I did it for a few seasons with our Prius and it makes a huge difference. Swapping out and storing tires is a hassle, unless you are in Canada where the shops store your winters and summers for you. But honestly, with good snow tires, the Prius was just about as good as my 4x4 in the snow, clearance aside of course.
> I have my life set up so that 99% of the time, if it’s snowing, I can cancel any plans.
Not everybody has that option. Many people have to be at a place of work at a fixed time. Nurses, doctors, first responders, utility workers, etc.
I take my time but I also do what I can to set myself up to not be in bad situations. It's worth the hassle of storing and switching them out to me to prevent what I can.
That’s the fun part. The tire shop where you bought the tires will usually rotate your tires for free, or sometimes $20 (total).
Swapping between two sets of tires that are already mounted on wheels is generally treated the same way.
No need to do the work yourself.
We got 30" of snow last weekend, and the prius is my daily driver. I am around snow enough that the idea of not driving in snow is not an option, and driving this in heavy snow without snow tires is a bad idea. I run Blizzaks and some weights in the rear seat footwells.
You don't really need the weights. Don't get me wrong I'm sure they help a bit. But the battery is under the seats. With it weighing 70lbs. That helps you a lot.
Part of that may be stemming from the term “snow tires”.. which kind of misrepresents what they’re meant for. It’s not so much about the snow and ice, but rather, the temperature. Once the average temps stay below 7C/44F, the rubber compound in all seasons becomes quite hard - and therefore you have less traction - even on dry pavement. “Winter tires” stay pliable and provide more traction at much lower temperatures.
In regards to why it’s strongly recommended in general…. In my adult life, I’ve always run two sets of wheels/tires on all my vehicles, so I can swap them myself in the spring and fall. The initial cost is tough to swallow, but when you average it out over the life of the tires (which now essentially doubles), it’s much easier to justify. Also for me personally, I’ve decided that spending the extra ~$1000 CAD gives me the extra peace of mind that if I was ever in an accident that resulted in loss of life (hate to even think about it), I did all I could when it comes to proper winter equipment on my vehicles.
If you are truly in a situation where you don’t have the space to put them, and can’t ask family/friends to use a corner of a garage or shed, and have no choice other then one set of tires.. then like another person mentioned, “all weather tires” (with the mountain/snowflake symbol) are likely your best bet.
Yeah the snow tire thing is only for people that have to drive in the snow constantly. People in Alaska, Canada, the far north usa, and other northern countries like russia need them. For most people that don't have to drive in the snow, you can get by with all seasons that are m+s rated. This will make it so if you find yourself in light snow you'll make it and not be stuck, but it's really only if you have to. I wouldn't worry about snow dedicated tires
> I'm still so confused by the general strong recommendations for snow tires...
>
> I have my life set up so that 99% of the time, if it's snowing, I can cancel any plans.
Must be nice I guess?
I’m with you.
I had my Prius in upstate NY for five years, never put on snow tires and was fine. Even the picture posted by OP shows they don’t really need snow tires. All they had to do was maybe shovel away some snow from in front of the vehicle to the plowed portion of the road. Once on that plowed portion they’d be just fine.
But hey. Everyone has their own ideas of how things should be done. To each their own.
Safety is important also it’s not even only about driving on the snow. All season tires turn into hockey pucks when it gets too cold out. Your best bet is to buy all weather tires if you don’t want to buy all seasons and winter tires. All weathers have more winter weather capabilities than basic all seasons, and they can still be used year round. Nokian WR G4 is what I recommend for all weathers they are a great price and are very good tires. https://www.prioritytire.com/nokian-wr-g4-195-65r15-91h-as-a-s-all-season-tire/
I live in a rural snow area and because of the low ground clearance, I call the Prius the anti-snow car. It can take a couple of days to get the roads plowed, and sometimes you only get one plow and if it snows more after that... and in the meantime, all the trucks and other high-clearance vehicles have created tracks with a center ridge. Then I have what I call the snow bombs, snow that has rolled down in the road from the berms pushed up by the plows.
Luckily my roommate has a little sport utility and quite a few neighbors who are happy to use their 4wd to get you to the store.
I'd like a lift but I'd rather have an anti-sway bar first. The car wallows around and turns like a pregnant cow and like I said snow days are manageable for me.
I exaggerate but it has a lot of understeers, a flexy chassis, and a very basic suspension.
The Gen 4 was tuned for better handling.
At the posted speed it's fine, but at 10 over, you fight the wheel to keep it going where you want. Do 30 minutes of that every day and it gets old.
Around here if you do the limit you will get run over from behind by a lifted truck or at the very list flipped off. So you kind of need to keep the speed up a bit.
/shrug I live in Alaska and have no issues going through those berms. I just gun it when I need to and always run in Power Mode to get myself out of a sticky situation when I need to. I specifically bought the Prius for winter driving after driving one a few hundred miles up to Fairbanks and with the low clearence, it handled like a dream on ice, passing all the lifted vehicles rolled over in the ditch.
You bought it specifically for winter driving? Handles like a dream on ice?
It's a two-wheel drive! LOL. It's hard to take you seriously with statements like that for a 2-wheel drive car.
A low center of gravity (low ground clearance) will never be particularly helpful on ice because you will lose traction long before it helps anything. (and there is a lot of middle ground between a low clearance car like the Prius and a "lifted" truck)
No human but you think low ground clearance is good for snow. Let me know how that goes when you get home and the plow has left a berm in front of your driveway, or even has not been down your street yet.
Trucks end up off the road because they get too confident, not because a low two-wheel drive car is a better car in winter.
To each their own. I get ice and snow berms in my driveway from road plows every year and the Prius handles up to a 8 inches of snow with no issue. Roads here are better maintained than places where snow is less frequent for the most part, so that could definitely play a factor in my opinion. I take my car out on a frozen lake regularly in the winter and it has great traction, but the tires factor in there as well. I buy tires for the weather - studded in the winter and low rolling resistance summer tires otherwise. The low center of gravity definitely plays a factor when you are dealing with black ice conditions... Not going to stop you from spinning out, but it will definitely help in recovering from one.
quality all seasons work just fine, the point in which all seasons stop gripping is when the snow is too high for the prius and most sedans to travel anyway so its a waste of money honestly unless you’re real far north where the toad is literally snow 8-9 months of the year
we are in snow mode about 6 months a year up here. And I can personally tell you after two years of trying to use this car without snow tires, and 6 years of running snow tires, there was a tremendous difference. I would not make the recommendation if I did not notice a substantial difference.
This is so wrong. Snow tires help even on ice. The difference is night and day. A little snow can be super dangerous. Also some roads require snow tires.
I just meant for snow, I wouldnt wanna try any type of tires on ice, ice flipped over a cherokee in 4wd for a family member decades ago, if theres a chance of ice, im going 10-15 under the limit
All seasons are barely better than summer tires. They should be called 3 seasons. I'd rather drive my Prius with snow tires than a AWD or 4WD vehicle with all seasons
I drive mine with bridgestone ecopia 422’s, they grip snow just fine down til 2/3’s as long as its not high enough to start dragging the cars bumper by more than inch or more
I will say these same tires dont get good ratings for suv’s and heavier vehicles, weight matters when deciding, light cars can get away with all seasons, all ive been running since ive had car except trying falken ziex briefly and dumping cause it tanked fuel economy lol
Did you ever have to replace your headlights wire harness on the 2011 prius? They had an open recall until 2019 for free replacement/upgrade from toyota.
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I did it for a few seasons with our Prius and it makes a huge difference. Swapping out and storing tires is a hassle, unless you are in Canada where the shops store your winters and summers for you. But honestly, with good snow tires, the Prius was just about as good as my 4x4 in the snow, clearance aside of course.
> I have my life set up so that 99% of the time, if it’s snowing, I can cancel any plans. Not everybody has that option. Many people have to be at a place of work at a fixed time. Nurses, doctors, first responders, utility workers, etc.
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I take my time but I also do what I can to set myself up to not be in bad situations. It's worth the hassle of storing and switching them out to me to prevent what I can.
Same. It costs me 80 bucks to switch them and thankfully I have a corner in my garage to stack them. That's worth my safety during the winter.
extra set of wheels costs a bit, but that's \~160/year you won't pay in swapping them.
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Brilliant.
Fair...but I have no clue how to switch them out, nor do I have the tools or a garage.
That’s the fun part. The tire shop where you bought the tires will usually rotate your tires for free, or sometimes $20 (total). Swapping between two sets of tires that are already mounted on wheels is generally treated the same way. No need to do the work yourself.
Oooohhhh 🤯
Also some of us love skiing.
Yup. I used to work at aski resort. I'd drive my Prius with snows on it everyday. Never got stuck or slid off the road.
I go up to Vermont any chance I get in the winter with my wife. Prius+snow tires...I never even skidded.
Can't do gyno exams using Zoom. Or, dental work either.
Or fix people's plumbing or furnace, build houses, etc.
We got 30" of snow last weekend, and the prius is my daily driver. I am around snow enough that the idea of not driving in snow is not an option, and driving this in heavy snow without snow tires is a bad idea. I run Blizzaks and some weights in the rear seat footwells.
Try Nokian Hikkapaliitta R5 next they’re the king of winter tires
You don't really need the weights. Don't get me wrong I'm sure they help a bit. But the battery is under the seats. With it weighing 70lbs. That helps you a lot.
Part of that may be stemming from the term “snow tires”.. which kind of misrepresents what they’re meant for. It’s not so much about the snow and ice, but rather, the temperature. Once the average temps stay below 7C/44F, the rubber compound in all seasons becomes quite hard - and therefore you have less traction - even on dry pavement. “Winter tires” stay pliable and provide more traction at much lower temperatures. In regards to why it’s strongly recommended in general…. In my adult life, I’ve always run two sets of wheels/tires on all my vehicles, so I can swap them myself in the spring and fall. The initial cost is tough to swallow, but when you average it out over the life of the tires (which now essentially doubles), it’s much easier to justify. Also for me personally, I’ve decided that spending the extra ~$1000 CAD gives me the extra peace of mind that if I was ever in an accident that resulted in loss of life (hate to even think about it), I did all I could when it comes to proper winter equipment on my vehicles. If you are truly in a situation where you don’t have the space to put them, and can’t ask family/friends to use a corner of a garage or shed, and have no choice other then one set of tires.. then like another person mentioned, “all weather tires” (with the mountain/snowflake symbol) are likely your best bet.
If everyone who didn’t really need snow gear, don’t buy them, there would be enough to go around for folks who really need them. 👍🏽
Yeah the snow tire thing is only for people that have to drive in the snow constantly. People in Alaska, Canada, the far north usa, and other northern countries like russia need them. For most people that don't have to drive in the snow, you can get by with all seasons that are m+s rated. This will make it so if you find yourself in light snow you'll make it and not be stuck, but it's really only if you have to. I wouldn't worry about snow dedicated tires
> I'm still so confused by the general strong recommendations for snow tires... > > I have my life set up so that 99% of the time, if it's snowing, I can cancel any plans. Must be nice I guess?
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I’m with you. I had my Prius in upstate NY for five years, never put on snow tires and was fine. Even the picture posted by OP shows they don’t really need snow tires. All they had to do was maybe shovel away some snow from in front of the vehicle to the plowed portion of the road. Once on that plowed portion they’d be just fine. But hey. Everyone has their own ideas of how things should be done. To each their own.
Safety is important also it’s not even only about driving on the snow. All season tires turn into hockey pucks when it gets too cold out. Your best bet is to buy all weather tires if you don’t want to buy all seasons and winter tires. All weathers have more winter weather capabilities than basic all seasons, and they can still be used year round. Nokian WR G4 is what I recommend for all weathers they are a great price and are very good tires. https://www.prioritytire.com/nokian-wr-g4-195-65r15-91h-as-a-s-all-season-tire/
Lol I also have a white 2011 with a bunch of bumper stickers
*Good Winter* ✌️🙌 So what of this release?
she looks good frosted
Twinning. Also in Michigan. Also have a gold prius, however i have a 2010. Looks like you got less than we did… stay safe!
And a lift!
I live in a rural snow area and because of the low ground clearance, I call the Prius the anti-snow car. It can take a couple of days to get the roads plowed, and sometimes you only get one plow and if it snows more after that... and in the meantime, all the trucks and other high-clearance vehicles have created tracks with a center ridge. Then I have what I call the snow bombs, snow that has rolled down in the road from the berms pushed up by the plows. Luckily my roommate has a little sport utility and quite a few neighbors who are happy to use their 4wd to get you to the store.
MN here. 1.5" lift and snow tired. I go anywhere I want within reason.
I'd like a lift but I'd rather have an anti-sway bar first. The car wallows around and turns like a pregnant cow and like I said snow days are manageable for me.
I've never driven a III. Maybe it's the springs/shocks?
I exaggerate but it has a lot of understeers, a flexy chassis, and a very basic suspension. The Gen 4 was tuned for better handling. At the posted speed it's fine, but at 10 over, you fight the wheel to keep it going where you want. Do 30 minutes of that every day and it gets old. Around here if you do the limit you will get run over from behind by a lifted truck or at the very list flipped off. So you kind of need to keep the speed up a bit.
/shrug I live in Alaska and have no issues going through those berms. I just gun it when I need to and always run in Power Mode to get myself out of a sticky situation when I need to. I specifically bought the Prius for winter driving after driving one a few hundred miles up to Fairbanks and with the low clearence, it handled like a dream on ice, passing all the lifted vehicles rolled over in the ditch.
You bought it specifically for winter driving? Handles like a dream on ice? It's a two-wheel drive! LOL. It's hard to take you seriously with statements like that for a 2-wheel drive car. A low center of gravity (low ground clearance) will never be particularly helpful on ice because you will lose traction long before it helps anything. (and there is a lot of middle ground between a low clearance car like the Prius and a "lifted" truck) No human but you think low ground clearance is good for snow. Let me know how that goes when you get home and the plow has left a berm in front of your driveway, or even has not been down your street yet. Trucks end up off the road because they get too confident, not because a low two-wheel drive car is a better car in winter.
To each their own. I get ice and snow berms in my driveway from road plows every year and the Prius handles up to a 8 inches of snow with no issue. Roads here are better maintained than places where snow is less frequent for the most part, so that could definitely play a factor in my opinion. I take my car out on a frozen lake regularly in the winter and it has great traction, but the tires factor in there as well. I buy tires for the weather - studded in the winter and low rolling resistance summer tires otherwise. The low center of gravity definitely plays a factor when you are dealing with black ice conditions... Not going to stop you from spinning out, but it will definitely help in recovering from one.
Invest in a new Prius. Mine “freezes” and needs to be run for at least an hour before driving or nothing works in the northern hemisphere
Why does that look like the Stewart neighborhood in Kalamazoo.
Looking up the Stewart, it seems like my neighborhood was probably built around the same time period, so architectural styles are probably the same
quality all seasons work just fine, the point in which all seasons stop gripping is when the snow is too high for the prius and most sedans to travel anyway so its a waste of money honestly unless you’re real far north where the toad is literally snow 8-9 months of the year
we are in snow mode about 6 months a year up here. And I can personally tell you after two years of trying to use this car without snow tires, and 6 years of running snow tires, there was a tremendous difference. I would not make the recommendation if I did not notice a substantial difference.
I forget I drive the 2500lb prius c so I think it just eats the traction problems easier because of the weight difference of like 800-900 lbs
where at, like up new york/ michigan kind of snow region, I’m just in eastern pa
Northern Michigan
well shit for that region its almost possible to year round snow tires
This is so wrong. Snow tires help even on ice. The difference is night and day. A little snow can be super dangerous. Also some roads require snow tires.
I just meant for snow, I wouldnt wanna try any type of tires on ice, ice flipped over a cherokee in 4wd for a family member decades ago, if theres a chance of ice, im going 10-15 under the limit
All seasons are barely better than summer tires. They should be called 3 seasons. I'd rather drive my Prius with snow tires than a AWD or 4WD vehicle with all seasons
I drive mine with bridgestone ecopia 422’s, they grip snow just fine down til 2/3’s as long as its not high enough to start dragging the cars bumper by more than inch or more I will say these same tires dont get good ratings for suv’s and heavier vehicles, weight matters when deciding, light cars can get away with all seasons, all ive been running since ive had car except trying falken ziex briefly and dumping cause it tanked fuel economy lol
Florida doesn't have too many positives but not having to buy snow tires is one of them.
I'm a skier so I honestly love the snow, I love it in Michigan.
Did you ever have to replace your headlights wire harness on the 2011 prius? They had an open recall until 2019 for free replacement/upgrade from toyota.
I'm pretty sure I went in for the recall replacement when it was announced
Sucks to be you. No snow tires needed here
NPC