Best Alternatives to Michelin Energy Saver A/S ?

I have the 195/65R15 Michelin Primacy MXV4 tires on my car. Michelin does list these as 10 on the Efficiency rating, the same as the Energy Saver. Michelin Customer Support even continues to insist this size is LRR even though they do not carry the GreenX label.

My experience has been that I have dropped from a 48 mpg average down to a 44 mpg average, a loss of about 8.5%, after installing these tires. Tire Rack correctly lists this size tire as non-LRR.

As you said earlier, the longevity of the tire versus the Energy Saver is worth a little. Other than the loss of mpg the MXV4 is an excellent tire in the comfort, handling and quietness categories along with the longevity with the 65k mile warranty.

 

The Critic had the same experience although his mpg is coming back up slowly.

 

I ran into the same problem last year! I ended up with the "summer-only" EP100 tires, which have performed fairly well MPG-wise. They actually did OK in our recent winter storm conditions, though I switched to my Blizzaks anyway. What is the deal with Michelin & tire production???

BTW, Blizzaks are NOT LRR tires. They kill my mileage, like a 20% reduction.

 

We now have over 55,000 miles on our 195x65x15 Michelin Energy Saver tires that we purchased new at Costco. All 4 tires are inflated to max sidewall pressure of 44 psi with nitrogen from Costco.

When we bought these tires the original Yoko Avid had about 11,000 miles on them and they were well broken in. Soon as the Michelin were installed we noticed a true mpg increase of 2-3 mpg over the Yoko.

Looks like we will get at least 65,000 - 70,000 on these tires before the need to be changed.

Even though the Michelin Energy tires have been great I am also looking a the new Michelin Defender tire and the Nokian Entyre which should get longer tread mileage and probably the same if not more mpg's than the energy saver tires.

alfon

 

I believe it was stated that the Michelin Defender will be the successor to the Michelin Harmony and HydroEdge. And, if you look very closely, the tread pattern of the Defender is more similar to the Continental ProContact EcoPlus+ than the Energy Saver A/S.

 

You might look at the Continentals in another way......you might LIKE them so much you WANT them to "last forever."

They do appear to be an excellent tire and a very good value.

 

Articles about the Michelin Defender:

Michelin Media Live: North American International Auto Show 2012: Photos, Videos, News


Tires & tire-talk

Game changer?

 

I'm inclined to agree with you. The Defender is a replacement tire for the Harmony and Hydroedge line so I doubt it will also be replacing the Energy Saver A/S.

Here is the breakdown between the EP100 and ContiProContact with EcoPlus.

If you want max mpg then go with the EP100

If you want maximum tire life go with ContiProContact

If you want to save the most money go with the ContiProContact

If you want the best dry traction go with the ContiProContact

If you want the best wet traction go with either tire

It appears to me that the Contis win in most categories unless you are a serious hyper miler and want to eek out every possible mpg. I have a feeling the Contis are about 1-2mpg lower than the EP100.

 

Edit

 

I can't really recommend one brand over another, but I found the attached spreadsheet helpful in sorting out the financial impact of each tire choice. I got very good technical information for each tire option from Tire Rack, and played around with installing slightly larger tires than OEM to reduce the number of revolutions per mile, thereby achieving a slightly *higher final gear ratio* (i.e., getting more miles per 1,000 revolutions should translate into better miles per gallon and longer tire life). Note that your odometer and speedometer will be affected by this change and you may need to make mental adjustments to that effect.

 

We've discussed this before but not in any great detail. The Prius HSD system including the "eCVT" does not react to tire size changes like a typical fixed gear transmission and axle. In a conventional car, using a taller tire will reduce engine rpm at a given speed compared to a shorter tire at the same speed. It doesn't work that way for the Prius.

 

I agree that as gas prices rise the focus on max mpg should become more important. The four variables you have to consider are treadlife, mpg, tire cost, and gasoline cost. A low priced tire with very long tread life and decent mpg is usually the best choice but as gas prices go up a more expensive tire that gets better mpg may be more economical as long as tread life is not too low. So like I stated in my main tire thread, one must take all of this into consideration when buying a new set of tires.

If your annual mileage is at or below the national average then a high mpg tire may be you best bet if you are worried about gas prices remaining above $4/ga. If, like me, you drive 26k-30k a year then you'll go through tires fast enough that you don't have to sweat long term gas price trends.