[AutoMatters]

I have the same wheels and tyre - I ended up buying

I have the same wheels and tyre - I ended up buying Weissenfels Automatika S chains . Don’t know if these are available in the US or not?

These are quick fit chains with a low profile -very similar in design to the Thule summit (but £100 cheaper).

I’ve only tried them in the drive and not on snow as a practice fitting - unfortunately our planned drive to the Alps got curtailed by Covid.

There was plenty of space around the tyre and definitely no risk of rubbing/fouling on the car.

. Don’t know if these are available in the US or not?

These are quick fit chains with a low profile -very similar in design to the Thule summit (but £100 cheaper).

I’ve only tried them in the drive and not on snow as a practice fitting - unfortunately our planned drive to the Alps got curtailed by Covid.

There was plenty of space around the tyre and definitely no risk of rubbing/fouling on the car.

Matt,
Thank you. These chains appear to be PERFECT for working well and not damaging my RAV4 Prime XSE Premium with 235/55R19 tires. They seem to be incredibly well engineered. Toyota should sell them. Unfortunately they are very expensive here in the U.S. on Amazon ($566.96), probably due to the fact that they are not stocked in the U.S. (Amazon's source is in the UK and requires international delivery — free). Furthermore, they are currently listed as out of stock in my size (S897). Despite all of that, if I needed chains on a somewhat regular basis, I would definitely order them (and wait until they are available again). In the meantime, I've added them to my Amazon.com Wish List, so that I'll be able to find them.
Thank you again.
Jan

 

[Freeman]

Jan, not sure if you have Les Schwab tires in the Southland . . . . QuickFit is their TradeMark name. Low profile, extremely easy (as tire chains go) to put on. You might want to look into it.

Les Schwab Quick Fit installation video . . .

 

[AutoMatters]

Jan, not sure if you have Les Schwab tires in the Southland . . . . QuickFit is their TradeMark name. Low profile, extremely easy (as tire chains go) to put on. You might want to look into it.

Les Schwab Quick Fit installation video . . .

Thank you Freeman,
I watched the video. It was hard to see but at one point, when they were removing the chains after use, I could see that there were parts of the chain on the inside of the tire. The Weissenfels Automatika S chains have absolutely nothing on the inside of the tire, and they seem to be extremely easy to install. So far, if I ever need chains again, I would probably order them — despite their high price (very expensive, but extremely well engineered and easy to install).
I am leaving on my trip tomorrow. Hopefully chains will not be required. The weather forecast looks good for the next week.
Jan

 

[Freeman]

Yeah! Those things look like the Bee's knee's, the cat's whiskers, the . . . . oh you know . . . . that thing

 

[AutoMatters]

Yeah! Those things look like the Bee's knee's, the cat's whiskers, the . . . . oh you know . . . . that thing

They're the Cat's Meow! LOL

 

[rsl360]

There was plenty of space around the tyre and definitely no risk of rubbing/fouling on the car.

Has anyone checked on hard left/right for clearance?

 

[AutoMatters]

Has anyone checked on hard left/right for clearance?

It looks like these do not need any clearance on the inside of the tire.

 

[rsl360]

It looks like these do not need any clearance on the inside of the tire.

No, it does not.

I forgot about it before, but what about full travel of the wheel. Full "up" I guess. Does the tire end up inside the wheel well? (in general? On a RAV4?) Not sure how you would test this. I guess I just wonder what Toyota has in mind when they say "no chains.".

 

[Matt_O]

The profile of the Weisenfells is pretty minimal.
In terms of up clearance there was still plenty of space - you would gave to be doing some pretty gnarly tracks to compromise the gap - unlikely if you were in the situation of needing chains!
There is nothing on the inside of the tyre.
Couldn't be bothered to fit them properly , but you get the idea from the pics.

 

[meeder]

Those things look like a good option.
I have seen the same issue for the 4th gen RAV4 where the manual states that chains are not allowed on the 18" wheels but I don't see any clearance issues there as well.

 

[NoelinColorado]

I guess I just wonder what Toyota has in mind when they say "no chains.".

My guess is the same thing they had in mind when they said, "no extension cords". I think they are just CYA in case someone takes any kind of tire chain and uses it. It would be worth installing these Weisenfells and turning the wheel fully in each direction to verify there is no clearance issue before pronouncing them guaranteed to not be problematic. It would be nicer still if the chains themselves were a little smaller gauge they seem beefier than they need to be. Are there other potentially viable options?

 

[PDXMOJO]

The 2021 RAV4 Prime owner's manual for my XSE model says "Tire chains cannot be mounted" on "Vehicles with 235/55R19" tires. Have any of you found any temporary cable chains that actually work on icy roads with his tire size — and do not damage brake lines, etc. or scratch the alloy rims?
My XSE Premium model came with Yokohama Avid 235/55R19 tires all around. It looks like an all-season tread pattern.

We have a RAV4 XSE PP and live in Oregon. With the weather that the Farmers Almanac forecast we didn’t hesitate to prepare for it. Seeing that chains weren’t an option I found and bought a set of factory 19” wheels off of a 2019 RAV4 limited and had Nokian studded snow tires mounted. We are expecting and have recently experienced a week of snow with several inches of snow and ice. The tires worked flawlessly on the snow and ice. The wheel and tire combination wasn’t cheap but there aren’t many options. The larger brake rotor on the XSE Premium make going with a 17” wheel impossible and the 18” wheels will fit but the aftermarket versions that are available weren’t to our liking or what we wanted. The used wheels were half the price as the aftermarket wheels so we went that direction. My mother in law lives alone in central Oregon and we frequently need to make urgent trips to care for her, so being prepared was mandatory. My wife had to make a trip there two days after they were installed, and encountered snow, freezing rain and ice going there and back. So we are very pleased with the decision. While the wheels and tires are expensive in comparison to chains they will not damage the car when they come loose, fly off or have a link break, let alone deal with interference issues, making them a 5-6 year investment that we have made on multiple vehicles over the years. I hope this helps.

 

[PDXMOJO]

My guess is the same thing they had in mind when they said, "no extension cords". I think they are just CYA in case someone takes any kind of tire chain and uses it. It would be worth installing these Weisenfells and turning the wheel fully in each direction to verify there is no clearance issue before pronouncing them guaranteed to not be problematic. It would be nicer still if the chains themselves were a little smaller gauge they seem beefier than they need to be. Are there other potentially viable options?

The flaw in your suggestion is that spinning them by hand in the garage will not duplicate the centrifugal forces and expanding circumference dimensions that cause the damages. Specifically while in turns which is when and where the damages occur. Go ahead and try it, but keep in mind that Toyota seldom offers suggestions that aren’t warranted due to cause and effect reasons. They test there products extensively and if you cause damage trust me it will be expensive, not warrantable, and against the better judgment of the manufacturer.
Oh, by the way I am a retired master technician who has worked for many dealerships and Toyota is one of them, they don’t make needless recommendations.

 

[NoelinColorado]

The flaw in your suggestion is that spinning them by hand in the garage will not duplicate the centrifugal forces and expanding circumference dimensions that cause the damages. Specifically while in turns which is when and where the damages occur. Go ahead and try it, but keep in mind that Toyota seldom offers suggestions that aren’t warranted due to cause and effect reasons. They test there products extensively and if you cause damage trust me it will be expensive, not warrantable, and against the better judgment of the manufacturer.
Oh, by the way I am a retired master technician who has worked for many dealerships and Toyota is one of them, they don’t make needless recommendations.

Well sure static testing is the best you can do and if for whatever reason the static test fails, you have new information you would not have had w/o doing static testing. The Weissenfels m91 Automatika s897 are the only tire chain that put no material whatsoever on the inside of the tire and are continuously self-centering and in fact can't get out of alignment such that the chain ends up inside the tire. They are rated for zero mm clearance on the inside of the tire.

I seriously doubt Toyota tested them. Toyota also said don't use an extension cord which I've done for 5 months now and there is absolutely, positively, zero problem with them, and never will be because I understood the issue of amp rating before purchasing one.

Here you go master tech: Weissenfels Automatika S S897 Snow Chains

 

[Matt_O]

Well sure static testing is the best you can do and if for whatever reason the static test fails, you have new information you would not have had w/o doing static testing. The Weissenfels m91 Automatika s897 are the only tire chain that put no material whatsoever on the inside of the tire and are continuously self-centering and in fact can't get out of alignment such that the chain ends up inside the tire. They are rated for zero mm clearance on the inside of the tire.

I seriously doubt Toyota tested them. Toyota also said don't use an extension cord which I've done for 5 months now and there is absolutely, positively, zero problem with them, and never will be because I understood the issue of amp rating before purchasing one.

Here you go master tech: Weissenfels Automatika S S897 Snow Chains

Have to agree with NoelinColorado. I can see no way these are could foul unless you are putting the car through some sort of extreme off road manoeuvre (unlikely in the snow). For cautious driving on proper roads in snow these look like they will be fine. The increase in height above the tyre is maybe 1cm.
For my occasional use maybe once every year (if the French ever let us Brits back into their country) I'll put my faith in these.
Certainly a cheaper option than 4xwinter tyres +/- rims which are almost never needed in the UK.

 

[NoelinColorado]

Have to agree with NoelinColorado. I can see no way these are could foul unless you are putting the car through some sort of extreme off road manoeuvre (unlikely in the snow). For cautious driving on proper roads in snow these look like they will be fine. The increase in height above the tyre is maybe 1cm.
For my occasional use maybe once every year (if the French ever let us Brits back into their country) I'll put my faith in these.
Certainly a cheaper option than 4xwinter tyres +/- rims which are almost never needed in the UK.

I'm deciding if I need them or not, but from what I read as to their design I see no downside with them. As with any tire chain on any car, I'm going to only use them under urgent conditions and remove them as soon as in the clear, and use them cautiously in terms of speed etc.. It's really a long shot, our need for them. We live in Colorado near the Rockies and don't get out into the snow if possible, so it would a case of having them on board and very likely perhaps never needing to use them. I can appreciate if I had recurrent needs for better traction than the Avid Ascend GT or Michelin CC2's w/ AWD affords I'd go with dedicated snow tires on their own rims and thankfully we can avoid that cost and hassle, and it is both of those unless as I say you really need them.

 

[PDXMOJO]

Well sure static testing is the best you can do and if for whatever reason the static test fails, you have new information you would not have had w/o doing static testing. The Weissenfels m91 Automatika s897 are the only tire chain that put no material whatsoever on the inside of the tire and are continuously self-centering and in fact can't get out of alignment such that the chain ends up inside the tire. They are rated for zero mm clearance on the inside of the tire.

I seriously doubt Toyota tested them. Toyota also said don't use an extension cord which I've done for 5 months now and there is absolutely, positively, zero problem with them, and never will be because I understood the issue of amp rating before purchasing one.

Here you go master tech: Weissenfels Automatika S S897 Snow Chains

I appreciate the technical information on the chains and can see why you feel confident in using them. In regards to the extension cord I agree but can understand Toyota’s con

or you could buy snow tires on 17s because those K-Summits cost so much!!!

I haven't looked into it, but sometimes the manual will allow you to use low-profile cable type, "chains", for as low as 1/4" clearance to the strut mount. Haven't had an issue on other vehicles that needed those. Easier to mount and nicer to drive with than real chains, too.

Sorry, but the 17” wheels won’t work on the RAV4 PP XSE. The larger size rotors and calipers alone interferes with the wheels. Per Toyota Technician Support line.

 

[rsl360]

I appreciate the technical information on the chains and can see why you feel confident in using them. In regards to the extension cord I agree but can understand Toyota’s con

Sorry, but the 17” wheels won’t work on the RAV4 PP XSE. The larger size rotors and calipers alone interferes with the wheels. Per Toyota Technician Support line.

Actually, some 17" wheels will work, people are already using them. But I don't think any 17" wheel will work.

 

[rsl360]

My guess is the same thing they had in mind when they said, "no extension cords". I think they are just CYA in case someone takes any kind of tire chain and uses it. It would be worth installing these Weisenfells and turning the wheel fully in each direction to verify there is no clearance issue before pronouncing them guaranteed to not be problematic. It would be nicer still if the chains themselves were a little smaller gauge they seem beefier than they need to be. Are there other potentially viable options?

Well, they say "no extension cords" for all the cars. And I agree that it's a CYA for that one. But here they specifically call out just one version of one car for this no chains issue. That's not CYA. That's something someone has calculated. It's true that these chains are unique, and it certainly seems like they would be fine. But I'm still curious as to what Toyota is using as a rule to say "no chains".

 

[NoelinColorado]

But here they specifically call out just one version of one car for this no chains issue. That's not CYA. That's something someone has calculated. It's true that these chains are unique, and it certainly seems like they would be fine. But I'm still curious as to what Toyota is using as a rule to say "no chains".

You really believe that recommendation was not CYA for Toyota? Why else would they publish that?

I'll venture a guess: the wheel is larger and therefore clearance is less. They looked at all typical chains which put chain material on the inside of the tire and since those styles absolutely cannot be physically secured such that they cannot come off while moving and migrate towards the inside of the tire, they opted for the blanket disclaimer, which protects them from liability. There is also a possibility, albeit remote and I can't even imagine the scenario, where the car bottoms out its suspension 100% and pinches the chain. As I say, can't even imagine when that would happen while driving with chains on in snow or ice, and it may not even be physically possible. My sense is they would not let the suspension get to within 1cm of hitting the tire, but that is just a guess/hope.