Just wondering what those of you who live in winter climates are carrying in your Prius for commuting or long distance driving in winter conditions. I'm still getting my kit sorted out and trying not to load things up as much as I used to with the big SUV where I carried everything. So far I'm packing the following in my 2016 Four Touring for winter driving and long commutes: Tire Chains (Thule) Flares Triangles Magnetic safety LED flashlight and worklight with flashing red LEDs that will attach to side of car with magnets LED backpacking headlamp Fire extinguisher First aid kit Additional tire repair kit to insert plugs High volume compressor: Blue plastic tarp (for laying out on snow or mud to work on the car if necessary) folding mountaineering snow shovel ice scraper and brush Tow strap Jumper cable Nitrile gloves (to keep hands clean if doing repairs on the way to work) Safety hammer (inside center console) Leatherman tool Blanket, extra fleece jacket and extra winter gloves on the back seat. Everything else but the flashlights, safety hammer, and leatherman are in plastic tote in the back. Driving without a spare makes me nervous hence the extra tire plug repair kit so I can actually repair tires on the spot rather than fill them with goo. And I already had the bigger compressor which I carried in the SUV when towing camping trailers. It isn't heavy so I keep it in my tote as well because it is about 10x better and faster than the OEM Toyota compressor. I have thought about getting a set of snow tires on separate rims which would give me 4 extra full size spares to carry on long trips if I wanted. I haven't investigated if I can pull out all the foam parts under the rear cargo area and stash a full size spare back there (a regular tire in winter or a snow tire in summer). Worst case if I'm doing a long distance drive way out across the mountains I can always toss an extra tire in back and lash it down. So what do you guys bring or not bring? Looking at my list one obvious missing item is food and water. I generally bring snacks and drinks on any long rural drives so that isn't something that stays in the car permanently for suburban commuting
There is room for a full size spare in the hatch. the hatch floor will sit a bit higher and some foam around the tire added to support the hatch floor and perhaps a longer tie down screw is necessary. I found this out when I blew out a Toyo Nano sidewall (damn pot hole) and put the dead Nano in the hatch while my emergency spare (it came with my 2016 Prius 3) was on the car, JeffD
CB radio, a spare low-cost cell phone from a dollar store and a power inverter. Extra blanket or sleeping bag, change of clothes, hat and gloves. I commute (by jet) to Ilisagvik College located at the top of the world in Barrow, Alaska.
I have a folding (non technical) aluminum snow shovel stashed under the driver's front seat and a large battery booster pack sltuffed under the passenger seat. There is a crazy amount of usable space under those seats if you don't care about toe space for the backseat passengers, and are mindful of not blocking the heating vents. I removed the left hand side piece of foam under the floor of the back hatch and stashed many of the things on your list in the void, but you certainly have things I don't. One note on the emergency hammer -- which is not on my list: The driver's and front passenger's side windows in the 4 Touring are laminated glass-- not tempered glass like you would expect. The back side windows are tempered. As such, the hammer would probably not shatter the ones in the front in an emergency situation in the manner you might expect.
I would venture to speculate that the OP's list is more extensive than most peoples. I would also admit I don't carry as much, or near as much as I really should. I'm now driving a Honda Fit...with limited space underneath the hatch. Not as much room to carry extra items as I had with The Prius. All those items are good ideas if you are traveling in any environment where you could get stranded. I really should try to update mine.
