General Altimax RT43 -- review

So where did everyone purchase these from? Potentially interested in these for my v (wagon).

 

Weird...discount tire lists two different versions. However, they have them 'on sale' right now ( set of 4 for $330-340...tires only ).

I wonder why there are two versions? Maybe 'old' and 'new'?

 

Ok guess I missed that.

I chatted with a TireRack rep and they really discouraged ordering the "T-rated" version ( which has better treadwear..75K vs 65K ). Apparently Toyota doesn't advocate for "T-rated" tires and he said that I might have a problem finding a shop that would install them. interesting!

BTW - Thx for your help.

 

Yes, one is the H and one is the T. One is $78 per tire, the other $79. Biggest difference is T has 75,000 mile tread life, H has 65,000.

 

BTW - ended up ordering a set of Michelin Defenders from discounttiredirect

I need new tires again, whats the "best out there?" | Page 2 | PriusChat

 

What speed rating do you have? The T or H?

I need to order a pair of tires in the next couple of days and I’m leaning towards the AltiMAX but having a hard time deciding between the T and H. I believe consumer reports and Tire Rack both rate the T a little better than the H in some categories. It seems like the T did much better than the H in wet braking so there has to be something substantial between them. But noise is a pretty big concern for us and I think the H does better in that regard.

Anyway, it’s too bad no one has tested the two back to back to see the differences

 

I know you posted this about 100 years ago but was your experience with the T or H rating? Also, now that it’s been a couple years, how is the wear holding up?

 

I personally think that for Prius drivers who need an all-season tire with good performance in the snow, I'd go with with Continental True Contacts. Performance all around that matches the defenders, but ~4.4% better fuel economy per Tire Rack:

https://www.tirerack.com/tires/tests/testDisplay.jsp?ttid=228

If you need even more winter performance, consider Michelin Crossclimate+.

Or for better fuel economy at the expense of dry, snow and rain performance: Michelin Energy Saver A/S or Bridgestone Ecopia EP422.

 

I know everyone seems to have different experiences but the main reason I passed up the True Contacts is because even though the TR review shows the True Contacts getting better mpg over Defenders, many of the Prius owners reviews on TR said they moved from Defenders to True Contacts and got several mpg worse than they had with Defenders. Some saying that they were now nearly 10mpg down as compared to stock. One even pulled them off the car and sold them on Craigslist! I basically passed them up due to customer reviews....the AltiMAX on the other had had all great Prius reviews saying they were at stock mpg or better, none complained of dropping....all said performance and noise was a huge improvement over stock, especially for wet.

We shall see....I’ve spent some real hours on this and think the AltiMAX will strike a great balance of mpg, quiet, great wet handling and cost ($300 for a set, shipped, after a $50 mail in rebate). It gets nearly the highest marks in all of those categories. The Defender H+T beats it in some categories but they are very close, the AltiMAX gets better mpg and is about $175 cheaper. I also think the Pirelli P7 would be a great tire.

 

It doubled my last post

 

Stevewoods...I’m thankful you took the time to inform everyone about these tires. I was looking at them on TR and leaning towards them and was glad to find your review here to help confirm what I was thinking.

Some websites have a $50 rebate on them right now....I’m fixing to grab up a set of 205/55/16 for $300 shipped. Just trying to decide between T and H.

You don’t think there is any noise difference between the T and H? It seems like with the TR reviews they were a little more critical of noise with one than the other.

 

Me RT43s are also fantastic tires in the Oregon wet (and dry) and they do pretty well in the little amount of snow we get. I am a fan.
kris

 

Just wanted to ad to this:
So far I can tell you that these tires make the ride a lot softer. They are also much quieter than the last set of tires. MUCH quieter. However, It is harder to feel the road and is a little like driving on a bouncy ride. this is not necessarily a bad thing as it is more comfortable and softer for passengers. On pulling out, it seems like I can almost feel the tires distorting a little due to soft sidewalls. A quick side to side motion with the steering wheel will show you that the tires flex quite a bit. They are definitely bouncy... but so far they seem to hold the road very well. Cannot tell you about the gas mileage. I was going to try and return them for a better rated tire, but really these are rated better than most on Tire Rack... and I have my passengers to think about.... so This is not a camaro… I will give them a fair shake.