Cheap Prius tires: Ohtsu FP0612 A/S

A little over 3 years and 85,000 miles, it was finally time to replace the tires on my rapidly aging PiP. I was hoping to make 100,000 miles on the OEM EP20 but the tires were balding unevenly on the inside tread of all 4 tires. I may have negative camber, I've never performed an alignment. If it was summer, I'd keep going but now that it is wet outside, I'm not going to take the risk.

I drive a lot so I always buy the cheapest tires and replace them quickly with lots of miles. F8L has a few posts here that convinced me more expensive tires that last longer will save money over cheapo tires. Well, you know what route I took since you clicked on the thread title. I wanted a set of EP422 plus but everyone must've been replacing their tires before rainy season or something because they were sold out. There's plenty now, though. I had a 1000 mile roundtrip to San Diego coming up so I couldn't wait. I decided to go with Ohtsu. I had always purchased Barum Bravuris at Discount Tires for my Civic and Corolla. But they had Ohtsu for $20 cheaper per tire. http://www.americastire.com/dtcs/findTireDetail.do?c=0&rcz=95035&ar=65&rf=true&rd=15&rc=CSBINT&cs=195&dVeh=dVeh&ra=searchTiresByVehicleAndSize.do&fl=&tc=OHTHH2&yr=2012&pc=31098&vid=021415

4 tires at $316 (installation, taxes, & TPMS rebuild) and over 2000 miles later, I am ready to review them. It's hard to compare mpg when there is EV involved. I got 45 mpg going to San Diego and back averaging some 80+ mph. This is in line with what I achieved with the OEM EP20. Yesterday, I got 49 mpg to work the other day after I dropped off the kids at daycare and ran out of EV. This was a 17 mile trip going up and down a 1000 ft elevation at highway speeds.

There is a noticeable drop in mpg somewhere between 2-5 mpg. There is also a commensurate step up in handling stability and a decrease in noise and vibration. Obviously wet handling has improved not because the EP20 were poor but because mine were bald. Are the Ohtsu better for handling than the EP20?... maybe, without back to back comparison, I can't say for sure. Ride quality and vibration definitely improved, though. The Prius is a little nicer place to be in and to drive. It's smoother and quieter than when brand new. My calculations show anything over 2 mpg and I would've saved more money buying the more expensive LRR tire.

Overall, I am satisfied with the tires. Would I purchase again? Sure, if the EP422 plus were out of stock again. I like to try new things.

 

I don't buy the logic that cheaper is inherently more dangerous than expensive. Or vice versa, more expensive automatically means safer. That's like saying all Lexus are safer than Toyota. Or anyone driving a Prius C is risking their lives, they should drive a more expensive Prius V for safety.

Cheaper tires may not perform as well as more expensive tires. That's it. Performance is not my aim otherwise, I wouldn't be driving a Prius. Since I drive a lot, my preference for a tire is lower NVH (noise, harshness, and vibration). I had written off all LRR tires after driving and sitting in a few Gen 2 Prius. The EP20 on my Gen 3 was starting to change my mind that there are advancements in this area but like I said, handling on my ~$100 EP20 tire when new was about as good as my $50 tire but I need back to back comparison to substantiate that claim.

I used to be a medical courier driving upwards of 300 miles a day. I bought cheap and expensive tires and in the end went with cheap because expensive lasted no longer than cheap. Touring tires were indeed quieter, but at 3x cheap crossed the value border. I could care less about performance in a straight line on the freeway in dry California and seldom rain.

P.S. I'm not talking about buying a no name brand tire with no certification. That, I agree is taking a risk.

 

Lets just say we disagree. Performance is a combination of factors in different conditions and surfaces.

Let's compare LRR tires and Z rated performance tires. In an emergency the Z rated tires with better grip in the dry will be safer. What if it is wet? Then the LRR with better tread channels will grip better. Which is the safer tire?

Consider a cheap and expensive tire on a tight budget. One at double the cost and double the tread life. Cost is the same. I can have a brand new tire at each corner every 3 years or I can have really old tires 4-6. Which is safer?

Consider my choice of cheap quiet tires versus vibration happy LRR driving me nuts on my long commute and making me short tempered? Which tire is safer?

One thing I do agree with you, priority is a personal choice. A lower performance tire is less safe than a higher performance tire? No, that's like saying a Dodge Viper is safer than my Prius because performance is better.