Tire Upgrade

Hi all,

I recently traded in my Prius for a 2009 Touring model. My older Prius had Goodyear Comfort Treads, which I thought was a worthwhile upgrade from the stock tires.

My question is:

Are the tires that come with the Touring OK, or will they give me problems in the winter? The Tire Rack pretty much trashes the OEM tire, BUT, I do not know if that is marketing hype or not.

What's the word?

 

^ What are the tires?

 

Turanza EL400-02





Here is the link to their rating:

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires.jsp?tireMake=Bridgestone&tireModel=Turanza+EL400-02&partnum=955VR6EL40002&vehicleSearch=true&fromCompare1=yes&place=21&speed_rating=S&speed_rating=T&speed_rating=U&speed_rating=H&speed_rating=V&speed_rating=Z&speed_rating=W&speed_rating=Y&speed_rating=(Y)&minSpeedRating=S#Survey

 

Those Tirerack ratings are not done by Tirerack. They are from the users. That 46% rating is from 169 submissions.

I don't know how accurate that is, but I will say my Goodyear Integritys got 51% after 1504 submissions which puts them near the bottom of the pack (for the passenger all season category), and I agree the Integritys are horrid tires.

I updated my Prius with the much better rated Michelin Primacy MXV4 tires (in the Grand Touring category) and so far they are much, much better, although I will reserve final judgement until I do some highway driving in the rain.

 

I have the MXV4's on my lexus and yes, they are quite smooth and the performance less than expected from Michelin in wet and snowy conditions considering the price point...

I installed the Goodyear Assurance 195/60/R15 TT's today ...updates to follow in a couple of months. Thanks for the suggestions.

 

Nobody is really talking about the fuel Max. Is it that new of a tire? I think I may end up getting them unless I see some reasons not to. One post said they are bad in the snow. It snows here a few inches a year and stays for a few days. Ice though is very constant. Black ice even more so. A lot of people run studs from Nov to Mar to fight the ice in the hills. I had studs on my Previa from Dec to Feb, when it snowed it was great, and I never noticed the ice but it was there. Maybe I will go with something cheap, and then also get some studs for those 4 months. I drive 1000 miles a week in town.

 

Fuel Max is new as is Yokohama dB Super E-spec and Bridgestone Ecopia. I've been searching the web for more info on these tires but with little success. One thing I did notice on tirerack is that these newer tires are for the most part, significantly lighter than non LRR tires of similar size. Rotational mass does make a big difference, perhaps more so than rolling resistance?

Here's an interesting article in Road and Track regarding rolling resistance.
RoadandTrack.com -- Feature - Green Tires, Get Your Roll On (5/2009)

 

Bought a used '05 and noted via GPS comparison that the speedo is off 2 mph at 50 and 3 mph over 60. Thanks to these explanations I now know why as it has Goodyear Assurance tires 195/60.

 

FYI,

According to every place I've called, the Goodyear Tripletread is being discontinued in 195/60x15, and I could not find a full set anywhere. I was very happy with those, but mine are just about warn out. So the Michelin MXV4 seems to be one of the most popular tires for the Prius, I decided to check them out. I will let you all know how they compare to the Tripletread.

Through the end of August, NTB (Big O in other parts of the country) is selling Michelin's at $60 off for 4, and $10 per point traded in, so $100 off for the whole package.

With their package that gives lifetime balancing, rotation, roadside hazard, etc etc etc., It comes to about $660 for a full set of the MXV4 (h rated).

 

Consumer Reports Nov. 2009 Tire Tests

Consumer Reports has conducted new tire tests, and the results are published in its November 2009 issue.

The types of tires tested were:

- All-Season (S & T speed ratings)

- Performance All-Season (H speed rating)

- Performance All-Season (V speed rating)

- Winter

Scans of the Ratings charts are attached below in a Word file because my computer skills are too limited to insert the charts directly and more clearly into this post (so, zoom in or blow up the view if and as necessary):

Attached Files: Consumer_Reports_Nov._2009_Tire_Tests-1.doc

 

Re: Consumer Reports Nov. 2009 Tire Tests

Thanks Boo! I just put my 3rd set of TripleTreds on the '08. I have 85,000 miles on it since 2/14/08. While the tires seem to last for only half of the advertised tred life, they are a great tire for wet and snow. Since I travel 1000 miles a week throughout Wisconsin and the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, I need that capability.

So far I have only 1 missed one day due to weather. 12 inches of heavy wet snow put everyone in the garage for the day. I was one of the few cars on the road for a 14 inch snowfall in Green Bay last winter.

The 40k per set is not what I would like, but for me I require the traction for work. I'll take that trade-off any time.

 

I just put 195/60's on my 2007 Prius (Toyo Torevo LS Tourevo LS Premium Touring Radial | Exclusively From Les Schwab Tire Centers). They really do grip the road much better than the oem tires. And these tires are much more quiet than the prior ones too. Great investment in the car!

 

Just installed a set of Cooper CS4 Tourings (T-Rated) in the 185/65-15 size.

No change in fuel economy so far, but if anything, it's a little better. I am running 40/38 inflation pressures. The price was $350 out-the-door after rebate including a complete rebuild of all four TPMS valve sensors.

 

Hi Three60guy. I see you purchased Comfortred's for you 2006 Prius. I am considering getting Comfortreds for my 2007 Prius and was wondering how they worked out for you. What size did you get and would you guy them again.arty:

 

I got Hankook Optimo H727 195/60 R15 installed on my Prius based on CR recent testing(Check the link below with comparisons). This is one best tire covering all categories Including the Goodyear TT, and Michelin HydroEdge. HydroEdge are little better in Tread life but worse in snow and ice braking as well as ride and noise.

These are available at Tire Factory and Sears. So far I really like these, very comfy, and quiet.

Check out this thread about details.
http://priuschat.com/forums/gen-ii-...michalin-primacy-vs-hankook-optimo-tires.html

 

Got the same CS-4 Tourings (and same size) as the local garage was offering a good deal and rebate on them. Sounds like you got the same deal. Plus, I think they're supposed to be good for 80,000 miles. We'll see!

I'm at just over 3,000 miles with them (42/40 psi) and they've been a pleasant surprise. I was reluctant since I hadn't seen much of a review on them here. But they handled some terrible rain over a few hundred miles in PA without any handling issues at all. They routinely travel the awful NYC roadways without issue and the road noise is relatively low. Hard to compare unless you swap out and run over the same stretch of road, but I'm happy with these for now. The mileage right off the bat was good and I'm consistently getting in the high 40's or low 50's.

FWIW...

 

I have a 2006 prius with 82k miles.
I dumped the OEM tires after the first 15k miles because they were reaaly bad on traction.
I got triple tread and they were alot better with traction but pretty exspensive.
I just bought general tire ultimax HP, they cost $72.00 installed.
They are just as good as triple tread.
if you are looking for good traction tires for the prius give these a try.
here is the link to the ratings:
General Altimax HP

 

I put the 195/60 TT’s on a week ago. On dry pavement, the car sticks to the road like glue. The car seemed to be as stable in sharp turns as when going straight.

THANKS for the informative analysis.

I own a 2008 PRIUS w/40,230 miles (Napa, CA). After my 40M checkup I was informed that I needed new tires. I was hoping to stretch out an additional 5M miles, but with winter coming on and rainy season I decided to purchase new ones. The AMERICA Tires Rep confirmed your research indicating that the 195/60R15 tire size was optimum for the PRIUS. He quoted me a price on the Michelin 195/60R15 at $114@ or $627.24 for a set of 4 including the Road Hazard Certificate.

I then went to COSTCO and asked their tire dept. rep for a price comparison. He then informed me that Michelin —within the last three months— has just designed a special tire for the PRIUS. It is a 185/65R15 86T ENERGY SAVER A/S tire at $121.99@. [MODEL No.: 31703] However, until Oct. 25, 2009 COSTCOs on the West Coast are have a special $70 OFF on any set of 4 Michelin & Goodyear tires. So I went ahead and purchased these for a total of $526.00.

According to the Michelin website: The ENERGY SAVER tire is supposed to be:

• Up 8% more fuel-efficient than standard tires to save you money.
• Stops up to 8 feed shorter for added safety.
• Reduces C02 emissions as much as planting 40 trees [I don't know how they figured this fact???:rockon:

~Josh

 

Just to add to the thread, just put on the Falken ZE-912 195/60HR15. Have a 2008 and always wondered why my wet traction was bad until I found this thread. Factory had 32,000 and actually, far from worn out. Can't tell you about mpg yet, but in the short drive home, oh my, quieter, better handling, more comfortable ride. Not sure where they set the air pressure yet, anyone have a recommendation? Won't have to worry about snow here in Tampa, FL.

I'll report back later. Oh, yea, Tires Plus has a special. Buy 3, get 4.