It's time to replace the tires on our 2010 III with 42K miles which currently has Bridgestone Ecopia EP20s. I've been sorting through the threads on tires for the last hour and a half, including the 27 page thread on LRR replacements and my head is swimming. I would prefer to get tires from Costco since it's easy to get the tires rotated while I shop. There is currently a $70 off Michelin deal going on and online they are carrying Defenders and Energy Savers. It also seems like in the past Costco has had Primacys and maybe they have them in-store but they aren't online. Costco online also has the Ecopia EP20s. So should I go for the Defenders or Energy Savers? Or should I go elsewhere to get different tires? We currently live in sunny San Diego but will likely be moving to rainy Tacoma, WA this summer, so good wet handling/traction is important. Noise is also somewhat important since I can never hear the kids when they are speaking to me from the backseat, which can be a good thing, but I find myself repeatedly screaming, "What?" since I can't understand them. Thanks for your help.
If wet traction is a concern, sacrifice the 10% in fuel economy and get the Primacy MXV4. From my experience, the Primacy were far superior to the Energy Saver A/S in wet weather. If you can wait until May, the new Michelin Pilot Sport A/S 3 will be your best bet. iPhone ?
He lives in San Diego. It never rains in Southern California! Says Toni Tony Tone! Get the Energy Saver A/S from Costco. They can order them for you. Do it before the rebate expires on the 30th?
Thanks for your posts. I went to Costco to see what they had in-store. They have the Primacy, Defender, and Ecopia 422. All of the tires were pretty comparable in price. The person working there told me that the next coupon will be for Bridgestone, so that would actually make the 422s a bit less, but I'm willing to pay more for tires that fit my needs better. The guy at Costco was trying to push me to the Defenders. But do the Primacys do better in wet weather? Unfortunately I can't wait until May for the Pilot Sports. Oh, and BTW, I'm a she, not he. My husband thinks that I'm overthinking this and that I should just go and get whatever the guy at Costco recommends.
I suggest you go to Tirerack.com and compare the survey results. The Defender gets 8.9 for both wet tracktion and hydroplaning, while the Energy Saver gets 8.1 and 8.3, respectively. The Defender is the highest rated Standard Touring All Season, while the Energy Saver is #7 in Passenger All Season. Also, the Energy Saver gets an 8.2 for Noise, while the Defender gets an 8.6. I think the Defender is the better tire for your needs, and also has 25000 more miles on the warranty. The only downside is MPG will be lower. How much lower is debateable and I have not seen any good comparisons. Unfortunately, when TireRack did their comparison testing on the Defender they had "technical difficulties" and could not report on MPG in their test.
My 2010 III also came with the Bridgestone Ecopia EP 20s. I switched over to the Michelin Energy Saver A/S at 48,000 miles. These tires are considerably quieter than the Bridgestone, the ride is smoother and my mileage increased by almost 2 mpg.
I think we have enough first hand reports on this Forum overwhelmingly in favor of the Energy Saver A/S over the Factory OEMs by about +2 MPG by normal drivers. It is also well accepted the the OEMs were not the best tires for handling, longevity and noise. The cost analysis of various options for replacements have been made and opinions given. I will speak for the Defenders. In the 6400+ mile I have had them installed, my mileage has dropped by only 0.2 MPG vs my lifetime average. The break-in period and the colder winter weather has not been considered or corrected for. My MPG is essentially the same and the tires are much quieter. The biggest improvement however is the ride stability and superior handling. The Defender is a high quality product and I have no regrets what so ever. I believe Michelin makes the best products for this application and they both cost +/- the same. Whether you buy a tire that gets +2 MPG improvement or one that excels in all other categories and lasts 90K miles, is purely a personal decision. I still get over 50 MPG after almost 50,000 miles driving normal and really like the 2010 Prius. Anyway, that is my take for what it worth.
Off topic, but I like the Defenders so much I just put a set on the 06 Beetle TDI I passed on to my Son for his first car.
You've narrowed it down to two good choices. I believe the "Energy Savers" are the way to go and I plan to purchase. After exhaustive research, it came down to Priuschat recommendations and the Tirerack.com website description: The Energy Saver A/S is Michelin North America’s most fuel-efficient All-Season Passenger car tire developed for the drivers of hybrid and fuel-efficient passenger cars that want to exploit their vehicle’s fuel economy without abandoning dry, wet and wintertime traction.
