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Kuhmo ecowing KH30 205/50R16

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Fuel Economy' started by Gorilla97, Mar 7, 2014.

  1. Gorilla97

    Gorilla97 Junior Member

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    I have a 2008 Touring model and I've always had good luck with Kuhmo tires so I'm considering buying these tires from Discount Tire at only $68/tire. They are pretty well rated by consumers at 8.4 but there are no reviews from Prius owners. I'm curious if anyone has experience with these tires and if so would you recommend them?

    I'm going to the 205 size because there are more options available than the stock 195.

    Kuhmo ecowing KH30 205/50R16
     
    #1 Gorilla97, Mar 7, 2014
  2. Gorilla97

    Gorilla97 Junior Member

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    Salesman at Discount Tire told me the Kuhmo is now discontinued but the Road Hugger GT Eco is the exact same time and readily available at $87/tire for the 205/55-16 size. All in would be around $450 with install and taxes. They are also offering a $30 mail-in prepaid Visa card so I may end up going with the Road Hugger instead.
     
    #2 Gorilla97, Mar 11, 2014
  3. Tony D

    Tony D Active Member

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    Here in Europe we generally go for the 205/55/16 as there are a greater range of LRR tyres in this size
     
    #3 Tony D, Mar 11, 2014
  4. Britprius

    Britprius Senior Member

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    The Kumho KH22 is the lowest LRR tyre that they make, it also has a 100,000 mile guarantee. They are not available in the UK so I have no idea how they perform. The KH30 is not a particularly LRR tyre.

    John (Britprius)
     
    #4 Britprius, Mar 11, 2014
  5. oldscooterguy

    oldscooterguy Junior Member

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    Why not get road huggers, many people already call us tree huggers!
     
    #5 oldscooterguy, Mar 12, 2014
    Tony D and Gorilla97 like this.
  6. Gorilla97

    Gorilla97 Junior Member

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    Another member has noted good results with the Road Huggers so I'm going to give them a try!
     
    #6 Gorilla97, Mar 12, 2014
  7. Gorilla97

    Gorilla97 Junior Member

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    Just had my new 205/55-16 Road Hugger GT Eco tires installed today at Discount Tire for just under $475 out the door.

    Stopped and filled up with some gas and my last tank was my best MPG yet at 47.6 so I'll be able to see soon how the new tires will affect the MPG's. Loving the warmer weather finally so I can get those MPG's up! This has been a very cold winter and the mileage has suffered.

    The Road Huggers are super quiet so far. Also I checked the play in the front wheel bearing while the tires were being installed and I think I'm OK and the noise I was hearing was coming from the old tires. The old tires had almost 48k miles on them so it was time for a change. I've got a road trip to Dallas planned for this weekend so I'll get to see how well the new tires perform right away.

    Thanks again to the feedback and information on this site!
     
    #7 Gorilla97, Mar 14, 2014
  8. HiccaBurp

    HiccaBurp Junior Member

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    Any updates on the Road Huggers? MPGs? Noise? Handling?

    Thanks!!
     
    #8 HiccaBurp, Apr 3, 2014
  9. Gorilla97

    Gorilla97 Junior Member

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    My mileage has been all over the place. I typically drive 70 mph for my 15 minute commute. Lots of other short trips to the store, kids events, etc. Fuelly shows I'm still averaging around 41 MPH. I'm hoping with the warm weather and new commute (3 miles @ 40 MPH) I'll start seeing much higher numbers.

    Road noise is very low, handling and stability is great. So far I'm really loving the Road Huggers and would buy them again.
     
    #9 Gorilla97, Apr 3, 2014
    HiccaBurp likes this.
  10. enerjazz

    enerjazz Energy+Jazz=EnerJazz

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    My daughter got the Road Hugger GT Eco for her 2004 Prius at discount tire in Dec of 2014. She had a badly worn tire and was about to go on a road trip so she had to get what was in stock, though the Road Hugger would not have been the first choice. Yesterday (just 9 months later) she had a left rear tire blow out on the highway. The sidewall split open. Fortunately she maintained control. We brought it in to Discount Tire and I asked if they had any recalls or issues with the tire - they said they did not. It was properly inflated (she had been to the dealer just 6 days earlier and they checked the tire pressure - we have the checklist confirming that). I'm now concerned about her driving on those tires. I'm going to go higher up at Discount Tire and file a report with safecar.gov.
    * SEE UPDATE TWO THREADS DOWN *
     
    #10 enerjazz, Aug 24, 2015
    Last edited: Aug 25, 2015
  11. CooCooCaChoo

    CooCooCaChoo Senior Member

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    Scary. Did Discount Tires replace the blown out tire on their dime or did you have to buy another one?
     
    #11 CooCooCaChoo, Aug 24, 2015
  12. enerjazz

    enerjazz Energy+Jazz=EnerJazz

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    I've got pretty good news to report. I called the manager at Discount and he investigated. He said there was a hole in the tire tread from a puncture that probably deflated the tire quickly and caused the blowout. Whatever punctured it didn't stay in and led to rapid deflation. I had no reason to doubt his report - he fully understood my concern about a potential defect and assured me the tires were safe. He also said his employee should have credited us for the treadwear - which was minimal. They cancelled the original charge and the total for a new tire installed was less than $40. That seemed fair and their responsive and good follow-up has kept me as a satisfied customer.
     
    #12 enerjazz, Aug 25, 2015
    Bagito likes this.
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