new michelin energy saver tire not coming to US

Eric, thanks for working up the analysis. You are right, the dollar difference isn't that large. In addition to air pollution and climate change, the oil dollars to some degree fund countries that are hostile towards the U.S.

There is another small consideration. The tread wear is probably based on wearing the tread to one-sixteenth of an inch. The latest Consumer Reports says that at even 5/32 inch remaining tire depth the braking distance on wet surfaces is longer, an 8% drop in hydroplanning resistance. They (CR) recommend replacement at one-eighth inch tread. The Hydroedge has original tread depth of 11/32 while the Energy Saver's is 9.5/32 inch. If the tire is replaced at 4/32 inch, then the usable tread is 7/32 for the H.E. and only 5.5/32 inch for the E.S. That would drop the estimated tire life to 70,000 miles for the H.E. and 40,000 for the E.S.

Seems like the most important criteria should be safety, the braking and handling performance. The tire rack review showed no clear winner. (I can't post a link to the tirerack review, this forum requires at least 5 posts to add links)

Thanks again

 

PA Prius,

The Tirerack report placed the new Michelin Hydroedge (with Green X) and the Michelin Energy Saver as quieter than the Integrity, but made a note that this was based on the Integrity passing more noise on rougher surfaces. I wonder if the new formulation for the tire rubber on the Hydroedge (i.e. w/Green X) makes them quieter?

Tirerack report ==> http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tests/TireTestServlet?tireMake=Michelin&tireModel=Energy+Saver+A%2FS&tirePageLocQty

Other posts indicate the Hydroedges (and other tires) get louder over time. So, I am not sure if testing a new tire for noise level is the best indicator. Consumer reports rates the Hydroedge as the TOP "All Season" tire (it was rated there as average for noise level). And, the Tirerack survey (from individuals that collectively have run 21 million miles on the Hydroedge) voted it the number 2 tire overall (of all tires). So, many folks do not consider noise level of the Hydroedge an issue. This is tempered by reports that the Prius lets relatively more external road noise into the passenger compartment.

Tirerack customer survey "Passenger All Season Tires" ==> http://www.tirerack.com/tires/surveyresults/surveydisplay.jsp?type=AS

 

JamesE,

I agree safety first and the Michelin HydroEdge and Energy Saver both score much better than the GY Integrity based on the Tirerack testing/analysis.

In terms of costs, installing tires more frequently incurs additional install charges giving a small economic edge to the Hydroedge over the Energy Saver. This compliments your excellent point about replacing tires at 4/32 remaining tread (as per Consumer Reports recommendation).

Another economic consideration would be how long one will keep the car. If selling within 50k of driving, then the economic edge goes to the Michelin Energy Saver since the install/tire cost is the same as for the HydroEdge, the fuel savings over the Hydroedge are immediate, and the earlier replacement cost are not a factor.

 

This is what Michelin Energy Saver A/S did for my Prius. I routinely got at of near 60 mpg, but a simple tire change did this.
I filled up at 620 miles, with better than 64MPG showing, using less than 10 gallons of gas. 93% interstate driving.

 

And here's two R/T's to work since I filled up. Exploiting what a Prius can do in rush hour traffic, of course.

 

9G-man, what psi are you running? What speed do you drive on the interstate?

PA P

 

42F/40R PSI.

I try to stick with 60-65 MPH cruise control set. I warp stealth the downhill grades and exploit the glide abilities in stop-and-go traffic. Although it's not stop-and-go for me. More like Pulse-or-stealth and keep-my-distance-and-glide.

The crazy part is, it's so simple to do. Lift your right foot and lightly reapply. GA topography is so ideal for taking advantage of this.

Sometimes I look around and I'm passing the cars around me in a glide or warp stealth, using no gas! And I think about how I'm the only car around us not using gas. How crazy other folks are to have a car that burns gas while sitting still or coasting or traveling downhill.

 

Just put these on and already seeing a difference, but too early to provide true average. Costco put these on and said the psi would be something like 36F/34R. I asked them to make it 42F/40R and and they threw all these warnings and disclaimers at me so I had them leave it at the recommended psi. Only when I got home did I see their rotation reminder sticker that says the tires are 32F/32R. I bought the car used two weeks ago and LOVE IT!!! Not as comfy as my 2002 exlorer, but triple the mpg. Had the OEM Goodyear tires on it and they were getting pretty bare. So far I'm happy with the Energy Saver - seems to be a quieter and smoother ride, and will report mpg later on in the week. I'm a little concerned by the treadlife of the tire, as I am doing 17,500 miles a year right now - about 95% straight highway. Only time will tell...

 

Add 15 to 20 psi per tire (sidewall max. is 51 psi, right?) and you will be very happy!

PA P

 

Sidewall max is 44 psi...I'll probably stop by Costco on my way home today and ask them to bump it up to 40F/38R. We are entering the rainy season (which really is nothing in Southern Cal) so I'll keep it on the safer side.

 

I have the michelin energy saver tires on our 2010 prius.

I bought them at Costco and have all 4 tires inflated to 44psi with nitrogen. They had no problem doing that as long as you do not go above the 44psi max sidewall pressure as listed on the tire.

I noticed a 2-4 mpg increase over the factory toyo avid tires.

I now have over 2,000 miles and I am very pleased.

alfon

 

I just installed a set of 4 on my 2008 PRIUS at COSTCO = $526 (including TAX + Road Hazard + Life-time tire rotation). They seem more quiet than the stock GY Integrity set. I'll keep you posted on mileage results. They indicated an 8% mileage increase on the Michelinman.com website.

 

Please explain the benefits of Nitrogen?

--Josh

 

For a regular street driven production car the benefits are pretty much limited to longer intervals between re-inflation.

Puported benefits are less pressure increase due to heat and less oxidation due to higher moisture content of regular compressed air.

Despite driving over 50,000miles a year in the past and having cars that barely do 2,000 miles per year and have the same set of tires for more than a couple of years, I've yet to see a tire "die" due to oxidation of the inner rubber lining or rusting of the steel reinforcing belts. I've never seen the inside of a tire lined with moisture - even on R compound tires driven on the track that get really hot and replaced whilst hot.

If it comes with the tire that's all fine and dandy... but I wouldn't go out of my way to have them add pressure to the tires every month or so...

 

Since our atmosphere is appx 78 % nitrogen, I don't think it's worth the $. A friend of mine paid $30 + for nitrogen in each tire when it first became popular. !! Ouch! Save your $.

 

Nitrogen offers no measurable advantage in retaining pressure, as its diffusion rate is nearly identical to that of ordinary air.

Water vapor will exhibit non-ideal gas behavior if it is used near its phase point, where condensation forms. Dry nitrogen has the advantage of not containing water vapor, although the mounting process pretty much obviates any dry gas advantage. Dry air works just as well as dry nitrogen in this respect.

Agreed. If oxidation were a big issue, tires would rot away from the outside in, since the outside of tires is constantly exposed to fresh oxygen. Tires, by their very design, are made to be gas impermeable and resistant to oxidation.

A further point is that most nitrogen fills from tire shops are not pure dry nitrogen. They usually use some sort of machine that "nitronizes" ordinary air. What this does is increase the percentage of nitrogen in air by a small amount, but at 78% for the free stuff, it isn't any real advantage.

The only gain from nitronizing tires is to give the tire shops something extra to sell, or offer for free as a competitive advantage. Don't expect it to do anything to help your tires.

Tom

 

Just put Energy Savers on my car, tire pressure 39 front 38 rear. After one tank of gas my mileage has improved 4 mpg. When I drove home after the tires were installed, it felt like I was floating on air. The noise level, which was terrible with Goodyear Assurance, was so little I thought I was driving a new car again. I love these tires. I worried about the no guarantee mileage but the Goodyears were guaranteed to last 80,000 and I only got 40,000. So I decided if I got at least 40,000 I would be happy with these tires. Time will tell but for now I would highly recommend these tires. jaa