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Weird tire question

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Main Forum' started by Johnny Cakes, Jan 7, 2023.

  1. Johnny Cakes

    Johnny Cakes Senior Member

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    I am spinning the tires more often from a standing hard start then previously. The tires are clearly spinning, and the traction light comes on. Thread is still 4/32" which indicates some wear, but that depth doesn't usually suggest worn/replace.

    Any ideas why this would be happening now with the only change being wear down to 4/32"??
     
  2. ForestBeekeeper

    ForestBeekeeper Active Member

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    Is this on ice?
     
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  3. BiomedO1

    BiomedO1 Senior Member

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    Check tire pressure. Over inflated tires means smaller traction print to surface area.
    A 4x4 rock crawling trick is to "air-down" tires to get better traction over rocky terrain; but be careful - Prius side walls are thin. Unlike multilayered off-road tires.
     
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  4. sam spade 2

    sam spade 2 Senior Member

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    But the Prius doesn't have to worry about climbing over large objects or running through 4 inches of mud or loose sand.

    With standard car tires on standard paved roads, that little "trick" will likely give you worse traction not better.......and cause unever wear too.

    As winter approaches, the nights are cool and that leaves the road cold in the mornings......which will collect condensation as the air warms up. That will be particularly noticeable at the stop line entering intersections. And the painted stop lines too.

    If it REALLY bothers him, maybe he should stop doing "standing hard starts". :eek:
     
  5. Grit

    Grit Senior Member

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    I get the tires slipping on quick acceleration from stationary on wet roads when I purposely hit the accelerator quickly half way downing even on new tires.
     
  6. ForestBeekeeper

    ForestBeekeeper Active Member

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    Just be thankful you are not driving a rear-wheel-drive vehicle that fishtails every time.

    In this area, most RWD operators like gunning it, to make their vehicles fishtail during turns. What annoys me most is when people are exiting a side road or driveway, and turning onto the main road so when they gun it they will fishtail out into the oncoming lane of traffic.
     
  7. Leadfoot J. McCoalroller

    Leadfoot J. McCoalroller Senior Member

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    age hardens rubber. Low temps do it too.

    4/32" is quite low.... it's time to look for deals.
     
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  8. CR94

    CR94 Senior Member

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    Too much torque.
     
  9. Johnny Cakes

    Johnny Cakes Senior Member

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    It has gotten cold here and the new slippage is much more pronounced in wet conditions. The current pressures are always OEM, I check often.

    I've been looking at the Bridgestone Turanza Quiettrack as my #1 concern is comfort and quiet. They seem to have good ratings on Tire Rack, especially from Prius owners. But I'm cheap enough that I didn't want to throw away my old tires too early -- almost hoping that the loss of traction meant time for new tires.
     
  10. Leadfoot J. McCoalroller

    Leadfoot J. McCoalroller Senior Member

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    I don't know anything about that tire, but if you like it now is the time to pull the trigger. You aren't leaving any meat on the table.

    For what it's worth, my favorite quiet/comfort tire for a small car is the General Altimax RT43. Proved itself on our little Hyundai, and I plan to hang a set on our Prius later this year.
     
  11. PriusCamper

    PriusCamper Senior Member

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    People who don't put the needs of a high mpg tire for Prius lose huge at the gas pump... I've seen many friends buy a Prius and when buying tires want safety, comfort and quiet and get sold an over-priced tire that's not designed for a high mpg vehicle.

    Then they're like "something is wrong with my Prius will you fix it for me? I've never gotten better than 38 miles per gallon." And I'm like there's nothing wrong with your Prius, the problem is with you ignoring my advice about buying either Ecopia 422 Plus or Michelin Energy Savers so you can get 50+ miles per gallon.

    When you're losing 12 miles per gallon because you got scammed at the tire store for the overpriced and incorrect tire type the difference over 60K miles adds up:

    -- 60K miles divided by 50 miles per gallon equals 1200 gallons of gas at $5 per gallon is $6,000
    -- 60K miles divided by 38 miles per gallon equals 1579 gallons of gas at $5 per gallon is $7,895

    Do you really think road noise and "comfort" is worth spending an extra $1,895 in planet destroying gasoline over the lifespan of your tires. Way to many people actually do... It's so wasteful and irresponsible and brings dishonor to the high MPG potential of your Prius!
     
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  12. PriusCamper

    PriusCamper Senior Member

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    Also keep in mind that the electric motors in Prius have way more torque than gas engines and there's nothing abnormal or unsafe about tire slippage when accelerating from a start, that's not where traction is essential. It's also super easy to address by not accelerating as fast, wait till you get new tires to do that. For the sake of our planet get all the value you can out of your existing tires before buying new ones!
     
  13. Johnny Cakes

    Johnny Cakes Senior Member

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    With my hard starts, I don't get 50 mph now.

    This world has chocolate and vanilla ice cream for a reason. To each, their own.
     
  14. sam spade 2

    sam spade 2 Senior Member

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    Well DUH. As a couple of folks have already said........you answered your own question.
     
  15. Johnny Cakes

    Johnny Cakes Senior Member

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    No, I don't think "DUH" is fair. As I said, the slippage has increased is across the board, although wet conditions accentuate the amount that my previous wet traction has decreased.


    That is the post I like. I think cheapskate me was looking for permission to purchase and overcoming the feeling that I was just indulging myself.
     
  16. sam spade 2

    sam spade 2 Senior Member

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    You are "indulging yourself" by acting like a race car driver.
    If you STOP doing that, you won't need new tires.

    AND those wide, white "stop line" strips can be wet/damp enough to cause some loss of traction when you could swear that they are dry. Sometimes they will cause some loss of traction even when they ARE perfectly dry.

    But in the end, you will do whatever YOU want regardless of any advice you get here........so I don't see the point in asking in the first place.
    But that happens a lot too.
     
  17. Johnny Cakes

    Johnny Cakes Senior Member

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    Thanks for your post, Sam Spade 2, right on brand.
     
  18. Leadfoot J. McCoalroller

    Leadfoot J. McCoalroller Senior Member

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    @Johnny Cakes Out of curiosity how old are the tires?

    My suggestion to replace was factored by:
    • you're obviously slipping more than you want to
    • these could potentially be the original tires aged 7+ years
    • it's early in winter
    • it's not like spring will be dry in the Eastern US
     
  19. fuzzy1

    fuzzy1 Senior Member

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    At 4/32", that is essentially the same thing I've been experiencing my entire adult life. At least on certain wet uphill starts on glazed or painted pavement.

    While still legal down to 2/32" (or even 1/32" in certain dry southern states), most pundits this century have been recommending replacement at 4/32" in areas that experience rain.

    Because that reduced traction also shows up during emergency braking, he needs new tires even without acting like a race car driver.
     
    #19 fuzzy1, Jan 8, 2023
    Last edited: Jan 8, 2023
  20. Leadfoot J. McCoalroller

    Leadfoot J. McCoalroller Senior Member

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    Yeah that last 1/32" is for indoor cars only.
     
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