Yokohama Avid S33d assessments

I have 15K miles on mine. Fronts are at 7/32 and rears are at 9/32nd. I would say they are very average touring tires, nothing fancy or special about them. Surprisingly, I found their wet grip to be very reasonable. They are not performance tires, but a good quiet tire that will last 50K easily. I have blizzaks on the car for the winter, I can tell you the Blizzaks are much better in winter, not even close to what the Yoko did earlier this winter. Also keep in mind these tires are tiny 195 (they were noticeablely smaller than my blizzaks 195), so performance is very limited

 

Got 7.5k on mine since Oct '09. I also think it's very average tire since I'm used to z rated summer/UHP type tires. There is nothing to write home about it's cornering grip as I can easily slide all 4 wheels. However, the wet traction is quite good when I was doing 70+ in heavy rain with alot of puddles maybe due to new thread and thin width. I like Yoko tires but from my experience they don't last very long. They grip better compare to those H(?) rated Michelin tires with 60k warranty which are made with rock hard rubber and have no grip at all. Rating s33d bad (1) to good (10)

1. dry 4
2. wet 6
3. n/a
4. 35k+

 

They're the noisiest, poorest cornering and rough riding tires I have ever experienced. I won't keep them very long.

 

Try running Blizzaks. They are noisier, more squirmy, rides rougher and corners worse...

 

What tire pressure are you maintaining in the Yok Avid tires--42 and 40?

 

2-3psi more than the recommended pressure cold

 

Ok, thanks much. Does that significantly stiffen the ride or no? What's the downside if any? I am a new Prius owner so I appreciate the advise.

 

I find the Blizzaks to be MUCH quieter than the AVIDs that came on the car. I also think they are smoother than the AVIDs as well. Of course, some of that could be the road conditions, but I noticed them to be significantly quieter than AVID.

I do feel that they are a little more "squishy" and that probably is due to the softer rubber that they are made from. Also would contribute a little to the cornering, but again, Blizzaks are purchased for their winter weather handling capabilities also so that may not really be a fair comparison either.

If I could find someone that wanted to purchase just the tires, I'd put better touring tires on the car in a heartbeat. Ok, maybe next month when I swap off my Blizzaks. I just can't justify spending $400 for 4 new tires when the AVID only have about 5500 miles on them.

 

Ws-50?

 

Why is front recommended higher pressure than rear?

 

I think they're much better than the crappy Goodyear Integrities that I had on the '06. With those tires, I was very nervous about driving when the roads were slick, either from rain or snow. They seem to skid around very easily. I don't feel the same way about the Yokos.

However - now I know this is just coincidence and probably has nothing to do with anything - but it's weird. My friend, who bought her 2010 a few weeks before I received mine in July last year, got a puncture in one of her tires just a few months after she bought it. The shop said that it was not repairable and she ended up having to buy a brand new tire to replace one that was only a few thousand miles old - and it was expensive, something like $160 if I remember. A few weeks later she punctured ANOTHER tire - this time, she was able to get it sealed and didn't have to pay for a new one. Then last night my tire pressure gauge came on while we were on the way back from visiting friends. We pulled over, checked the pressure and found it was really low. Luckily, I keep a little compressor in the car and we were able to get it inflated, which lasted until we got home. This morning, I can see that the tire is completely flat. I haven't been out to look at it closely yet so I don't know what the problem is. But now I have to go and see whether it's something that can be fixed or whether I will have to fork out a ridiculous sum for a new tire.

 

WS-60

Sorry for the month long delay in reply lol.

 

after about 11,000 miles I took off the Yoko Avid factory installed tires and purchased the Michelin Energy Saver tires.

The Yoko's were Ok but the Michelin gets better MPG's and seems to be a little quieter.

The Yoko's I took off I will put them on my 2003 Jetta TDI Wagon, which are the same size.

So far with about 14,000 miles on the Michelin Energy Savers they
should give me at least 60,000 miles.

al