Toyota Plug-in Prius

[Uther]

From the Toyota Plug-in Prius website:

Q: The Prius Plug-in has no spare tire. What if I get a flat?

A: Like all other new Toyota vehicles, the Plug-in comes standard with Toyota Care [14], which offers complimentary maintenance and roadside service for two years or 25,000 miles. In addition, the Prius Plug-in will come with an extra year of roadside assistance, for a total of three years from date of purchase. In the event of an emergency where roadside assistance cannot be contacted, a Tire Repair System is standard equipment.

Me: Seriously??

Best information I can find on the "Tire Repair System" comes from the Toyota 4-Runner forums. Article from 2002, so not sure this is what Toyota has in mind.

[Uther]

Just came across this today. Youtube video on the "tire repair system" in the Plug-in Prius. I tell you this alone makes me cross this car off my list of cars. Note the "if you attempt to repair you may incur additional costs," So the long and the short is if you get a flat, you first have to call their road side assistance (free for 3 years and after that?) and then you can attempt to repair. Then note how complicated and long-winded a repair it is. In my current highlander, I can switch out the flat with the spare in about 15 minutes.

Her's the video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hHstOGSRsOA