I took some pictures of the Triad on my car so you can see how it fits in a few ways. This is a 3rd Generation Prius II which should be the same as all the 2010-2015 Prius.

Also of note is the fact that I slightly modified my Prius by putting airbags in the rear suspension so that it can hold more weight far behind the rear axle. The car is about 4.5 inches off the ground usually, so I wanted to be sure I had very little or no sag in the rear.

The airbags that I used are simple to install and not usually needed for only the weight of this scooter which is about 85lbs. However since the Prius is so low to the ground I wanted to be sure it was safe and supported since people usually don’t put things on trailer hitches on these cars. The airbags were just slipped into the coil springs. This might not be possible on other small cars as many have struts with included springs and not shocks and separate coil springs like this 3rd generation Prius.

You can see from the pictures that the Prius with the airbags in the rear doesn’t sag. The tire and wheel well gap is unchanged and the ground clearance is proper. Also because of the way the scooter sits on this carrier it holds the rear wheel of the scooter further from the ground and keeps it protected. The blue airbag in the last picture below is one of the ones that I inserted in the leaf springs.

The carrier that I have is from Harbor Freight and it is inserted into a 2 inch hitch receiver. On the Prius I had to get a special hitch that had a 2 inch receiver. It’s called an Eco Hitch and it’s made by Torklift, see their website for more info : https://torkliftcentral.com/trailer-hitches/rear-mounted-receiver-hitches/ecohitch/toyota/prius/2010-2015-toyota-prius-ecohitch. This hitch is about as high off the ground as you can get one for the Prius because it’s tucked up right under the bumper and mostly hidden under the flat plastic panels that serve to keep the car aerodynamically smooth.

Being and Aerospace Engineer, I like to keep my Prius as “aerodynamic” as possible, even though I’m now carrying a mobility scooter on a hitch behind it. The scooter handle can fold down and that helps a bit to keep it all aerodynamic. We all make concessions, so my Prius losing a few MPG for my ability to have a life outside the house and fun with the family is one of them.

Here’s a link to the Triad in a Ford Taurus X