Hi there! I recently got a 2002 Prius, which I love so far. It needs new tires, however, and it sounds like fewer and fewer tires in the right size are being made these days. I can special order the Michelin Defenders, which it seems like a lot of people like from what I've seen on other threads. I can also get the Dunlop SP 10s, which is what the car currently has, but they're even more expensive. I was all ready to get the Defenders, until I realized that they're being discontinued in my car's size (P175/65R 14 84S). So if I got them, it might be hard to replace just one if needed. Other brands being recommended to me by various tire stores are (from cheapest to most expensive), the Falken Pro Touring, the UniRoyal Tiger Paw Touring, the Kumho Solus T11, the Cooper Road Control NW3, the Eclipse Toyo, or the Toyo Ultra Z900. Feeling overwhelmed! Any suggestions? Would you get the Defenders? Or go with something else that will be easier to replace in the future (and if so, what)? Thanks!
I just put Defender XT (Costco's version has the XT suffix, not sure of the significance) on our son's Civic, and put a few kms on them (literally, 15 km at most). They seem smooth, quiet, easy rolling, no complaints. If you can get them in your size I'd give them a try. They're highly rated for treadlife btw.
Thanks, Mendel. Unfortunately I've already tried Costco, and they don't have any tires that are the right size.
I tracked down a friend of mine who has a 2003 Prius, and found out that she has Aspen Touring A/S tires she's been happy with. Ended up getting those (they were in stock and not as expensive)! So we'll see how those work out! Thanks, all!
We have Michelin X Green 176/65 R 14 on our 2003. They have served us well for thousands of miles. Usually only 1 person in the car and we run the tire pressures on the door jamb.
Thanks! I ended up getting Aspen Touring A/S tires, which a friend of mine has on her 2003. Working fine so far!
