Tire Upgrade

My first post here and I would like to relate my tire decision. After much reading on this forum, I decided to replace the stock Goodyear tires on my 06 #5 white Prius with Michelin Pilot Exalto A/S 205/60/15. The oem tires came off with only 205 miles and it has been 750 miles since adding the Michelins. I think the Pilots still have some breaking in to do but they have already smoothed out since brand new and have started to roll much better. I am running them at 40/38 and my last tank of gas, only the third in the car, measured (calculated) 44 mpg. But that was carrying a bike or two on the rear hitch mount for much of that tank. I also live in the mountains.

The Pilots are so much better than the stock tires in every way. Of course I haven't tried them in the snow yet but they corner very well on our curvy roads. Revs per mile are 850 compared to the stock 855 and I have had no issues with the larger sized tire on the car. I hope they get decent treadwear, but time will tell on that.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(nyprius @ Aug 31 2006, 01:06 PM) [snapback]312233[/snapback]</div>

They do look good especially with the mudflaps installed. There is no question that the car handles much better with the Michelins. I think the wider tire helps for sure, but the higher load rating of the 205/60/15 gives it a stiffer sidwall which may be even more important. They are very comfortable and quiet at 40/38 psi. I may have taken a 1-2 mpg loss over the Integritys, but I'm not too sure cause I changed them out at 205 miles. I'm currently showing about 46 of the mdf for lots of short trips on this tank. If there is a small loss of fuel economy it is certainly worth the trade for the handling and safety.

 

Well just a quick note:

I've installed the whole tire/rim package as stated in my sig. I DO notice 2 things.
1. Handling is MUCH more responsive. I can change lanes more accurately, less side to side 'leaning', better cornerning
2. Getting into 'Glide' (no arrows mode) is noticeably more difficult. I do know that the tire/rim combo that i have is heavier than my stock tire/rim combo (I carried them to my garage and back) so i'm assuming that this is the reason behind this.

So far, i've taken a .5 hit on mileage. I expect that to increase. But i wasn't averaging very good mileage anyways.

Cheers all! Oh, and my RIMs look AWESOME. Once the gallery is fixed i'll upload them. Or goto markwei.blogspot.com

 

Do any of you have the Michelin MXV4's or the HydroEdges on your Prii? The stock GY's are worn out and need replacing ASAP. Thanks

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(00Silverado @ Sep 1 2006, 12:15 AM) [snapback]312602[/snapback]</div>

I posted my review of the MXV4+'s a few pages back (either page 3 or 4, I believe).

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Hybrid_Mutant @ Aug 29 2006, 05:11 PM) [snapback]311289[/snapback]</div>

I went to the Michelin site and cannot find reference to the Pilot Exalto in that size - closest I see is a 205/55/15. I'm confused.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(00Silverado @ Sep 1 2006, 01:15 AM) [snapback]312602[/snapback]</div>

I have hydroedge that I put on two weeks ago. 900 miles on them so far and about a 2mpg hit. 40/38 psi front /rear and I love them. The handle is MUCH better and wet roads are no longer unstable. The tires realy grip the road. Not as much noise as the stock tires and I wish I had done this when I bought the car. The hidden + is the 90,000 mile tire life. Hope this helps

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(ralph b @ Sep 9 2006, 08:34 AM) [snapback]316905[/snapback]</div>

I'm down to trying to decide between the Hydroedge and the Pilot Exalto.
I don't have a clue as to how to figure out which one would best suit my needs. Time to throw a dart, I guess.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Claudia @ Sep 7 2006, 09:00 PM) [snapback]316073[/snapback]</div>

Perhaps you looked at the Pilot Exalto PE2 (a summer tire) rather than the Pilot Exalto A/S (all season tire) that he referred to, http://www.michelinman.com/specs/pilot_exalto_a_s/3332.html ?

I seriously considered the Pilot Exalto A/S in a size 195/65-15, especially during Costco's additional $60 off offers. I'm glad that they've worked well for you, Hybrid_Mutant.

As for Claudia's choice between the tires, if you wan't tires that may last nearly twice as long (for much less than double the price), the Hydroedge has the edge. For tires that give an edge in both dry and wet traction (despite the Hydroedge name) go with the Pilot Exalto A/S. If you want uncompromised fuel efficiency and low noise, may I suggest the Continental ContiProContact. All three are outstanding tires without any serious defficiencies. But whatever you do, drop the Goodyear Integrities .

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(theorist @ Sep 10 2006, 07:58 AM) [snapback]317283[/snapback]</div>

No problem there - the death certificate for those puppies has already been written. Going to try to get an alignment done this week, and new tires on it right after that.

What I want isn't necessarily longevity in a tire - I want that edge in dry and wet traction, and I want a slightly more comfortable ride and lowered noise level. We only put about 12K miles on a car in a year, so tires that last for 80,000 miles do not go to the head of the list. I don't even mind losing a bit in the milage department, to get the safety and comfort that I'm after.

 

Time will tell how the Exalto A/S wears on the Prius. No doubt the Hydroedge will outlast the Exalto, but I went for the more quiet better performing tire over service life. I don't think you will be dissapointed in any of the 3 tires mentioned compared to the oems.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Hybrid_Mutant @ Sep 11 2006, 02:50 PM) [snapback]317860[/snapback]</div>

The decision has narrowed to between the Pilot Exalto A/S and the MXV4s. Anybody know anything about comparison between these two tires? Toyota dealer where I bought the Prius is going to do an alignment tomorrow. They wanted to know which way it was pulling, not being happy with the "it wanders all over the road" as a reason for doing an alignment. Oh well. . . as long as they do what I want, I don't really care if they're happy. Now for the argument about the toe-in.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Claudia @ Sep 11 2006, 02:59 PM) [snapback]317865[/snapback]</div>

A head to head comparison between the high performance Pilot Exalto A/S and the grand touring MXV$ plus may be hard to find. Here are two similar comparison tests that you may be able to use to compare these two with each other and others.

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tests/co_nex...grandtour_c.jsp
http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tests/mi_pilot_exalto_as_c.jsp

On the upside the two tests are using similar procedures, test protocols, measurements, and vehicles. On the downside the tested tire sizes differ.

 

Do I understand correctly that 195/60R15 tires will fit on the OEM rims that came with the
OEM 185/65R15 tires?

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(nyprius @ Oct 19 2006, 02:06 PM) [snapback]334929[/snapback]</div>

Please note that these 195 tires are 16 inch, 195/55R16.

The 2007 Turing model is already in the market in the US.

Please be aware that the 195/60R15 is 1% smaller than 185/65R15 OEM size.
you'll see 1% better mileage if other conditions are the same.

Ken@Japan

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(ken1784 @ Oct 19 2006, 03:16 AM) [snapback]334949[/snapback]</div>

If I replace my OEM tires with Exalto A/S 195/65HR15, will this keep my speedometer reading the same?

I don’t want to loose MPG or increase the road noise when I change tires. Maybe I should just offer to buy everybody’s unused OEM tires and save myself some money? :mellow:

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(grasshopper @ Oct 19 2006, 09:44 AM) [snapback]334998[/snapback]</div>

I found that going to a larger 195/65-15 tire has improved my speedometer accuracy. It used to read too fast; now it reads a little too slow. As the tread wears that will correct itself with the larger tires; the inaccuracy with OEM tires increases as the tires wear.

The Pilot Exalto AS offers excellent grip and handling without large penalties in other areas. If you're most concerned about fuel efficiency and noise, consider the ContiProContact, the MXV4 plus, (or the OEM tires if you aren't concerned about grip).

Consumer Reports recently released a new (November 2006) tire test of all-season performance tires. The TripleTred which excelled compared to all-season passenger tires (last year), only came mid-pack compared to all-season performance tires. They also tested performance winter tires.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Hybrid_Mutant @ Aug 29 2006, 05:11 PM) [snapback]311289[/snapback]</div>

To Hybrid Mutant -

Well, it's been about two months since your post about your MPG dropoff after purchasing the Pilot Exalto A/S's. Curious as to whether your fuel efficiency has improved at all since then. As others have pointed out, the 205/60's will reduce your MPG by over 2% simply due to higher diameter, so that accounts for 1MPG dropoff by itself.

- Stevejm