Tire Upgrade

[F8L]

Originally Posted by GreenIsGood

So, bottom line: if you were going to replace the OEM tires on your 2008 today, what would you choose for a Prius in the Northeast, where snow, ice and hills are a factor? I'm mulling some choices but don't really have a favorite and need to make a decision very soon.
Thanks!

Nokian WR or a set of snow tires for winter and Nokian i3 or Goodyear FuelMax for summer would be where I would start.

[brick]

Originally Posted by GreenIsGood

So, bottom line: if you were going to replace the OEM tires on your 2008 today, what would you choose for a Prius in the Northeast, where snow, ice and hills are a factor? I'm mulling some choices but don't really have a favorite and need to make a decision very soon.
Thanks!

If I still lived there I would want a set of dedicated snows mounted on their own rims for winter. Over the long haul it's about the same money and you get more bite than 4-season tires. But we did get to test the Goodyear Tripletreads during our annual pilgrimmage and they did the job just fine. Maybe not as tenacious as the Blizzaks but good enough for the heavy snow that we encountered.

[I-LUV MY-PRIUS]

Originally Posted by PA Prius

Is that 2 psi over the door jam recommendation or over the sidewall max?

I'm running my Fuel Max's 2 psi over the sidewall max and they also seem very quiet.

PA P

That is 2psi over the door jam, sorry

[Boo]

Originally Posted by brick

If I still lived there I would want a set of dedicated snows mounted on their own rims for winter. Over the long haul it's about the same money and you get more bite than 4-season tires. But we did get to test the Goodyear Tripletreads during our annual pilgrimmage and they did the job just fine. Maybe not as tenacious as the Blizzaks but good enough for the heavy snow that we encountered.

+1

I live in New York City which doesn't get as much snowfall as other areas in the Northeast.

But I can say that with TripleTreds on my cars for the past 14 years, I never felt a strong need to get dedicated snows. During the worst of this past winter's storms (the week before Christmas) in terms of bad driving conditions, my Prius with TripleTreds performed fine over the unplowed and hilly roads of Westchester and Rockland Counties.

[boston71]

Any feedback on the new tires you installed? I live in Southern New Hampshire and had 41K on the integs.

I want to upgrade to 195/60R15 OR 195/65R15's as per resident experts on the forum but stay away from directionals due to issues mentioned. I am looking for all-season tires.

Please share any good recent experiences. It snowed an awful lot this year in NH/Massachusetts where I drive most. Many Thanks.

Originally Posted by gordonr

My local tire dealer said the EP100 won't be available for another month. Just curious - what tire dealer did you use? Also, any more early impressions about these tires?

Anyone out there running the Yokohama Avid TRZ? My local dealer (Hogan Tire in MA) has a buy 3 get one free sale on pretty much any tire they sell through 3/23/09 so these would be pretty well priced compared to Michelin.

Also seems like many here like the Michelin Radial-X, but would have to spend $50 to join Costco. Not sure it would be worth it in the end compared to the Yokohama tires.

[boston71]

Are you happy with these now that it has been over 2 months+? What size did you pick 185/65 OR 195/60? I am leaning towards these due to consumer reports but also considering Michelin X-Radials.

I would really appreciate any insight as I need to make a decision soon. The dealer/BJs/other big stores will not install non-OE sizes. I will head to an approved installer if I install other than OE size.

Senior Members, Please advise as I can see that you have tremendous experience and knowledge.

Originally Posted by bwcgrx

Four nice new Yokohama Avid TRZ tires were installed on Friday.

Funny thing, they installed one of the tires inward side out even after I told my maintenance associate to make sure they were installed correctly. Oh well guess they don't install too many asymmetrical tires at my dealer. Good thing is they fixed it right away and about 15 minutes later I was on the road.

I only have about 200 miles, 38F/36R PSI, on them so this is just an initial impression review. It has been three years since the stock Integrity tires were new, but from what I remember of them the Avid TRZs feel much tighter and quite a bit stiffer than the Goodyear tires which was to be expected. Cornering response with the Avid's is much better with none of the sidewall compression I used to feel in tight turns. Braking response seem excellent, however I'm going to let the tires break in good before I really try testing stopping distance. I can’t comment on wet traction as it has hardly rained since install. These tires do seem to transmit a bit more road vibration into the steering column and driver seat; however I did not find it objectionable. Road noise and overall ride comfort were excellent but not quite ideal. I've resigned myself to the fact that the Prius will always be a bit of a stiff ride owing to design considerations.

According to the MFD mileage impact is currently around 2-3mpg. Some of this decrease can be accounted for by the decreased rotations per mile of the TRZs. I would expect the MPG difference to decrease a bit as the tires break in. With the terrain in Central Arkansas I've managed to average around 49mpg hwy and 46mpg city with my previous tires.

The only negative issue I've found with these tires is a tendency to get a little car weave when driving on grooved roads. There are only a few sections of highway around here that are grooved but the effect is the same on them all. This may have something to do with the TRZs diverse tread pattern especially for a 185 width tire. Hopefully the tread will settle in once I've put some more miles on it. I never felt a loss of control with this effect, but I did feel the need to steer a bit more to counter the effect.

Thus far I'm pleased with my purchase and look forward to seeing how these tires do once they've got some more miles on them.

[bushface]

Originally Posted by GreenIsGood

So, bottom line: if you were going to replace the OEM tires on your 2008 today, what would you choose for a Prius in the Northeast, where snow, ice and hills are a factor? I'm mulling some choices but don't really have a favorite and need to make a decision very soon.
Thanks!

The original tires worked fine in snow if the snow was dry. Yes we get dry snow the mountains of NC. If the snow was wet, the roads are steep (up to 14 percent grade) in many places and the original tires did a lousy job. I have not had the hydroedge tires in snow or on ice yet because it got them in late March and no winter precipitation since then. I mainly hope they do better but I carry snow cables for the unexpected winter weather. If much winter precipitation is called for I drive a 1993 rag top jeep that will handle the weather plus I have cables for it also (the storage box for the cables look rough after 15 years but the cables have never been used).

I read that the hydroedge does good in snow and I hope they are right. I got the hydroedge mostly for the long wear and rain. NC DOT now builds roads to retain the rain water, or that least it seams like that.

[Rafikiro]

Hello all. I have read through a lot of the tire threads but still feel confused and am wondering about updated information as many of the posts are from 2006 or before.
My current situation is one tire unrepairable, the other 3 have 38,000 miles on the OEM GY Integrity. I am on my third flat in the year I have had my Pri, Mockba is what we named her. I feel the current OEM are ok, maybe a little bit of what others have complained of. I am considering replacement of all 4 or seeing if I can get a used one to last out the miles on the other 3. I did this with my first flat and I had no problems. I will be driving 90% in IL, KY or TX and the rest driving between IL or KY and TX. So winter is really not of any consideration, other than an occational drive to Denver in the winter, but I have chains for desparate situations. Can anyone recomend which tires I should look into that are still in production and what sizes 185 195 205?? Thanks for the help!

[F8L]

Originally Posted by Rafikiro

Hello all. I have read through a lot of the tire threads but still feel confused and am wondering about updated information as many of the posts are from 2006 or before.
My current situation is one tire unrepairable, the other 3 have 38,000 miles on the OEM GY Integrity. I am on my third flat in the year I have had my Pri, Mockba is what we named her. I feel the current OEM are ok, maybe a little bit of what others have complained of. I am considering replacement of all 4 or seeing if I can get a used one to last out the miles on the other 3. I did this with my first flat and I had no problems. I will be driving 90% in IL, KY or TX and the rest driving between IL or KY and TX. So winter is really not of any consideration, other than an occational drive to Denver in the winter, but I have chains for desparate situations. Can anyone recomend which tires I should look into that are still in production and what sizes 185 195 205?? Thanks for the help!

A few people here have their favorites which remain the same after these last couple years.

I still like the Nokian i3s but I may try the Goodyear Fuel Max tires just for the hell of it since they are brand new. I prefer the Nokians because they perform well and the company tends to be a bit greener than most other tire companies. I stuck with the stock size for the best gas mileage.

[Rafikiro]

Originally Posted by F8L

A few people here have their favorites which remain the same after these last couple years.

I still like the Nokian i3s but I may try the Goodyear Fuel Max tires just for the hell of it since they are brand new. I prefer the Nokians because they perform well and the company tends to be a bit greener than most other tire companies. I stuck with the stock size for the best gas mileage.

Thank you for the reply. The Fuel Max look good! I can not find the Nokian at any of the local places I looked at online and the nearest listed on the Nokian site is at least 3 hours south.

Can anyone tell me the estimated life of the OEM Goodyear Integrities? I see listed 60,000 for new ones but did they get a cheaper version or something for the OEM? I see a lot of postings with replacing way too early and at the same mileage as I have, around 38,000.

Thanks!