My first HUGE trip in the Prime

Very impressive, glad you had good safe trip.

Were you able to plug in at night anywhere?

 

Very enjoyable trip report - thanks Any pictures of your jedi master hatch space utilization skills?

 

Quite true.

It is? Why haven't I noticed a problem when I've done that? Repeatedly. Over Wifi, of course, not over the cellular system.

 

Glad your trip was a success. Were you the one who asked about max payload ratings in another thread as you were preparing for this trip? Did you ever calculate the actual payload--weight of gear and passengers--you loaded your car with? Did you pump your tires up to max. cold sidewall pressure--required to handle the max. tire loading?

 

The vehicle capacity (passengers plus cargo) of my 2016 Three Touring is 825 pounds. In the Owner's Manual -> Index -> Weights -> Load Limits, you'll find the capacity of your Prime. But sounds like you were within spec. as long as the tires were pumped up. Take a look at the sidewall on your tires. You'll see a statement such as "Max Load xxx lb. AT xxx psi." This means the tires are rated to carry the max load only when they are pumped up to this max pressure.

 

True, and that is one of my justifications for using pressures higher than recommended on the door label.

But the maximum rated tire load significantly exceeds the maximum rated loaded vehicle weight, so one shouldn't need to reach anywhere near that sidewall max number in order to fully load the vehicle.

 

For my 2016 Three Touring on OEM tires: Max Tire Load is 1,201 pounds per tire. Times 2 for two tires on each axle is 2,402 pounds per axle. Max vehicle load per axle is 2,250 pounds (front axle). Thus you're only over by 2,402 - 2,250 = 148 pounds on the front axle. In other words, at max tire pressure, the tires can only "take" an additional 148 pounds per axle than the max rated load for the car. So, I would not say this "significantly" exceeds the rated load. Best pump up those tires when carrying max load.

 

Great write up, thank you. I was wondering how well the large suit cases fit in the Prime; I know they fit well in the PiP (and my prior Gen2) like a glove. I chuckled at your comment about electronics, sounds like my family with our two boys (11 & 7). Any road trip involves at least 3 iPhones, 4 iPads, a couple Nintendo DS’s and a Switch. (including the devices belonging to my wife and I, of course).

But I digress...

As far as specs, is the cargo capacity measured below the tonneau cover, or up to the glass? I have never seen a definitive answer on this.

I am giving some thought to upgrading to a Prime in the fall, once I see what the 19’s offer (but would likely grab an ‘18 on clearance, since it will probably just be a carryover)

 

That's an awesome trip! I really enjoyed reading the details--I really want to do a few trips like that in my Prime!

 

How much of the payload are you putting on the front axle?

It looks like you might have used two morbidly obese front seat passengers as the entire payload, with nothing in the rear seat and trunk.

 

Thanks for the link. I had seen your cooler picture before but not the others. I know the hatch area looks smaller because of the raised deck, but still fits a lot of stuff. I am still amazed at how much big stuff fits in any of the Prii I have had.

PS - Good to see a 65” TV fits too, that is what I plan to upgrade my 55” to at some point, one more argument for the wife!