Gen5 Limited AWD Wheels & Tires HELP!!! <g>

Discussion in 'Gen 5 Prius Main Forum' started by Bechi, Aug 20, 2025 at 10:43 AM.

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  1. Blackat

    Blackat Active Member

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    Yes. I forgot to add that they’re 7.5 x 17
     
    #21 Blackat, Aug 21, 2025 at 3:42 PM
  2. Bechi

    Bechi Junior Member

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    215/55R17 it will be then. I'd rather go more narrow for snows anyhow. So would something like this work?


    I think everything should work with the exception of the center caps which may or may not fit, but then they're only $7.

    Also, how do you evaluate what tires will be too narrow, too wide, too short, too tall, etc.? I usually use an online calculator like tiresize.com, and just try to match the dimensions of the OEM tire as much as possible, since my only reason to go with a different size is due to lack of desirable options. Likewise, how do you evaluate rim size? Using the aforementioned calculator, I plugged in the AWD LE size of 195/60R17, assuming that it would be fully compatible with Limited, and it lists 225/55R17 on a 6-8" wide rim as an alternate. Is that saying that for that size tire, a 7" wide rim would be best, 6.5" and 7.5" are pushing it, and 6" & 8" are the absolute limit?

    I really appreciate your patience with me! I'd really like to understand this; hell, I SHOULD be able to understand this. I don't think it's really that complicated, just doesn't seem to be well documented that I can find! <g> Thanks!

    Bechi
     
    #22 Bechi, Aug 22, 2025 at 7:48 AM
    Last edited: Aug 22, 2025 at 7:53 AM
  3. Winston Smith

    Winston Smith Active Member

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    That wheel has a 70+mm bore. Your Prius takes a wheel with a 60.1mm. That doesn't mean a larger bore wheel can't work, but you'd need hub rings. I've had wheels with hub rings before - not a big deal, but that was always with aluminum wheels.
     
    #23 Winston Smith, Aug 22, 2025 at 8:24 AM
  4. KMO

    KMO Senior Member

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    I like this site: Rim & Tire Size Calculator. Custom Offsets - Wheel-Size.com

    The "Rim sizes" row is showing a lookup from the official fitment tables from tyre standards.

    The sizes shown are the officially valid wheel sizes for a given tyre size. A tyre "should" fit on any of those sizes - if it doesn't then either the tyre manufacturer or wheel manufacturer has violated the standard. The central one is the optimal fit one.

    There is a giant fitment table matrix - all of width, aspect ratio and diameter are factors. Typically there is a span of 5 sizes (covering 2") of possible wheel widths for a given tyre, but not always.

    So here you can see that 19x6.5 is ideal for 195/50 R19, and 17x6.5 is acceptable for 215/55 R17.

    upload_2025-8-22_16-0-28.png

    I think the site you listed hasn't done anything more advanced than convert the mm width into inches, so isn't going to be useful to advise on where the fitment limits are.
     
    #24 KMO, Aug 22, 2025 at 8:59 AM
  5. Bechi

    Bechi Junior Member

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    Gotcha. Now I understand why I saw that the rim bore must match the hub bore exactly or be larger.​
    Thanks! I'm going to bookmark that. If I'm buying new rims anyway, I might as well look into a more optimal width.​

    I'm still curious as to how you evaluate tire size - what too short/tall, narrow/wide. It's great when someone is able to chime in that they've been running an alternate size without issues, but is there a way to determine that without trying it and seeing what happens?

    Thanks!
     
    #25 Bechi, Aug 22, 2025 at 10:04 AM
  6. KMO

    KMO Senior Member

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    Aside from the tire-to-wheel interface, where there are real standards to permit interoperability, if you're choosing to deviate from the sizes specified by the car manufacturer, you're just assuming that a small difference is unlikely to have a significant impact.

    That site I linked indicates a reasonable heuristic for any given change in gaps - stuff like "Tire is 10 mm closer to suspension components. Acceptable for most cars".

    Can't really say more than that in general.

    They'll have left room for snow build-up, for example, so if you think you're in non-snowy conditions, you can take up some of that room. But then the manual will point out where there's less, eg the manual saying not to use snow-chains on the standard 19" tyres, suggesting they reckon it's getting a bit tight at that size. Which is why I'm not keen on going even bigger.

    Occasionally there is specific information like what I said about the Prius AWD and PHEV having bigger front disc brakes, meaning you can be more confident about brake clearance with small wheels on a FWD HEV.

    In many European countries there are laws about how far you can deviate from the size a car was delivered with or another manufacturer's approved size without a formal inspection. Doesn't apply to the USA, I think.
     
    #26 KMO, Aug 22, 2025 at 10:32 AM
  7. Bechi

    Bechi Junior Member

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    Thank you, KMO. So I guess making an intelligent choice does rely somewhat on experience and gut feeling. I did notice the caveat "Rim diameter is less than OE. Make sure that you have enough room for brakes inside the rim." when comparing the 215/55R17 tires to the 19" OEMs on the site you linked to, but I see you're not having any issues so I guess it's within tolerances. What was your thinking when evaluating the 215/55R17 against the bigger brakes? Would you happen to know if the AWD brake size and PHEV brake size are the same?
     
    #27 Bechi, Aug 22, 2025 at 11:21 AM
  8. KMO

    KMO Senior Member

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    The Prius comes with both 17" and 19" wheels, and they're not fitting bigger brakes with the 19" wheels, so you're not going to have any problem in that regard switching from 19" to 17". You only need to start worrying if you go lower than 17".

    If I recall correctly, the front brake discs are 12" on PHEV and AWD HEV, and 11" on FWD HEV.

    Rear brakes are 11" on all.
     
    #28 KMO, Aug 22, 2025 at 3:05 PM
    Last edited: Aug 22, 2025 at 3:21 PM
  9. james nicol

    james nicol New Member

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    I agree and think the 215-55-17is safer for the 6.5inch OEM wheels tire rack is sometime wrong as to OEM wheel specs
     
    #29 james nicol, Aug 22, 2025 at 6:18 PM
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