My tires need to be replaced. I have 37k on the clock and these are the original tires. What are the best replacement tires. Mine are 195-55-16, thx Art
I replaced my originals at 50,000 but i probably should have done it earlier. Anyway I replaced it with the Bridgestone Potenza G019 Grid 195/55/16. I should have gone with the Bridgestone Ecopia EP-100 fuel saver tire 195/55/16 but I think they had just come out when I got my tires so I didn't know they even existed. The Potenza is a performance tire. You will definitely see a serious improvement in handeling and performance. However you will also see about a 3-5 mpg drop. Next time I get tires I will be getting the Bridgestone fuel saver one. The reason I say Bridgestone is the way to go is because they do free tire rotations for you and since I do all my own service this adds up.
Just to back that MPG stat up with some real data here are my stats: Original Tires: 46,875.8 Miles (reason its not the 50,000 I quoted above is I don't have stats for my first 3,000 miles) 1018.8 Gallons 46.01 MPG Potenza's: 23,887.3 Miles 552.6 Gallons 43.23 MPG
Cool, thx. just checked mine. My car came with the Bridgestone Turanza el400 02. They are 195-55-16. I will check into the one you mentioned. Thank you, Art
The two most recent and best tire tests are Consumer Reports' November 2009 comprehensive tests of a wide variety of tires, and TireRack.com's August 2009 test of several, mostly low rolling resistance tires mounted on a Gen II Prius. Here's a scan of Consumer Reports' November 2009 tire test Recommendations and Ratings: Consumer_Reports_Nov._2009_Tire_Tests-1.doc And here's a link to TireRack.com's tests of low rolling resistance tires on a Prius: When Round and Black Becomes Lean and Green Read the tire tests, consider all the factors (handling, braking, wet performance, snow performance, rolling resistance, etc.) that are important to you and choose your tire. Note that there are very few non-runflat tires available in the Touring's OEM 195/55R16 tire size. So, in order to get the tire you want, you may have to go with the next closest tire sizes. A greater variety of tires exists in the 205/50R16 size. With them on, the speedometer will read 1.5% faster. An even greater variety (in fact, a HUGE variety) of tires exists in the 205/55R16 size. With them on, the speedometer will read 1.8% slower. * * * * * * * * * Also, although I would consider the above two tire tests more, you might also want to check out the several threads here on replacement tires for the Touring (do a Search). Here are two of them: http://priuschat.com/forums/gen-ii-...eplacement-tires-prius-touring-195-55r16.html http://priuschat.com/forums/gen-ii-prius-modifications/37637-touring-edition-tire-upgrade.html * * * * * * * * * Good luck.
I have the G019 Potenzas also, they made a big difference in handling. I Initially took a 3-4 mpg hit, but after 3-4k, that hit is all but gone.
My data is, when its +45 Farenheit, I'm back to averaging 50+ MPG. When it was 57 degrees last week, I averaged 55+ for 200 miles. Even compared to last winter, at temps below 25 Farenheit, I'm averaging 44-45 mpg, which is what I was getting last winter when the integrities had 20-25k on them. The G019 Potenzas are what I put on after I installed the larger touring rims, about 6k ago.
We put Potenza G019 on out '08 also. The handling and braking improvement were well worth the 1 MPG drop we noticed.
