Low Rolling Resistance replacement tires: Current List

My 2014 came with ep 20 and my next tires will be ep 20. They are a great tire. Smooth,quiet and handle beautifully. I like them. I have had four sets of LRR tires in the past and so far the ep 20's are up there at the top . H

 

Michelin dealers have been saying Michelin is trying to discontinue that tire for something like 4 years now, every year I hear its out of stock, will be discontinued, then I hear you can get it again, maybe they'll discontinued it next year, then someone buys a set again.

I'll believe it when 3 years go by with no one buying a set.

btw did you know the 2015 Nissan Leaf is being sold with Michelin Energy Saver A/S as the stock tire on the 17" rim? That's new for this year.

 

Specifically the 195/65/15 are the ones on back order without a production run estimate. I've seen other sizes out in the wild.

 

I was definitely not aware of this. It seems a bit odd... In many circles, the Michelin A/S is considered the premiere LRR tire, and I would assume that it sells well (and as you indicated, they are stock tires on the 2015 Leaf). Thus, why would they want to discontinue it? If it were to be discontinued, would they just replace it with an updated version of the same tire? Very perplexing indeed.

Perhaps it is just a keen marketing strategy (i.e., "buy your set now, while you still can")?

 

well Energy Saver A/S exists in many sizes but only a few are good for Prius use

185/65R15 is ok for Gen II, less desirable for Gen III but usable

195/65/15 is the Gen II/III sweetspot thus why they sell out quicker

P205/60R16 are slightly bigger than desired but usable for Gen III, less desirable for Gen II but again usable, and these are perfect for the V (wagon)

215/50R17 another OK match for Gen III, less desirable for Gen II but also usable.

P225/50R17 is good for the Prius V (wagon)

Of course if you want optimal RPMs on a 16" or 17" rim for the older cars you can go for the Primacy MXM4 instead of the energy saver A/S at which point you can do

205/55R16 for Gen II/III
P215/45R17 for Gen II or trying to save MPG on Gen III
225/45R17 for Gen III

worth noting the primacy MXM4 is the upgraded tire on the Tesla Model S (not as many efficient tires at really big rim sizes and Tesla does 19" and 21" on it)

 

I just replaced tires from Yokohama AVID Touring-S to Michelin - Defender XT at Costco.
The sales guy did warn me mpg drop, as Defender has more traction.
MPG dropped from 58 to 53. I opted for higher traction because of safety. Past winter was harsh, and many times ABS kicked in for me.

 

I make many trips to a home on the shoreline. My 2012 averaged 55 mpg on the way to the beach and 53.? on the way back. This was consistant since I purchased the car new in Sept. 2011. Can't remember the OEM tire (wish I could). At some point in the high 40K range, I changed the air filter and installed a new set of tires (November 2013). Continental ProContact in oe size. I was interested in the wet weather traction and did not read anything about severe mpg drops. Mileage dropped instantly and never recovered. 48 mpg was about tops even into the summer months. Had the oe's and the Conti's at 44 psi. I'm all about mileage with the car but I just get in and drive. Set the cruise at 66 on the highway. Was quite disappointed in the mpg drop but knew the cost of a new set of a different brand would negate the cost savings in additional mpg. One tire suffered sidewall damage and that was my excuse to purchase 4 new (even though 1 new conti was the most $$ wise). Went for the claimed mpg king in the Michelin Energy Saver A/S. Installed Saturday and went to the beach on Sunday. Instantly noted a quieter ride and the coasting was also noticibly improved. 53.2 mpg down to the beach. Figured the break in period was going to be more than 1 trip to the beach (85 miles each way) so I did not fret too much. Was looking for better mileage than the OE tire. Today I went on a 247 mile trip with some highway and some back country roads without alot of stop and go. 58.2 mpg when I pulled back into my driveway. A/C was on and off depending on my comfort level. I am pleased with today's mpg and hope that the good numbers continue to at least match the oe's even though I would expect better mpg based on how everyone raves that the Michelin's are the best mpg tire. The big test will be this weekend with another trip to the beach. It is a consistant trip to be able to compare apples to apples.

Although I did not read all 52 pages of this tread, I read quite a few. Has anyone documented their before and after mpg (specifics) after a tire change? It would be interesting to read the specifics on changes between brands.

 

I purchased a set of Michelin Energy XM2 tyres 3 months ago and i have to say they are brilliant. 5000 km later and still no complaints. I just hope they last like the OEM tyres Bridgestone Ecopia 95000 km

 

You might be interested in some of the articles at TireRack.com.
Even replacing equivalent tires can result in "apparent" MPG drop due to tread thickness impact on revolution per mile, etc.
Were the ProContact "Eco-plus" ? I have that on front right now,
I have not seen too much MPG difference (47 avg), but I have not tried anything like the A/S as a comparison.
As far as Conti's the new version is TrueContact and I am waiting but may try those soon.

 

A casual user can't scientifically do that.

If you test tire A at end of life and tire B at brand new it skews the data
If you test tire A at brand new and wait 40,000 to 90,000 miles until you change tires to test tire B at brand new the car has aged noticeably and you maybe testing at a different time of year (temperature/traffic changes on your test track) and all that skews the data.

You have to have enough cars, tires, people, testing equipment to do back to back tests of OEM tires to make sure car 1 and car 2 don't have significant differences and then you can do back to back tire A on car 1, tire B on car 2 / tire B on car 1, tire A on car 2.

And if you want to get data really useful you'd repeat that test after scrubbing the tires to 3/4 tread, 1/2 tread, 1/4 tread to see how MPG changes as the tread wears down (most tires don't have the same tread pattern all the way through).

I've seen tons of posts from people that have measured carefully tire A vs tire B but every post like that gets into some factor they didn't account for / didn't measure / can't possibly tell you how much it affected MPG.

The closest I've seen to ideal is the tirerack test data thread. New Tire Tests from Tirerack.com | PriusChat and unfortunately they test different tire sizes and a very limited sample of tires we would be interested in.

 

Ozprius that is excellent mileage out of your ecopia ep 20,s. I hope I can get those kind of #'s from my ecopia tires. I like these tires in all conditions. Just wondering why you did not purchase Ecopia for the second set? H

 

They were Bridgestone Ecopia B250. I didn't like the wet weather grip or the dry weather grip. Also the Michelin Energy XM2 tyres were $60 a corner less. In tyre tests here in Australia and New Zealand these Michelins outperformed all other LRR tyres. Sorry I don't have a link to any of the tests I did a phone reset last weekend. Will look for them again.

 

I read the other day that Conti has an LRR tyre available in Europe that decreases resistance 20% (over best available ? -- not sure)
I'll try to find the link

 

Comparison of low rolling resistance tyres with standard tyres on New Zealand roads | EECA: Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority

 

Only 2 standard and 2 LRR tyres tested. Info is good but no manufacturers mentioned. But in 2012 I think NZ would have had limited LRR tyres on the market. In Australia in 2012 Michelin, Bridgestone and Goodyear were the only LRR available brands.

 

Been getting averaging about 51 - 52 mpg on these. Had them for about 10,000 miles now. Size is 205/60R15.



Nexus 5 ?

 

YK580's....I have had mine for 18,000+ miles, in 195/65 x 15. Great tires!

 

I went to costco in Canada. The guy suggested Pirelli P4 or Michelin Defender. 15 inches. Any one has experience with the P4? Please share.

Thank you.

 

At Costco I'd go for Bridgestone ecopia ep20. I've just done that (for another vehicle) and somewhat strangely, even tho ep20 is front and center on their website, they have none on hand, tried to push me to ep422. They will get them tho, they're good for rolling resistance, decent wearing.