New tires needed

I might get shunned for this, but I don't keep track of my mileage. I pay attention to it and drive accordingly, but I get enough of anal detail and spreadsheets at work. With the recent change in weather, any change in mileage would be difficult to attribute to the tires alone. But, even if the decrease were as much as 8 mpg, the differences in stability, handling and safety more than make up for it.

 

FYI, I just got the TT (about 750 miles ago). So far they're great tires and, while I initially noticed a big drop in mileage, we've come back up to near where we were before. I also don't religiously keep track of my mileage (pitchforks away, everyone!), but I just took a long highway trip and got ~1-2 MPG less than I typically get on that trip.

I expect my mileage to be down, but not by more than a few MPG. I wouldn't be surprised if you see an 8 MPG drop right away, but that should go away after a while.

 

That was a pretty quick purchase, Picasso. I hope you did more research than reading my post. Let us know what you think of the tires.

 

My purchase was also based on a fair bit of research, so your decision likely would have been fine anyway. I looked at the TireRack survey in addition to Consumer Reports, and of course the many tire threads here on PriusChat.

 

Good move Picasso.

And that's a fantastic price -- the lowest I've ever seen (I paid $90 each or $360 for four, plus $40 delivery, plus $60 installation).

The TTs are a great tire. It's the top rated passenger all season tire by Consumer Reports, Tire Rack, and Tire Rack's customers. I've put them on three cars now. All things considered (handling and braking in dry/wet/snow/ice conditions, noise, comfort, tread life, rolling resistance, etc.), I don't think there's a better tire for less than $100 each.

Although the TT's rolling resistance is not among the lowest, it's at least above average -- it's rated "Very Good" by Consumer Reports (its second highest rating category).

FYI, I've averaged over 50 mpg for each of the five fill-ups I've had since the beginning of the summer. I also just got back from a trip from New York to Ohio, and was able to average over 50 mpg driving at an average of 65 mph, through around 750 miles of Pennsylvania mountains.

If the 195/60/15 TTs get fewer mpg than the 185/65/15 Integrities, I don't think it's by much -- maybe around 2 mpg, like the 2 mpg drop Consumer Reports observed in its comparison of the Touring with its 195/55/16 tires and the Standard Prius with its 185/65/15 tires.

 

At 67,000 miles, I switched from OEM Goodyears to BFG G-force Sport, 205-60-15 on stock rims. I went from an easy 48-50 mpgs to 41-44 with the new tires. After 3000 miles they should be broken in. My driving is 99% highway, so I was surprised to see such a big difference. The BFGs weigh about 5 lbs more per tire than the OEMs. The handling is so much improved, along with more better ride, noise about the same, that I'm OK with a few less mpgs. I probably should have gone with 195s, and maybe would have been better mpgs. I can't get over how much better it sticks in the turns, grinning all the way to the gas station!

 

That's the other effect on mileage. A car that handles better will likely be driven faster. Not that any of us would do that.