Bridgestone Ecopia is loud. I want quieter tires. Fuel economy be damned.

I would buy Michelin Defenders.

 

Frequent rotation, wheel balance, alignment, and maintaining tire pressure have a huge influence on tire noise. Once a tire wears funny, it gets noisy.

 

We kept our last vehicle for 16 years and drove many of the same road surfaces during those years, including I-10, I-35 and I-40 all the way to Florida, Georgia and Wisconsin several times. During that time we used General, BF Goodrich, Michelin and Pirelli tires. The Michelins were by far the quietest and longest lasting. They did seem a bit "soft" in the ride department, but I never had any problems with control, etc. They were no longer available when I got the Pirellis, but I probably should have opted for the latest Michelin even though the Discount Tire salesman thought the Pirellis were more comparable to the previous Michelins. They were a fine tire, but there was a noticeable increase in noise, not offensive, but still more than the Michelins. Unfortunately, given the huge difference between the van and the Prius, I don't know what tire I'll opt for when the time comes. We've got 17k on the OE Goodyear tires now and will hit 30k before the end of August. I don't know how many miles they will last, but I'm hoping whatever tire I buy, they will be quieter than the Goodyear tires. I thought the Prius was louder than my brother's Sonata Blue, but then my SIL said she thought the Prius was quieter when she sat in the rear seat of both. She also said the A/C worked better even though the Sonata has rear vents. She really liked our Prius over their Sonata.

 

The Yokohama Avid S33D were the OEM tires on my 2012 Prius, which I replaced with the Bridgestone Ecopia EP20. The noise and ride were clearly worse with the EP20.

 

I agree with what was said about not to expect very much tire noise change with new tires. I bought new 17 inch Primere A/S tires for better wet and winter handling and trying to quiet the cabin down. Here is my post with my early analysis; Michelin Premier Tires | PriusChat

I have a Prius v (Wagon) but the analysis should still carry over to the hatchback.
Now three tanks of gas on the new tires and with more PSI (38F/36R) I feel that the tires provide significant better traction in challenging conditions, moderate improvement in handling and smooth driving over bumps and potholes, and small improvement in tire/cabin noise. Also, maybe %5 - %10 lower MPGs with the new tires. Hard to tell as I am still driving a lot in sub zero winter weather. I want to see the full year MPG stats on the new tires so I can get a better idea of the mileage sacrifice on these tires.

enjoy.

 

That may be a factor in the tire noise too.
Running elevated pressures might also.

 

Tire noise was compared within 1 or 2 days with similar above zero weather on the same trips/roads/speeds/doorjam recommended PSI. I was surprised how little difference the android app decibel readings were. Also I was surprised how high decibel readings were when other cars passed. I Just had to accept that my prius v (wagon) lets in a lot of road noise. Made me think about lining the car with dynamat sound absorbing material again (too much work and weight).

 

We put Defenders on my wife's Rav4 2013 and they are a great tire, very happy. There will be a set of Defenders on my Prius soon. My OEMs are down to 5/32" and the roads around here eat tires quick.