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Bridgestone ECOPIA EP422 PLUS: Very Squirrely

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Main Forum' started by tomfcb, Apr 20, 2019.

  1. tomfcb

    tomfcb Junior Member

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    These tires replaced Michelin Defenders on my 2012 PIP. They are much smoother/quieter. MPG seems about the same, but it's only been a week. Around town they are great, but at freeway speeds they are all over the place and do not want to track a straight line. Car serviced two weeks ago and I was told the alignment looks fine. Tire guy at Costco said the same.

    Any chance this will get better? Purchased at Costco, so I assume they're returnable for the first 30 days.

    (xposted in Plug In thread)
     
    #1 tomfcb, Apr 20, 2019
  2. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    what pressures are you running?
     
    #2 bisco, Apr 20, 2019
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  3. tomfcb

    tomfcb Junior Member

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    Not sure. Haven't checked since they were installed. Any recommendations?
     
    #3 tomfcb, Apr 20, 2019
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  4. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk EGR Fanatic

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    There are three versions of the Ecopia EP422 Plus, made in Japan, USA and Mexico. They all have distinct tread pattern, and various specs (wear index, max pressure, for example) are different.

    What does it say on the sidewall; what's the country of origin? Check all four too: someone here, a few years back, managed to get two US and two Mex when he bought.
     
    #4 Mendel Leisk, Apr 20, 2019
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  5. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    factory specs are on the drivers door jamb. many here run much higher. mine are 42f/40r, experiment.
     
    #5 bisco, Apr 20, 2019
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  6. High Mileage

    High Mileage Active Member

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    Tom, I am on my 4th set of the Bridgeston Ecopia series tires. First set was the 420's I think, since then 3 sets of the 422 series. All were installed at Costco and running the stock pressure noted on the door pillar, around 32psi as I recall. Previous tires were goodyear assurance. Never noted any issues with control of the vehicle with the Bridgestone tires so hopefully this will pass for you.
     
    #6 High Mileage, Apr 21, 2019
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  7. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk EGR Fanatic

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    Bridgestone Ecopia EP20 are worth considering. They come only in 195/65R15, and as far as I know there's only one version. I had a couple of sets of those, no problems, apart from them getting noisy, and really a menace in any amount of snow once worn.

    OP has a couple of threads going btw, same subject. Kinda frustating, but oh well.
     
    #7 Mendel Leisk, Apr 21, 2019
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  8. tomfcb

    tomfcb Junior Member

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    Why is that frustrating? I mentioned in in the post. This forum gets way more views that the Plug In forum, where I posted originally and got very few views/responses. AND I REALLY WANT INPUT FROM PEOPLE WHO MIGHT HAVE SOMETHING USEFUL TO SHARE, LIKE YOU.
     
    #8 tomfcb, Apr 21, 2019
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  9. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk EGR Fanatic

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    It would be better to report your post (button at bottom of posting) and ask the moderators to move it. That said, most viewers just view any and all forums.

    The frustration, comes from having two threads on same subject. One invariably gets orphaned, and responses ignored.

    Which reminds me, again: what are the country of origin of your tire (should be on sidewall)? And please check all four, hopefully all are from same country.

    I asked this before, in this thread, or the other.
     
    #9 Mendel Leisk, Apr 21, 2019
    Last edited: Apr 21, 2019
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  10. tomfcb

    tomfcb Junior Member

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    If I looked this up correctly, looks like all 4 tires were made in North Carolina. (Figuring that out is not straight forward at all!)
     
    #10 tomfcb, Apr 21, 2019
  11. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk EGR Fanatic

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    It says that on the sidewall?
     
    #11 Mendel Leisk, Apr 21, 2019
  12. tomfcb

    tomfcb Junior Member

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    No. As best as I can figure, it's based on the code after the DOT. It's 0BAE. 0B refers to the factory in NC. That's all I could come up with. I could be completely wrong. I couldn't see anything like "Made in USA" on the tires.
     
    #12 tomfcb, Apr 21, 2019
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  13. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk EGR Fanatic

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    Hmm. Usually it's on there in plain English. There's a lot of text on those sidewalls.

    Truth be told, not sure where I'm going with this, lol.
     
    #13 Mendel Leisk, Apr 21, 2019
  14. tomfcb

    tomfcb Junior Member

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    Super impressed with Costco tire people! They could not have been nicer or more helpful. They didn't have Michelin Energy Saver AS in stock when I went today, but will get a set by tomorrow. Hopefully I'll be in them by the weekend. I'll report back.
     
    #14 tomfcb, Apr 24, 2019
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  15. snarfu

    snarfu Junior Member

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    I got a set recently and they were a bit squirrelly. I am just about done with a long trip and they seem a bit better. I have lost some mpg compared to the nano A29. My best guess is 5 mpg.

    Forgot to add, the way it felt to Mee was the car was being blown by the wind, except there was no wind.
     
    #15 snarfu, Jan 8, 2020
    Last edited by a moderator: Jan 8, 2020
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