Tough tires?

[cgraham]

I have a half mile rough & steep gravel driveway that will eat up tires pretty fast if I get any wheel spin. I plan to change from the OEM tire to something stouter.

Any thoughts on what would be a suitable choice? I am in S NM so don't have weather concerns.

- I need a little more tread and sidewall. Naturally I hope not to decrease mpg too much. Usually everything is a compromise I have read several threads on alternative tires, but there is not much on tread & sidewall thickness.

I'd use Good YearAssurance Comfortreads, but I don't think they have the qualities I need. Then I've never seen one.

Thanks for any suggestions.

C

[jayman]

Well, I hate to say this, but the standard Traction Control is quite aggressive and far too sensitive. You may find your Prius may be unable to go up that steep gravel slope.

I know my Prius will quickly grind to a stop on steep gravel roads. You won't hurt your tires, as there won't be any wheelspin at all.

[cgraham]

Originally posted by jayman@Jan 15 2006, 06:48 PM
Well, I hate to say this, but the standard Traction Control is quite aggressive and far too sensitive. You may find your Prius may be unable to go up that steep gravel slope.

I know my Prius will quickly grind to a stop on steep gravel roads. You won't hurt your tires, as there won't be any wheelspin at all.

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I did take the precaution of trying the driveway in a friend's Prius, and the tires only scrabbled at one point in dry conditions. The driveway is well compacted. I think wet will be OK. Snow, no - but rare.

I am concerned about rock cuts; my wife's Corolla has survived, though.
C

[Bill Merchant]

I've never had any problems going up a hill with a gravel road with my ComforTreds, but I got them for the wet weather here, not like S NM. Jayman seems to have a lot of trouble with his TC. Others don't.

[hdrygas]

Tire spin. Let me see. If you can do it please do a video and post it here. No fair disabling the traction control unless you spin the tires until blue smoke with a distinctive electrical smell comes out under the hood!

[benighted]

If you are looking for a good stout tire with thick sidewalls then you might consider Toyo Proxies TPT. I have a set on my car, they are snow and mud rated.

[jayman]

Originally posted by Bill Merchant@Jan 15 2006, 08:08 PM
I've never had any problems going up a hill with a gravel road with my ComforTreds, but I got them for the wet weather here, not like S NM. Jayman seems to have a lot of trouble with his TC. Others don't.

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Actually, most of the time the TC works very well. With proper winter tires (Yokohama Ice Guard #10) my Prius will easily blow away any regular car or even 4x4 at a green light, if on snow and especially ice.

Last winter I manged to get stuck on a parking ramp at a local mall. I couldn't take a run at it, due to how the ramp was angled off the road, and just came to a stop halfway up. An old s***box with studded tires putted up no problem at all.

Visiting some friends in NW Ontario last summer, I managed to grind to a halt about 2/3 up a steep loose gravel road. I backed down and took a couple of runs, but still couldn't make it, so I parked at the bottom and walked in.

Don't get me wrong, I firmly believe in things like ABS, TC, VSC, etc. In the vast majority of driving situations, they are very helpful. Sometimes, especially in a severe climate like mine, they can conspire against you.

[cgraham]

Benighted:
do you have any mpg comparson between the OEM tire and the Toyo Proxies TPT? I actually don't need the snow and ice traction, but perhaps that comes with a stouter tire. I don't think I need all-weather tires if there is a big mpg/comfort/noise/control penalty. What is your impression?

I haven't found that model (TPT) yet - any hints on where to find them?

I'm concerned to have a tire that will stand a little more wear; a little more aggressive might be helpful. I'm trying to figure out what the best compromise might be for my conditions.

"Tire spin. Let me see. If you can do it please do a video and post it here"
Well, I did feel some tire scrabble on the worst slope during my test run; "spin" was the wrong word; sorry.


"I managed to grind to a halt about 2/3 up a steep loose gravel road."
I realize "loose gravel" and ice result in zero traction & loss of rotation and that's when you get stuck. I don't think I will have those problems.


Thanks for the comments so far.

C

[Jack 06]

Do you know about tirerack.com? It's not only good for comparing price with most brands (unfortunate exception: Nokians, which I just bought and like), but it's easy to compare specs (e.g., tread depth, wear ratings, temp ratings, etc) and warranties.

You might look into Yokohama Avid H4s. Most Yokohamas offer great bang for the buck.

[benighted]

I replied to your PM with the questions you asked.

Heres a link to the TPT's:

http://www.lesschwab.com/tires/performance/tpt.html