Best tires for grooved freeways?

8) kidtwist,

On my 04 Prius I am currently running Goodyear Assurance ComforTred tires. I have not noticed any wandering while travaling at 75 mph here in Nebraska. Thay are far better than the OEM tires which were Goodyear Integritys.

Ben

 

I wonder if grooved freeways may be a major factor is why some have reported steering problems while others have not.

Even with the Integrities, I did not have steering problems in dry conditions. The highways here are not grooved. In other cars, I have noticed steering problems when I have gotten of grooved highways.

 

I have noticed the steering problems most on grooved roads, next in windy conditions at higher speeds, but also on selected highways (perhaps with somewhat grooved conditions). I have heard Michelin Energy and Harmony might be better. Haven't done any further research though I need to address the problem.

 

No grooved roads around here, just poorly maintained roads with obvious grooves from traffic. I know for a fact my Prius does *not* like those grooves one bit.

It doesn't matter if it was the stock Goodyear Integrity, my Michelin Harmony, or the Dunlop Graspic DS-2 winter tires. Though for some reason the problem is less pronounced with the Graspic winter tires.

However, the 2003 Buick LeSabre Celebration Edition my parents drive could care less. Even if I purposely plant the tires in the grooves, it's still easy to control with one finger on the wheel.

 

Here's some poop from an accident investigator. I asked him about the grooves on our freeways here in Southern California:

The "mechanism" of the tire following features- or defects in the road is called "Nibble" or "Nibbling" in American English -- and is also known as "Ribbing" in British English; the full definition is: The Effect of lateral force on a tire resulting from glancing contact with a rut or shallow ridge."

For what it's worth!

 

Here are some more pearls of wisdom from the accident investigator:

That "nibbling" - or "groove-following" behavior is fairly common in cars (and is a REAL problem on motorcycles); it seems to be most prevalent on one certain type of tire-treat pattern -- the ones called "rib" pattern, with continuous "rings" of tread instead of separate tread "blocks".

 

By "grooves" do you mean the treatment applied to cement roadways especially on curves to ensure cars and trucks don't slide off during rain/snow?

The grooves are spaced around an inch apart and are no more than 1/4 inch deep, and they appear to be screeded in when the cement is poured.

Or do you mean the obvious "ruts" under each wheel on paved roadways that results from poor road construction and too much traffic?

Around here, one can easily see the ruts, especially after heavy rain when the water is standing in the ruts. That's very dangerous as you can then easily hydroplane in the ruts.

Most cars and trucks will have tracking problems in ruts. However, when my Prius is on new smooth pavement, it's still upset by winds or passing trucks.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(jayman\";p=\"69010)</div>

Yes, that's what we have here on most of our freeways in So Cal.

 

I'm so relieved to find out this is a common problem! I've always wanted a prius, and was so excited to get an '05 recently; a much appreciated hand-me-down from the in-laws. I got a flat in the first week of having the car out here (in LA), and was advised to replace all four tires because they were pretty worn. I initially only bought two (that's all I could afford), and immediately started noticing that the car would jerk around from time to time on the freeway. When I went back a couple of weeks later to get the other two tires, I told them what was happening and asked them to check the alignment on all four wheel. The problem continued, but I realized it wasn't happening when I'd drive on the 5 to pick up my fiancee at work in Burbank, but only on the 134 that I take to work in Pasadena (which is grooved). I did a google search on grooved freeways (didn't even mention prius) and this forum was one of the first things to pop up!

Anyway, good to know that there isn't already something else wrong with the car. A co-worker who also owns a prius says that she notices hers jerks around easily in high winds and thinks that the car has issues b/c it's fairly tall for it's length (makes sense).

All that being said, I didn't really notice the problem so much the week we had the car before we got the flat... I'll have to ask the in-laws what kind of tires they had on it and get back to you guys.

 

I have a 2009 Prius Touring which showed the instability on rain grooves. It largely went away when I raised the tire pressure to 42/40. I was both surprised and pleased at how much difference it made in curing that problem -- though I'll leave it to the more technically competent to explain why it mattered.