yet another help me decide on a tire thread for an 06

Sorry, no FAQ pointer. You're doing pretty good if you get 37K from the Integrities. At that rate, and if you're happy with their performance otherwise, the cheapest solution is probably just two more Integrities. Otherwise people do recommend Nokians and Michelins highly.

By The Way, you will get maximum life and safety from tires on a front wheel drive car by not rotating them. The front two will wear faster, so when they wear out move the rear two to the front and put a new pair at the rear. (If any of the tires wear asymmetrically or one wears much faster than its mate, that calls for an alignment or a suspension repair, not rotation.)

 

1. The 195/65/15 size will fit, but it will throw off the speedometer more than necessary. The closest alternative size to the OEM 185/65/15 is 195/60/15.

2. I think nyprius' http://priuschat.com/forums/prius-modifications/20573-tire-upgrade.html is the best PriusChat thread on tires. I'd read nyprius' initial post and as many of his and the other posts as you can stand.

3. Goodyear Assurance TripleTreds are the highest rated passenger all season tire by Consumer Reports:

Consumer Reports Ratings Passenger All Season Tires.doc

By TireRack.com customers:

Consumer Survey Results By Category

And by TireRack.com's road tests:

Comparing Our Top-Rated Passenger All-Season Tires

4. I have had TripleTreds on 3 cars now. I like them a lot. All things considered (traction in all conditions, braking in all conditions, tread life, noise, ride comfort, rolling resistance), I don't think there's a better all around tire for the money. But the TripleTreds do not come in the OEM 185/65/15 size. If you want them you'll have to get them in the 195/60/15 size. Personally, I prefer the 195/60/15 size. Everything else being equal, the wider tread should provide better handling and braking, but there will likely be a slight drop (2 mpg) in gas mileage.

5. If and when I need new tires for my Prius, I'll probably go for the Michelin X Radial, which is a "Club Tire", i.e., it's available only at clubs like Costco. It's Consumer Reports' second highest rated passenger all season tire, scoring only 1 point less than the TripleTred. It's rolling resistance is rated "Excellent" compared to the TripleTred's "Very Good", so you should get good mpgs from it. Also, it comes in the OEM 185/65/15 size.

Good luck.

 

I'm looking towards the Yokohama Touring-S in stock size or 195 60 15 because they were rated better than average for low rolling resistance by consumer reports.

 

Have a look at this tirerack test with actual Prius cars

When Round and Black Becomes Lean and Green

Ecopia seems to be the best option and they're highly thought off here. They are great for wet surfaces, only second to the A/S energy savers for mpg and not significantly inferior in dry conditions.

That's what I would put on if I were you, but then again I followed Richard's advice a few years ago and inflated my integrities to 44psi. They still have tread left in them for at least another 9 months at which stage they will be ~52 months and 46,000 miles old.

 

I have had good success with the Nokian WR G2 in 1856515, In mostly highway driving I got over 70k out of them, still with useable tread. No mileage hit and a definite traction upgrade over the (lack of) Integrities. Also has a 51psi max with most other tires at 44.

 

Can't give specific feedback about tires, since we are on our fourth set from Les Schwab, but we found that if we go higher in price on tires (about $100 per tire) and also have them filled to about 5 points over the recommended fill (which is typically 32) and rotate them every time we change the oil, it seemed to slow down the wear and tear. It has seemed to help.. The other thing to ask too when you do look at new tires is if they give credit back if the tires wear out before the warrantied miles? I don't know about other tire stores, but Les Schwab does that and it does cut down on the cost, even though the Prius does go through tires pretty darn quickly.

Hope that helps. Good luck!

 

I second the Nokian WR G2's. I will be on my 2nd set, and 4th set overall of Nokian WR's, on various cars. Great tires, plus an increase of approximately 2-4mpg over stock, and various terrain.

 

I put Goodyear Fuel Maxes on my 05 at 49K, now 78K and tread still looking good. If you buy them at Goodyear, free rotation for life is included, every 6K, which I take full advantage of. Noticably improved mileage from average 44 to 46-47. Seem a bit noisier than the old Integritys, though.

 

I put on Michelin Hydroedge. They are an 86T rating which is much higher than the orig. tires. from Costco w/free repair & balance.

Initially the mileage dropped 2 mpg (was 51). @ 20k on the tires the mileage has come back up to the same as the original tires.

The Michelins are very quiet and do not have the tendency to wander on grooved concrete highways likt the original tires did. Plus they are great on wet roads.

 

I've just ordered a set of Michelin Primacy MXV4s for the parent's Prius. Costco couldn't get me the Energy Saver A/S - they're out of stock at Michelin's warehouses. Hopefully the newer Green X version of these tires don't have too much of an MPG drop.

Costco was feeding me a line of BS about why the Primacys aren't suited for a Prius - saying our cars are heavy. Well, Michelin did create the Primacy MXV4 to replace the Energy MXV4 series - which are a common tire used on the Mercedes S-Class/BMW 7 Series, and those cars are heavier than a Prius!

 

Tires are a tough choice. Didn't like OE Integrity at all. Took them off with less that 2K miles. Grabbed a set of 16 inch wheels on a trip to Florida and put a set of 205/55 16 TripleTreds on them. OK tire, excellent directionally and made a big difference on handling in the wet and on highway. They did, unfortunately get very noisy after 10K.

Replaced early last Summer after a lot of research for a quiet, do all 3 season tire. I came up with a set of Kumho Ecsta Lx Platinums. Stupid name, but it has now ended up on 2 of my cars. Quiet, comfortable, but not squishy. Directionally not quite as good as the TripleTreds... although way better than than the drifty wandering Integritys. The Kumho's wet performance is excellent. MPG was not impacted, so I would imagine that they have low rolling resistance, even though I still run a 205/55 16. After experimenting a bit, I found that 39 psi front and 36 rear worked best between ride, MPG and wear. First time I have ever bought a tire outside GoodYear, Michelin, or Bridgestone.

Another impressive tire Yokahama S-Drives that my son bought for his car. I think they are even quieter than my Kumhos, but the S-Drives have softer rubber, so they won't last as long. They are also a Summer only tire. Not a cold weather recommended tire. The S-Drives have to be taken off at the first hint of 40 degree temps. My Kumhos are off in Winter, replaced by snow tires.

I wouldn't hesitate buying another set of Platinums. Even with the goofy name. I'm pretty sure that they may find their way on to a small project car that I have, making 3 cars shod with these tires.

 

I have always ran Michelins on my various Toyota's from my 4-Runner, Corolla, Tacoma to currently both my wife's Prius Touring and my Prius.

We are both running Michelin Harmony tires currently. She averages about 44 or so with the 205's on her Touring and I get about 47.5 with my 195's. So would highly recommend them.

For more, hopefully useful information, and to let me know what you think I should do about my tires check out my thread:

http://priuschat.com/forums/gen-ii-...-tire-question-not-your-typical-question.html

Happy driving

Chris