Someone else may be able to give you actual dimensions, but that sounds just a little long to me to fit just in the back seat. I think it would fit though if the front passenger was willing to sit behind the driver and then only put down 2/3 of the back seat. You may have more problems if you need to transport the mattress. I have been amazed at how much the prius can carry though, so good luck. What kind of lab do you work in? Just curious- I do alzheimer's research.
From the hatch to the back of my seat (I'm 5'0", so adjust to your seat position) is almost exactly six feet (60 inches) at the floor, so I think you are about 8 inches too long. Now, I don't know the height, bt it just might be possible to slide it in vertically and have it pass between the front seats, as it is thin.
Just rent a U-Haul pickup truck. It's $19.95 a day plus about a dollar a mile. Assuming that you and the bed store are 10 to 15 miles apart, it should cost you between $40 and $50 to rent the pickup truck. There are U-Haul locations just about everywhere and chances are there is at least one between you and the bed store. I was a bit concerned when I gave up my Explorer for the Prius. Every once and a while I need to haul something big and the Explorer was pretty handy for that. Then I realized that I would save more money in gas in one month than the cost of renting U-Haul pickup trucks for the 2 or three times a year that I would need one.
I scratched the inside of my Prius a lot when moving. Should have gotten a trunk mat. And I did fit 72" unassembled bookcases from Staples into the car one time, but they only fit in diagonally once the passenger seat was moved all the way forward, so 80" probably won't work...
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(mikepaul\";p=\"104994)</div> One of the things they show on the Toyota website is to remove the front passenger head rest, move the seat all the way forward, and then recline the seatback all the way. By doing this, the front passenger seat is level/below the folded down rear seat. On the Toyota website, they show putting a step ladder in the prius this way. Doing this would have allowed you to put your book cases in straight and allow them to extend into the front passenger area. This would also probably allow the original poster to get his 81x30x1.6 box in. Go to the following page and drag the ladder into the prius for a demonstration: http://www.toyota.com/vehicles/2005/prius/...s/features.html
I have an issue with unrestrained cargo aimed at the windshield. I felt better knowing they were blocked by the seat. Restraining them was possible, but required more forethought. And part of the original puzzle included a passenger in that seat...
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(mikepaul\";p=\"105004)</div> So the passenger goes in the back seat behind the driver.
