Tires and MPG

For best fuel consumption look for tyre which use silica compound tread material.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(turboj91 @ Oct 10 2007, 01:24 PM) [snapback]523716[/snapback]</div>

My car is too new to have replaced the tires yet so I really can't offer any advice or comments on what you are experiencing. I'm confused though, are you losing 6 MPG, 100 miles per tank, or do you somehow have a fuel tank that holds 16 and 2/3 gallons?

 

Just last Monday I replaced all four OEM tires with Bridgestone Potenzas. It looks like this tank will be 3mpg lower than my previous with identical driving time and temp. I'm hoping once the tires wear in it will come back close to the OEMs. We'll see.....

 

just put 4 new michelin tires and i lost 6 MPG this sucks anybody want to buy them

 

If you think back to when you got your Prius new, you may remember that at about 800 miles you gained some MPG, due to the tires becoming broken in.

New tires have more rolling resistance than broken in tires.

Anytime you replace tires, you are back to breaking in the new tires.

Also, be careful of the tire pressure. When tires are installed, generally the tire shops can legally only inflate to what the plate inside the driver's door says, so your new tires could possibly be seriously under inflated, which will also cut into your MPG.

 

May be factors other than new tires combined with usual break-in requirement. Temperature: have you been running the heater, and has the temperature been causing the engine to run more to warm it up and to keep the catalytic converter warm? Gasoline: has ethanol or other additive been added to gas? Tires: new tires often give reduced mileage for the first few hundred miles until broken in.

Good luck, and happy motoring,

Jon

 

Hi turbo!

I had a similar experience when I purchased my Michelin Hydroedge tires, but I can attribute my mileage loss to having purchased a much wider tire. More tread on the road, less mileage.

you didn't post what size you bought, so i will assume, absent a statement to the contrary, you indeed purchased the OEM size.

Mileage loss can be attributed to several things. One, tire size. Two, temperature, as winter has set in, that will have an effect. But, you said the loss was immediate. So that brings me to #3, which is the new tire itself. New tread, it needs to be "broken in" and that's usually about 1000 on a new set. Forth was the air pressure, but you did say that you pumped 'em up.

Check your air pressure again, even if you checked it yesterday. With fluctuations in temperature that are very common in winter time, your tire pressure could have gone down, especially if they are new.

Give the break in period some time and see if the mileage doesn't improve are the newness is worn off the new tread. I've never heard of that brand of tire before, but if you have experience with them and have been satisfied, I sure hope you will be with this set.

Good Luck!!

 

Dave,

Mastercraft tires are made by Cooper tire. It is the brand they sell through non-Cooper outlets. They are, in general, good tires. Their higher line models are very good and I have used them on several cars with good results. Cooper tires are NOT LRR, except perhaps some of their winter tires which use silica in the rubber compound.

JeffD

 

Re: Tires and MPG : try this >

http://greenseal.org/resources/reports/CGR_tire_rollingresistance.pdf .

 

You guys really could do some better research on your replacement tires. This site has a LOT of information on it. Including the pdf file from some "GREEN" organization that posted a list of high rolling resistance tires. I know I posted it a year ago.

Unfortunately, that pdf file didn't give many options for tires. I wound up doing a LOT more research than that. I found that my Continentals had a higher mileage rating, and a better low rolling resistance value than the OEM integrities. (they suck) Oh yeah. they cost less than the Michelin's and the OEM.

I ordered them from Discount Tire.

 

I noticed that you went with the stock size. How are your MPH and odometer readings? You should be reading a bit high with the lower RPM's (849). I'm looking into getting the 195/60-15 as the RPM is 856. Only 1 RPM higher than the the stock Integrity's, which should help with the slight over-read from the stock.(?)

What else can you say about them please? Quieter?

 

Going from worn tread to new tread with the same brand tire will add diameter/circumference to the tire and thus you will travel farther per tire revolution. If the Prius' brain computes distance traveled by counting tire revolutions you would expect a lower computed MPG with new tread vs worn tread, all other variables being the same. This could easily amount to a 5% difference.

 

Yes.

The stock tires have 855RPM, which gives users about 1MPH over-read. So I'm looking for a good tire with as close to 855 as possible. In the ContiProContact it's the 195/60(65?)-15, being 856RPM.

So I'm shopping somewhat by RPM's. Confusing....

 

Just put a set of 4 Mastercraft touring Lsr on my 08,Nitro filled, to replace my stock tires went from 50.5 to 46 with the stock psi listed on door.had another 3 psi add to them and back up to 50 mpg now. Thinking about adding a couple more psi and will still be well below the tire rated psi.I have read alot about the pros and cons to the rating on the tire psi listed on the data plate and in my opinion that rating is based on the orignal stock tire,different componds have different properties and adjustment need to be made for these factors. I doubt that the guys on the tracks are putting what the data plate would say if it had one on it.