New tyre time

Chippy01

My GenIII Prius is heading towards the need of some new rubber.
The ones that are on her now are Kuhmos, and according to what I've read online, they rate C for economy and A for wet grip.
Is there any other decent tyre out there that comes close or even beating these ratings? Would an A/A be possible for example?
I'm not gonna scrimp on rubber, but I don't want to pay through the nose either, but I am guessing that the 215/45 R17 size could also be a bit restrictive on choice.
Oh, and all 4 corners need doing.
Any pointers, advice, etc, anyone can offer?
Thanks.

I had these on the MK II Prius, Dunlop Sport BluResponse, found them very good and helped me achieve the 4.6-4.8 L/100 kms.

I plan to put them on the Leaf which I need to do soon after 40,300 kms. I need to get the alignment done too.

They cost 112 Euro's from eirtyres for my 17" profile which I find acceptable, I also refuse to skimp on tyres.

I found the Dunlop Sport BluResponse to have very good wet grip because the Prius had a good bit of torque on take off.

The Sport BluResponse are also one of the quietest tyres I ever drove on and can't wait to have them on the Leaf.

September1

Chippy01 wrote: »

My GenIII Prius is heading towards the need of some new rubber.
The ones that are on her now are Kuhmos, and according to what I've read online, they rate C for economy and A for wet grip.
Is there any other decent tyre out there that comes close or even beating these ratings? Would an A/A be possible for example?
I'm not gonna scrimp on rubber, but I don't want to pay through the nose either, but I am guessing that the 215/45 R17 size could also be a bit restrictive on choice.
Oh, and all 4 corners need doing.
Any pointers, advice, etc, anyone can offer?
Thanks.

Check those ones http://www.ecopia.eu/en/ep001s I found that they improve economy well and they are AA.

I see Ecopia EP150's on Eiretyres for 140-180 Euro's lol and they get c + c and C + B rating ?

I don't see EP001s ? if they're as expensive I'd go for the Dunlops.

zilog_jones

There's a thread here with many comparisons of what tyres are available in Europe: priuschat.com/threads/low-rolling-resistance-replacement-tires-europe.121295

I'm not sure how accurate those EU tyre ratings really are in real world conditions, and low rolling resistance doesn't necessarily mean good grip or durability. The ADAC reviews can be pretty useful if you can find them (Google Translate is your friend if your German isn't good). I'd watch out for anything that's bad in the wet for use in this country - Michelin seem to perform poorly in this respect.

I just bought a set of Goodyear EfficientGrip Performance for my Prius PHV a few months ago, were €85 for 195/65 R15 (PHV version has 15" wheels) - pretty much the upper limit for what I'd pay but not sure if they'll be worth it in the long run.

Bridgestone Ecopia EP001 is their top of the range LRR tyre AFAIK, but seems to be hard to find in general.

Scottie99

On my 2016 Leaf I've http://www.eiretyres.com/product/D-110566

Chippy01

I'm finding good results with the wrong size tyres .... lol
As I thought, 215/45 R17's are limiting my results somewhat.

The only two that would probably suffice are :-
http://www.eiretyres.com/product/Goodyear/45/17/R-234564
or
http://www.eiretyres.com/product/Hankook/45/17/R-193822

Very little in the price difference as well.

September1

I have this Hankook tyres (same size even) on my Prius and I have no complains. Note that those are XL tyres http://www.oponeo.co.uk/tyre-article/reinforced-tyres-advantages-and-disadvantages so they are less comfy and need to be a bit more inflated, which improves economy.

bp_me

Why not use the standard fit michelins? They will cost about the same as the two Chippy01 linked and are they tyre the car expects to have.

They are also very durable... I will be changing mine before the car's next NCT due to their age rather than mileage!

With the Leaf you need the best wet grip you can get, EC300 tyres on mine are Crap in the wet.

Even though the Leaf is seriously retarded from 0kph the wheels can spin a lot at 20-50 kph and sometimes 60 kph depending on the conditions, road surface etc with theh EC 300's. There is a lot of torque there instantly and it makes a big difference.

Metalrobe

This thread is actually depressing. Put normal tyres on your car for gods sake. Any stats on the mpg difference between low rolling resistance tyres and normal ones??? Cant be much in it.

Metalrobe

Metalrobe wrote: »

This thread is actually depressing. Put normal tyres on your car for gods sake. Any stats on the mpg difference between low rolling resistance tyres and normal ones??? Cant be much in it.

Makes a difference in an EV and yes tyres do make a notable difference if of course you're going from a higher rolling resistance lower wet grip etc.

It's not all about rolling resistance.

Some Low rolling resistance tyres are actually superior today over "normal ones"

September1

Metalrobe wrote: »

This thread is actually depressing. Put normal tyres on your car for gods sake. Any stats on the mpg difference between low rolling resistance tyres and normal ones??? Cant be much in it.

It is about 5% in regular cars, but in case of hybrids it is bigger factor as you also take advantage of it when you slow down and more energy goes into battery.

Chippy01

Thanks for all the replies.
Bit the bullet and got the Hankooks today.

Metalrobe

I'm sorry guys i've looked into this and noticed some seriously troubling issues.
1. Wet performance grip is adversely affected by the reduction in thread depth of the tyre.
2. On average a 1-2 percent increase in mpg performance is all i can see from research.
3. Higher initial purchase cost.
4. Shorter lifespan due to thread depth.

So really and truly using your bicycle a few times a year and keeping conventional tyres that can stop and turn your car more effectively would be a better choice.
Can anyone tell me what im missing here? Is it just a environmental thing??

Don't get me wrong i think small engined petrol hybrids are the future but where do we draw the line? I think safety outshines a few measly mpg anyday.

No, good modern low rolling resistance tyres have good thread life and good grip, depending on the ones you get.

Metalrobe

[Deleted User] wrote: »

No, good modern low rolling resistance tyres have good thread life and good grip, depending on the ones you get.

But more thread depth reduces its effectiveness as a eco tyre. For the prices some people are paying for these tyres you could buy goodyear eagle f1's and get great grip and great thread depth with very little trade off.

Personally dont think they are worth it

Don't see them as Eco tyres, see them as normal tyres which are , with the newest generation of what you call "Eco" Tyres, better performing tyres.

A lot of these tyres have better wet/dry/rolling resistance and dry grip performance. The early tyres were not so good but they are vastly superior now depending on the one you get, the same can be said for so called normal tyres.

DrPhilG

I'm a bit of a tit I'm afraid...

Needed to change 2 tyres on the Leaf last month, (in a bit of a hurry as my wife drove on a half flat and slaughtered one of them) so I didn't do any research, just asked the tyre place for a branded tyre (I've been stung by cheap crap before).

I paid £125 each for 2 Bridgestones. I need to change the other 2 shortly so I've taken the time to research them properly and have found that my Bridgestones were a bad choice. E rated for fuel economy.

I'm going to go with the Dunlop Bluresponse for the other 2 tyres. I'm just wondering if it's worth my while flogging the Bridgestones on donedeal (only a few hundred miles on them) and getting all 4 of them Dunlops.

Does anyone have any actual experience of the range impact on a Leaf of poor tyres?

DrPhilG

I'm a bit of a tit I'm afraid...

Needed to change 2 tyres on the Leaf last month, (in a bit of a hurry as my wife drove on a half flat and slaughtered one of them) so I didn't do any research, just asked the tyre place for a branded tyre (I've been stung by cheap crap before).

I paid £125 each for 2 Bridgestones. I need to change the other 2 shortly so I've taken the time to research them properly and have found that my Bridgestones were a bad choice. E rated for fuel economy.

I'm going to go with the Dunlop Bluresponse for the other 2 tyres. I'm just wondering if it's worth my while flogging the Bridgestones on donedeal (only a few hundred miles on them) and getting all 4 of them Dunlops.

Does anyone have any actual experience of the range impact on a Leaf of poor tyres?

DrPhilG

DrPhilG wrote: »

I'm a bit of a tit I'm afraid...

Needed to change 2 tyres on the Leaf last month, (in a bit of a hurry as my wife drove on a half flat and slaughtered one of them) so I didn't do any research, just asked the tyre place for a branded tyre (I've been stung by cheap crap before).

I paid £125 each for 2 Bridgestones. I need to change the other 2 shortly so I've taken the time to research them properly and have found that my Bridgestones were a bad choice. E rated for fuel economy.

I'm going to go with the Dunlop Bluresponse for the other 2 tyres. I'm just wondering if it's worth my while flogging the Bridgestones on donedeal (only a few hundred miles on them) and getting all 4 of them Dunlops.

Does anyone have any actual experience of the range impact on a Leaf of poor tyres?

I can't comment on the impact of Poor rated for economy tyres but the bridgestones do not get good reviews for economy apart from the EP001S which are the first and as far as I'm aware only tyre to get A A rating. I can't get them in my profile but see if you can get them for yours, they got good reviews.

I do know lower air pressure can make a difference, even 5 PSI higher makes a difference.

I'm due to change soon and I'm also going with the Sport BluResponse because they're the best tyres for my 215/50/17 profile and get B economy and A wet because the ES300 that are on the Leaf now are B fuel and C wet, they're crap.

The Sport BluResponse did make a notable difference on the prius and were a quiet tyre too but did get noisier as they wore.

If you go to a tyre centre you need to ask them for minimum of B for furel and A for wet , the Leaf is tough on tyres the way I drive it anyway and I want a good wet grip and best fuel rating I can get.

Don't forget your wheel alignment and balance.

DrPhilG

Dunlop or Goodyear is the question...

Similar ratings.

I'm going with the Dunlops because I had them on the Prius, the difference this time is the Leaf is a torque monster, from about 8-12 Kph you get maximum torque and it is hard on tyres, the Prius MK II didn't have so much power off the line so it will be interesting to compare them on the two cars.

I believe without a doubt our tar and chipping road surfaces are brutal hard on tyres, even our motorways have a pretty rough surface, but tar and chipping is just disgraceful and a lot more common now on our roads, really backward.

grogi

Deleted User wrote: »

I can't comment on the impact of Poor rated for economy tyres but the bridgestones do not get good reviews for economy apart from the EP001S which are the first and as far as I'm aware only tyre to get A A rating. I can't get them in my profile but see if you can get them for yours, they got good reviews.

I do know lower air pressure can make a difference, even 5 PSI higher makes a difference.

I'm due to change soon and I'm also going with the Sport BluResponse because they're the best tyres for my 215/50/17 profile and get B economy and A wet because the ES300 that are on the Leaf now are B fuel and C wet, they're crap.

Can you get 225/45/17 or 205/55/17?

The diameter is virtually the same, just the contact surface will be slightly different. Popular sizes are usually cheaper to buy as well.

Wider tyre might be slightly less economical though - which on a Leaf might be an issue.

That's quiet interesting indeed !

The Dunlop Sport BluResponse in the profile 205/55 R17 95V XL get an AA rating.

The Goodyear EfficientGrip Performance also get a A A in that profile,

So for my 215/50/17 the 205/55/17 will fit yeah ?

grogi

Deleted User wrote: »

That's quiet interesting indeed !

The Dunlop Sport BluResponse in the profile 205/55 R17 95V XL get an AA rating.

The Goodyear EfficientGrip Performance also get a A A in that profile,

So for my 215/50/17 the 205/55/17 will fit yeah ?

Leaf comes with 6.5Jx17 ET46 rims. Those rims are 165mm wide, so both - 215 and 205 will fit with a reasonable margin.

The diameter difference between 215/50/17 and 205/55/17 is 1.6%. That's within the tolerances as well, but what speedometer is showing, as well as your INDICATED efficiency, will be lower for exactly same scenario. That's because one revolution of the wheel will cover 1.6% more distance - car will think it covered less than it actually had...

Before committing to buying call your insurance to check if they approve. That's an obvious "mod" so you want not to shot your foot... It should be ok anyway, I've changed Prius tyres to 205/55/16 from 195/55/16 - were much easier to obtain locally.

zilog_jones

For those who've used Dunlop Sport BluResponse - how long did you get out of them? I've heard they have very good grip but are not very durable.

Regarding changing tyre sizes - I'm not sure about the Leaf, but I know with the Prius (maybe 3rd gen onwards) you need to change all four to the same size otherwise the traction control goes a bit mad.

Durability depends greatly how you drive, so many tyre reviews with mixed opinions.

The same tyre would be excellent, poor, good, ok, I'll never buy again and definitely will buy again. Highly recommended, avoid and so on.

I honestly can't remember how long they lasted.