous to be talking in jargon and code when posing a question........so that "normal" people can't understand you.

 

It is also irritating that you are asking a C question, apparently, while your profile says you have a IV.

My family has had several C's and find that it has a tighter turning radius than about 80% of the cars on the road.
I don't understand the problem.

 

I don't know how easy it is but don't forget- the limiters are in to prevent you from catching the tires on body or suspension parts when you try to turn the wheel harder. You must replace the wheels and tires with a smaller set at the same time as resetting the limits.

 

@ Caly: i've been in all 50 states. I've LIVED in close to a dozen of them. California IS a great place, and we'll leave it there unless you want to get a hall pass to the political sub-forum.
Smells better up here talking about Toyota stuff, though.

@ AutoZone....Mine sells catalytic converters too. There's a difference between sellin' and driving legal.

@ Rack limiters....watch the video again. You don't take the boot off, and no....it's not that easy. Like many things in life, things are a little different when you drive real cars out on real streets.
One example is that sometimes tires rub when you're flinging a car into a corner or off-roading in a truck when they otherwise will not when you're creeping around in a parking lot at walking speed.
Also, if you think that things are nasty when microplastics and taxes are discussed, try getting a consensus on wheel spacer safety and whether or not it will cause premature failures in...say....wheel bearings.

Good Luck!

 

I don't think you know WHAT you have.
There is no such thing as a "gen 4" C......as far as I know.

It is NOT hard to park.
It does NOT have a wide turning radius.

And finally, you are not allowed to spam the group by posting links in your avatar or signature.

I think this whole thread is just a TROLL.