All- The Bridgestones on my wife's 2008 Touring are about ready to be replaced at 51,000 miles. Michelin's tire was rated #1 by Consumer Reports, followed by the Cooper GFE. Anybody have any advice on where to get the best prices on the Energy Saver A/S? I always try my local garage first, but in this case the best he can do is $230 per tire, and even a cursory search online lead me to find $150 per tire, with a $70 coupon for buying all 4 to boot. So he agreed to just install what I buy online. Any advice appreciated. -MKL 2012 Chevy Volt - 133MPGs and rising 2008 Prius Touring Package 6 (wife's)
The Michelin Energy Saver 195/55R16 (Touring size) is offered in Summer version only... no A/S. I went through the same thing on the wife's 2008 Touring Edition.
I usually buy my tires at Costco because I like the free rotation and balance while I shop and no up-selling of services I don't need. That would be at least 8 rotations and balances for the life of the tires. But, I can't believe the price difference between the touring and base model. Base model is $118.00 each vs $221.00 ea non-A/S for touring at Costco. Glad I got a base model. Roger
Roger, you can go size 205 instead of 195 and it fits fine. I ran 205s on my 2008 Touring for 50,000 miles before I traded in for my Volt. 205 is much more readily available than 195, and there is no problem with fitment. -MKL
The one issue in going to a larger size tire is speedometer & odometer error. For a 205/65R16 size, the error is 5.2%. The larger tire will, however, offer better stability on the highway.
I'll second the recommendation for Tire Rack. Currently 195/65 16 Energy Savers are priced at $108.00. They also give you a $70 MasterCard® Reward Card when you buy four Michelin tires.
I don't believe they offer free shipping. But check their shipping prices ... believe they are very reasonable and even when added into the overall costs, you'll most likely still save money.
I went with the Ecopias for all season driving. Got the Costco $70 off deal, $393.86 out the door with nitrogen fill. So far I love them. TireRack charges for shipping ($65 for us) and you still need to pay for mounting and balancing.
