Which Replacement Tires?

I just got ComforTreds yesterday and I have twice been back to get them balanced right. They chatter on the highway and transmit every pebble on the road to the steering wheel and floor. I have read a bunch of reviews of the tire that praise it to the sky, and maybe a half dozen who find they can never get it balanced or round. I am wondering if every once in a while there is a bad tire in the batch that screws things up. Any thoughts?

I head back to Discount Tires for one more try tomorrow. May then have to move to another tire.

 

Like other posters, I too replaced my Integrety tires with the Goodyear ComforTred tires in the exact same size--185/65R-15 before the first 100 miles.

I bought mine from Discount Tire which charged $81 a tire and gave me a $40 trade credit for each tire. Grand total came to $255 including Discount's free replacement warranty (optional).

They definitely make it work upgrading your tires!

 

Edge wear? LOL. whatt??

They might be talking about camber wear. Uhh. If your prius is exhibiting camber wear cause of too much camber then they should align your car free cause it wasn't adequate from the factory. Not saying they'll do this, but I think this whole edge wear thing is a scam. :huh:

If your tires are legitimately worn out more on one side than the other you should consider an alignment, but you dont have to replace your tires at 20k. Not on a Prius, especially with the stock tires.

 

I just replaced the OEM Integrity tires with a set of Goodyear Assurance TripleTreds. I would have kept the original tires, but had the bad luck of two being damaged due to unfortunate encounters with road debris (one had a 8 inch piece of welding rod stuck through the sidewall).

The TripleTreds come in 195/60/15 (as opposed to 185/65/15). They are very close to the same size (24.2 inch diameter | 24.4 inch diameter). I have had the TripleTreds on our Subaru for over a year and have been very happy with their performance.

I have taken a slight hit in fuel efficiency (dropped from 58 mpg to 55 mpg), but this could be due to a number of other factors including tire break-in, slightly cooler temperatures, etc. I am currently running 40 psi front and 38 psi rear.

The tires cost me just over $400 for a set (mounted and balanced), but I got a $50 rebate from Goodyear. The two good ones were donated to one of the tire shop employees, so at least they are not heading to tire disposal for a while.

 

I replaced the Integrities (around 7K miles on them) with Assurance ComforTred this past weekend, as GoodYear was running a promotion with a free $50 gas card for a set of four ComforTred tires. On top of that, I brought in the prices I collected at other places (TireRack & another tire reseller nearby), and they reduced the price to $287.50 including the credit for the Integrities. With the $50 gas card, the total cost goes down to $237.50, which is less than $60 per tire, including all labor, balance, etc., with free tire rotations!

So far I'm happy with the tires, certainly less noise. I haven't driven enough to see any impact on the MPG...

 

Geez I hope NOT! There are 2 reasons I can think of for replacing the OEMs:

• You drive in snow
• you want better grip on wet roads or the occasional patch of sand/gravel when you need to start a bit faster than usual.

The ComfortTred should be MUCH better gripping than the Integrity. I found CRs report intertesting in that it gave a better snow rating for the CT over the TT. Makes NO sense to be based on tread design comparison. Goodyear's own internal ratings are opposite:

Dry traction, Wet traction, Snow traction, Ride comfort, Quite Ride
CT 9, 9, 9, 10, 10
TTs 10, 10, 10, 9, 9
Integrity: 7, 6, 7, 8, 8
Personally, I would give the Integrity a 3 for starting and stopping on what snow is left after plowing.

 

Here's a thread about the Goodyear TripleTreds.

 

Of course, bruce, CR is also known to have made the ridiculous report that you can't get the mileage out of a Prius that is on the sticker. They want the government to change the way it reports estimated mileage because most people drive like maniacs and couldn't get the stated mileage on any car if their lives depended on it? I used to think that CR actually knew what they were talking about but now I take whatever they say with more than a grain of salt.

 

i am in san diego, have 36K on the OEMs so far, and dealer says they're good for at least 7K more miles. i have rotated them every 10K. i'm thinking the Falkens next, my main goal is not to lessen mpg.

 

Well, as I said - I'm quite a bit less sensitive to that sort of thing that probably most the people on the board. I have never really been a greasemonkey, and I didn't know much about cars in general prior to getting my Prius.

The main point of the new tires for me was actually neither of the above - it was noise. The Integras are actually quite loud, and while I'm not apt to notice big differences in grip and handling, I can detect minor changes in sound quality and volume. I am trying to build a listening chamber on wheels, and the difference in level of ambient road noise is appreciable. Secondary benefits like snow/rain traction and things are good, but much harder for me to quantify.

Monday my b-quiet comes in, and then on Tuesday the Infinity Kappas.... mmmm...

 

If you go with Nokians...you"ll experience a great tire, no milage penalty and it's an ecologically sensitive tire too.

3 Season: NHRi
Snow: RSi

 

I got my Falkens at www.discounttire.com at 50$ each
Delivery was free with no state tax. (Kind of odd to come home and find four tires sitting on your porch.)
Also there was a store near me that was recommended so the installation was 10$ a tire.

I've gone through about half a tank of gas on them so far and the mileage is slowly creeping up. Most of the replies I got mentioned that once the tires are broken in the mileage should be back to normal.

 

Thanks for that, dvdirv, I went to Discount Tire and got the Triple Treds. There was a $50 rebate from Goodyear and they gave me $50 for each of my existing tires. I went with the replacement warranty for an extra $65 and the total was $325. I'm not sure yet if there is any difference in mileage with the new tires but they make the car feel and handle better. The tread design on these tires is really different which I think adds to the coolness factor of the car. Thanks again.

 

How do you like the Michelin Hydro Edge Tires?

 

i went with a set of Pirelli P4 Four Seasons @ $400 installed....really good in the snow.... even better on dry roads ..... i do not believe the 80k warranty will ever happen though

 

The Goodyear Integrity OEM tires that came with my 2006 Prius lasted well over 35,000 miles set at 42/40psi. It is time to plan for replacement.

After much recent research, including our beloved PriusChat (PC), I now recognize that Michelin is a premier tire company worthy of first consideration. The brand name tire line is the top line of the Michelin company products; their other close seconds are the BFGoodrich and Uniroyal lines. All three lines place in the top tier of winners in almost all research available on the web.

I concur with many posters on this and several other PC threads that (1) a great replacement/upgrade tire (as of 12/2010) is the Michelin Hydro-Edge, and (2) a great replacement/upgrade size is the 195/60R15. If I can find that size locally, it’ll be my first choice. However, I’m still most concerned with value. I expect the best bang for my buck.

I recently received a coupon for $70 off for any set of 4 Michelin tires at BJ’s Wholesale Club. Yeah! Interestingly, BJ’s only offers Michelin, BFGoodrich and Uniroyal tires. I was able to obtain a lot of comparative research and pricing regarding the suggested replacement tires as listed at BJ’s except for the Michelin X Radial. Michelin has a great web site to evaluate their individual lines. Apparently the X Radial is a unique line/brand name only for BJ’s. Sam’s and Costco may have their own unique Michelin brands.

IMHO, of the widely available Michelin lines, the Michelin Hydro Edge is the hands down preferred way to go value wise, with the Michelin Energy Saver a long and distant second. The Energy Saver has a tread rating about the same as the original OEM tires. No bueno.

For detailed info on the HydroEdge click here:
HydroEdge | Michelin Tires

For the Energy Saver click here:
Energy Saver A/S | Michelin Tires

And the Michelin X Radial, click here:
X Radial DT | Michelin Tires

The point I want to make here is that the Michelin website can help you to evaluate and select between its different lines once you have determined it’s your desired tire manufacturer.

My individual choice is clear. So are the specs. At $116 per tire for the Michelin X Radial at BJs (plus $15 balancing and mounting, less $12.50 coupon), I can get exceedingly close to the HydroEdge’s specs for a very low price. I suppose I might find a slightly lower price overall on the net, but then there is shipping costs and the hassle of finding a reliable tire shop to balance and mount the tire.

[FONT=&quot]Final parting thoughts: higher performance tires such as the Michelin Pilot Exalto A/S usually have highly undesirable value trade-offs, and before you spend over $400 on new tires you should check other threads here and read up on Prius wheel alignment issues.[/FONT]

 

Actually, from a value and Performance standpoint I would say the Bridgestone Ecopia would be better overall. Especially when the $70 discount is offered.

 

You didn't specify which of the three Ecopia options would be better. A review that compares the Ecopia EP100 against other top performing tires can be found here:
When Round and Black Becomes Lean and Green

No doubt the Ecopia EP100 is a high performance low rolling resistance tire. However, I don't believe it would be suitable for me driving in snow. And as is common with high performance tires, the tread rating for the Ecopia EP100 (400) is half that of the Michelin HydroEdge or X Radial (both 800). I find that a drag on value. Same story with the Ecopia EP422.

 

Ahh but you made the statement that your choice of tire was the best choice and alluded that it was the best choice for everyone. I don't really care about snow performance so that opens up other options for me than it would for you.

K eepin mind that treadwear is kind of a tricky thing to compare. The Michelin should last longer but there are no guarantees due to differing conditions, driving styles, and even the testing performed on the tires to get the rating.

I'm not saying you are wrong but I would not agree that your choice is the best choice for everyone in every circumstance.

 

Your points that one size does not fit all are valid, especially "there are no guarantees due to differing [driving] conditions..."

However, I never indicated a "best choice" for everyone and you didn't quote me completely. Reread my post. I simply opined on what was the best "value" for me as far as "my individual choice". Whether it applies or has value to another reader is up to the individual reader.