Can I fit a Can I Fit a... Food & Drink » Don't See Your Stuff? Help Make The Site Better Tell us what you thinkWill an IKEA bedframe fit into a Prius? October 28, 2008 Subscribe Prius owners: have you successfully brought home a full size IKEA bed frame in your car? Ideally, I would like to fit something like the Aneboda frame and two people into the car. (I don't own a Prius but would have access to one through a car sharing program, or possibly a coworker.) The largest package is 76" x 1.62" x 29.5". And I am going to tell you why. Now, you may wish to revoke my man card after this post, but I assure you, hear me out before you go on and call for my head. Besides the obvious reason of good fuel economy, the prius makes its self the best road trip car for a few more, less thought of reasons. 1) You can fit a twin sized futon mattress in the back with the seats folded down. Fold the front seat backs up a bit, and lay the rear seats down, and you have a full beige bedroom at your disposal.
While driving, just bend the mattress up behind the front seats, and you have room for your luggage on top of the mattress. Outside of a pontiac aztek with its goofy tent there is no better option out there that will return decent fuel mileage.2) Climate control. What is the worst part about sleeping in a car? Its getting cold or hot at night, making sleep difficult. Well, with the prius you can leave the car on all evening running the climate control systems and barely use a few sips of fuel. The system will run off of the battery, and kick on the motor occasionally to keep charging.Lets face it, the prius may not be rolls royce levels of comfort, but its not bad in any way shape or form. The seats are comfortable, nicely adjustable, and the interior, while bland is nicely appointed. You get a nice upright, high seating position and a fishbowl of glass to see out of the entire car. Lets face it, if you're road tripping, you're going to be going around 70 mph the entire time, needing just a little juice to pass.
While the prius isn't setting any land speed records, when you tell it to move it will do so happily.Lets face it, unless you are doing some face melting speeds, the Law enforcement you encounter on the trip are not going to think twice about the beige box scooting down the road. Instead they're going to be pulling over that dipshit in the v6 mustang who cut you off 2 miles ago and is weaving in and out of traffic.The prius is so efficient you can tour the entire USA, while sleeping in your car, for approx $500. Thats a cheap vacation any where the road will take you.Other positives include large hatch area to profess your love for things via bumper sticker, The troll factor (pissing off everyone else on the road, just because your in a prius), and the economy gauge, which provides hours of entertainment trying to get the best numbers possible. Ok, now you may rage against me, revoke my gear head card, and burn me at the stake. Fact of the matter is the prius is an excellent road trip car.
Used examples are getting cheap, and while I would rather stay at the Ritz and drive an e39 m5 through out the USA, the prius is better suited to those on a budget. So, round up the socially awkward kid in your dorm who drives their parents old prius, or take your parents prius, or your grandmothers aunts cousins prius, and go out and see what our beautiful country has to offer. But wait a few weeks, because due to the govt, all of the places you really want to see are closed.First, I want to say thanks to Bob for asking me to share how I live out of my car. ) a lot when I was in planning mode. For me, living out of my car is about travel, balanced with safety, comfort, and a tight budget. In 2010, I took 6 months to explore many of the National Parks in the contiguous 48. I especially loved meandering on the back roads, scenic drives and mountain passes. The journey beckons as much as its destinations. While planning, I had considered several options which included tenting, vandwelling, or using our teardrop trailer.
Finally, I decided to live out of my current vehicle. My 2004 Toyota Prius works well for many reasons: In 2010, I traveled almost 30,000 miles, averaging about 45 miles per gallon. Good gas mileage is the biggest reason the Prius is a great choice for me. The lower emissions level helps to minimize my carbon footprint as well. I don’t tow anything, nor do I have a hitch or roof-rack. The windows are tinted. So, from the outside, it looks no different than any other Prius. I didn’t make any modifications to the inside either. That is, I didn’t remove any seats or build any shelves. Instead, when I lay down both passenger-side seats, it naturally creates enough room for a cot-sized bed. (See pictures at right) For storage, I used duffel bags and 2 sets of plastic drawers, one under the hatch and the other on the front passenger’s seat. Although its payload limit is only 780 pounds, a Prius can still hold an alarming amount of stuff. Heavy items, like extra water, kitty litter, and tire chains, are stored below the front passenger seat (providing a little lower center of gravity for stability, and a bit more forward weight for better traction).
Items with a scent, such as food, toiletrie,s and cleaning agents are stored on the front passenger seat (to easily move to a bear locker, if available). Other items are stored on the floor behind the front passenger seat and under the hatch, including outerwear, Reflectix, a bucket, stove, utensils, fire extinguisher, tools, spare tire, and much more. A couple of duffel bags with 10 days’ worth of clothes are stored directly behind the driver while traveling, then moved to the driver’s seat when sleeping or lounging. Even fully loaded, the Prius has enough power to get over the highest mountain passes. (See pictures of the Prius loaded above and empty below.) My car functions as a hard-sided tent. Because I can over- night at free places (BLM, NFS, Wal-Marts, rest areas, etc.), sleeping in my “Prius RV” helps to stretch my traveling dollar. As a retired woman traveling solo, safety is a concern. Primarily, I want to guard against humans who would do me harm. With the car’s security system set, I can lock myself in to sleep.
Second, its hard sides keep me safer from animals who might consider me prey. Mostly, I use common sense and listen to my gut. Yet, sleeping inside something which drives away provides some peace of mind. I understand that nothing is fool proof and I’m taking some risks. But, in my travels to date, I’ve not needed to take any defensive action. Since the Prius is a Toyota hybrid, I’ve taken advantage of its ability to efficiently heat or cool during sleep. That is, I leave the car on, in park, with the heater or air conditioner running. The engine only comes on intermittently to keep the batteries charged. Although I’ve slept in sub-freezing temperatures, I’ve yet to use the heater. I have used the air conditioner during some very hot and muggy nights. The engine ran about 4 minutes during each 35-minute cycle. I kept a couple of windows cracked for venting. My rear passenger windows are covered with No-See-UM Mosquito Netting. I glued Velcro to the base of the window sills and to the bottom of the netting (below).
When installed, bugs cannot get underneath. The top and sides of the netting are tacked to the door frame, making the interior bug-tight when the doors are closed. I also installed exterior visors which look like eyebrows over the windows. When it is raining, I can roll down my windows about an inch for ventilation and not get any water inside. Hygiene items used daily are in a separate tote. I brush my teeth and wash my face withplain water from a spray bottle. “Sponge baths” use a second spray bottle of witch hazel (an astringent), a little rubbing alcohol and water. I bathe in the passenger seat area before sleep to keep night clothes and bedding as clean as possible; and I wash again in the mornings. I keep my hair pretty short and wash it about once a week. Usually I’m able to find a shower; if not, I wash it outside over a bucket. I use only conditioner to keep my hair clean. While driving, I use public restrooms. During the night, I pee in a liquid laundry detergent bottle which I dump in a toilet the next day.
While hiking I use a female urinary device called a Freshette that allows me to pee standing up. Only once have I needed to do #2 in my car using a bucket and a Luggable Loo seat cover. It was both awkward and uncomfortable, but it worked. I lined the bucket with a Double Doodie Bag which is designed to hold human waste without leaking. I use Clorox wipes and hand sanitizer. I have an inverter in the jockey box that I use to run or recharge my laptop. Other 12v devices include a phone charger, flashlight and mugs. Just in case, I also carry a weather radio, small solar recharger, and a SPOT GPS Messenger (that calls for help if no cell reception). For navigation, I use the Prius’ GPS. I connect online using a smart phone or WIFI. My Motorola CLIQ smart phone is my camera as well. I also want to list a few features that make the Prius less than perfect for travel. The biggest downside is the need to go outside to go to bed. In an emergency, I could climb over the stuff on my front passenger seat if I needed, but that would be awkward at best.
On a similar note, I can’t easily go to the bathroom in privacy while in driving mode. To do so requires me to move duffel bags and hang curtains. Finally, I would love a higher clearance car to explore more back roads. But, a vehicle with all these features would also lower the number of miles I could travel on a gallon of fuel. So, for now, I’ll just rack up more miles in my trusty Prius RV. Finally, even though I appreciate my Prius, the experiences of travel are way more important to me — the beautiful vistas, wildlife sightings, quiet respites, shooting stars, and lasting friendships. For that reason, I don’t say that I live in my Prius, rather, I live out of it. My bed is very comfortable. The bottom layer is a Therm-A- Rest pad wrapped in sheep fleece. The top layer is a regular foam cot mattress. I use flannel sheets and a king-size down comforter. When in driving mode, the bed remains clear of stuff for mid-day naps. I move the driver’s seat as far forward as possible, then use the rear seat for lounging, reading, computer use, dressing, bathing, and bathroom needs.