I am new to this site and I assume people on this site have researched what tires are best for resistance. I have two Prius taxi's and am interested in maxing out my mpg. Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks
I've read so many threads on tires and I'm still a bit lost. I've decided my next tire will be the Nokian i3 185/65/15. They are rated as LRR, they are .8lbs lighter than the stock tire and have a great reputation as does the company. When I emailed the company this was the tire they recommended for all out mpg requirements.
F8L, Give us a post when you get them. I have been a huge fan of Nokian for years. They can be hard to get sometimes. Icarus
I have I3s and rolling resistence is about the same as OEM Integrity, if not a little better. It could be due to lighter or higher max pressure (47 PSI). I am loving it so far. It grips much better on wet surface than Integrity. I have yet to experience snow this winter. I got them from badboytires for around $56 and they have manufacturer warranty for 80k miles. Can't beat that value.
Thanks for the input. I believe the tires treadwear rating is 620 (depending on size) which is pretty high considering the Integrity is only 440?. They should wear well and have a low rolling resistance.
Oh and there are less traction control light coming when I am braking and hit a bump. Even when it happens, the recovery seems faster too.
So how are the I3's in the rain? I've already worn the TripleTreds down to the point where I have to be light on the pedal starting out at stop lights or the tires spin, and eventually they'll be sliding in the rain like the OEMs did. The local tire discounter talked smack about the Michelin HydroEdge tires so I'm not quite sure they are the way to go next anymore...
I was testing I3 ability to channel water the first chance I got. When there was a heavy rain around mid June, I drove on the left lane and faster than others. I was going about 50 mph and running over pockets of water along the rail. No hydroplaining as the steering wheel did not pull. My prius just roll over it and I hear water hitting the fender (channeling sound). With that experience, 2 days ago I tied to run over a big puddle at 50mph. This one was huge (the kind that throws water higher than SUV height) maybe 2 inches deep. My steering pulled to one side and I had to correct it. I have not experience front wheel slipping taking off from rest in the rain yet. They perform very well in rain under reasonable (not extreme) condition. I did not get HydroEdge because it was double the price of I3 and 3 lbs heavier per tire. However, it has 90k miles warranty.10k miles is not enough since I could get a new set of I3 with the same amount plus installation and balancing fee.