Time for new tires. What says PriusChat?

I just ordered 4 Continental ProContact with EcoPlus tires to replace my Nokian i3. They still have #4 in the wear indicator (after ~80k miles). It is getting very noisy.

 

Would you say that the tire noise is due to unevenly worn tread?

 

I haven't inspect it carefully but they didn't look uneven. Three out of the four tires were repaired with patches inside. Yes, I was that unlucky.

 

Awesome! I should have known you would try them. We tend to think alike on tires. Keep us posted.

 

My VW Jetta has Conti's. They wear well, but this winter they were useless - no traction with 5/32 tread left. I bought a pair of Nokian WRg2s for the front to use as winter tires till the spring and will put the Conti's back on till the fall when they will be retired in favor of 4 WRg2s. My wife deserves safe tires.

The worn WRg2s (4/32 left) on my Prius got me through the east coast storm, but they have now also been replaced with new WRg2s. I deserve safe tires too.

JeffD

 

I thought that 6/32" is considered the minimum safe tread depth in snowy weather.

 

Yea, I would've gotten dB Super E-Spec if we don't get snow here.

 

They are not the most economical choice anyway. They don't even have a treadwear warranty. lol I figured I'd try em out. My next tire was going to be the The Contis you got or the EP100.

 

Bought Yokahama AVID Touring S. We will see how they do.

 

I had to replace the tires right after purchase on my 2009. I got a great deal on it. It was actually a bit of a plus to be able to pick them myself. The stock Integritys were a bit beyond worn.

After a lot of reading here and some deduction as to what was available in my area, I settled on <gasp> Walmart. Ended up with four Goodyear Viva Authority Fuel Max. The same as their usual fuel max, made for Walmart.

I've had them about 5000 miles now, almost time for my first rotation. Took about two tanks for them to break in some, and my mileage has slowly increased from the 44-45mpg range on a given tank to now 48-50mpg. How much of that can be attributed to the tire is debatable, but at the very least they don't appear to be mileage killers like some tires are reported to be. I say it's debatable because the weather has improved after a very cold winter, I've become more familiar with the car and am thus a more capable driver, and so on. I'm simply unable to isolate how much of the improvement is due to the tires themselves.

I run them at 42/40psi. Cost was $420 installed with the whole warranty/lifetime balance/rotation thing. I did make sure I bitched up front about needing a good install. In the past Walmart's work for me has been suspect. It appears to have worked. I've got a much better seal with these, no slow leaks at all since they were installed. They've held pressure perfectly all winter.

They're also a very quiet tire, which I appreciate. Handling appears decent, and certainly improved over the balding Integritys.

 

I installed ProContact with EcoPlus on Saturday. What a smooth and quiet ride! I immediately noticed the lower rolling resistance on my glides. I now have to re-learn / re-adjust the Prius momentum because I find myself regen braking due to the extra momentum that these tires provide.

I felt:

• the HV battery got more powerful. I can accelerate in EV longer without the ICE blending.
• the HV battery capacity increased. The HV battery bars go down slower than I was used to.
• the regen brake sound (music) is more audible. That's because tires are quieter. I can actually hear when the regen stops (that's when the pads kicks in around 7mph).
• that I was floating on fairly smooth roads. I also feel less road bumps.

Some of these are simply due to the contrast between new vs. old worn out tires. However, I am much more impressed with ProContact with EcoPlus than the Nokian i3s when they were new.

 

You were right, I saw some unevenly worn tread. One of the tire even had a nail in it. Interestingly, there was no leak of air pressure.

I left all of them at the tire shop and paid them $6 for the disposal fee ($1.50 each). They were so noisy that I did not want them anymore. They still have a lot of tread left.

 

Yes, I had a similar experience with the 2004 when Pirelli tires were installed. Those tires were actually causing a rough ride due to uneven tread. They probably had 50% tread left but I got rid of them and installed the Bridgestone Ecopia EP100 tires. (That decision was facilitated by Discount Tire giving me a pro-rata credit on the old tires.)

BTW, this is a reason why I am not a big fan of tires that promise an unusually high treadwear life. In order to benefit from that attribute, you have to maintain perfect wheel alignment, or else the tires can get weird and you have to get rid of them, even with plenty of tread left. I'd rather get new tires more frequently.

 

usbseawolf200;
I would have the wheel alignment checked on the front of my Prius and as well the aft if those tires had uneven wear. There is a reason for uneven wear!
Cheers:
Hal

 

I had the alignment done about a month ago at the dealership. Thanks for the tip.

 

...and please remind us what was the result? Was a substantial adjustment required?

If not, then keep an eye on the new tires as they may experience similar uneven wear issues.

 

The front needed adjustment. They said the rear was not perfect but within spec. Stupid me, I forgot to ask for a print out.

 

All: when you post about buying tires please tell us what you paid for them installed. They are very useful data points.

 

I bought mine from TireRack.com for $74 each. All 4 shipped at $335 to a local recommended install shop. Installation for all 4 with the balancing and alignment check was $52 including disposal fee.

Everything came out to $387 and I should be good for another 80,000 miles.

 

I got the Michelin Energy Saver A/S on my G3 a couple weeks ago. Much quieter, smoother ride, better glide, etc than what was on the car. MPG has gone up around 3 MPG and I'm still within 500 miles on them. So far, I'm VERY happy with these tires.

I got them off TireRack for $107 each plus shipping & lifetime mount, balance, rotate at the local PepBoys - They were the same price as the TR "recommended" installers. I would have used Walmart for the mount & balance, as it's $5/tire (non walmart purchased tires) but it's not a lifetime balance and they didn't have a "tire guy" there that morning. Either way, that's 4 balances per tire to even come even to the price of most local places for that. There was no rebate on the Michelin's when I got them, but they're always running $70 rebates it seems like.