New tires for a hybrid.

[Smokey]

2009 Honda Civic Hybrid, 55,000 miles, need to get new tires on it before winter, still has the OEM Dunlop SP37 A/S tires on it, which I will NOT be buying. Those are noisy and getting noisier as they wear out, and are pretty poor in the snow.

I realize that to get the best fuel economy, I should replace these with tires that are LRR - low rolling resistance - but it seems from poking around on the web is most of these types of tires are hard, noisy, and poor in the snow. I'm willing to give up an MPG or 2 to get better performance, especially in the winter, but I don't want to drop 5 MPGs to do it.

The Pirelli P6 Four Seasons Plus looked like a promising compromise, they are an LRR tire. When I called a local tire dealer who carried them to ask his opinion, he strongly recommended the Michelin Primacy MXV4 instead. The reasons he gave where strictly in regards to traction, quietness, and smooth ride. When I asked about fuel economy he said that it shouldn't take too much of a hit since each tire only weighs about 3 pounds more than my Dunlops.

I know that there is more to making a low rolling resistance tire than just making it light. I also realize that optimizing a tire for traction is probably the opposite of optimizing it for fuel efficiency. I'm wondering if there are any other FM'ers (Fishing Minnesota, not Fargo-Moorhead, although their opinions are welcome too) who have replaced tires on a hybrid vehicle. What did you put on? Are you happy with them?

[Jeremy airjer W]

have you looked at the Goodyear Fuel Max?

[Smokey]

I purchased a brand new 1998 GMC Suburban that came with Goodyear Wrangler RT/S tires on it. I still have the Suburban with 210K miles, but I had a very poor opinion of those tires. Because of that, 13 years later I'm still not thrilled about the thought of buying Goodyears. However, if you or someone you know have first or second hand knowledge that they are a good match for what I'm looking for, I guess I could bury the hatchet.

[Jeremy airjer W]

Wranglers and chevys didn't play well together. It didn't matter if it was the truck or the blazer. It would chew them up and spit them out. Put them on something else and there was never an issue.

I had a set of comforttreds on the wife's van. I have seen and had two replaced due to separation so I would definitely stay away from those. I have 2 triple treads on the fronts know and they are a really nice riding tire.

We/I have mounted up many of the fuel max tires and have not run across a complaint yet.

[Jeremy airjer W]

I'll also mention tiger paw touring tires. I have mounted up a bunch of those recently. A guy I work with has them on his wife's car and they are really nice. I had a set of tiger paws on one of my older cars and never had a complaint. The Saturn is getting a couple or four before winter.

[Jeremy airjer W]

One more thing. I'm not a huge fan of Firestone but we had a set on our other Saturn. They where fr80's or something like that. Those things where glued to the ice and snow. One time we where up by cotton in a rain/ice storm storm. We came around the big corner and it felt like I had a flat tire. Upon finally rounding the corner all the cars in front of us where in the ditch. Then it dawned on me, it was slippery. We watched the festivities from the ICO for about a half hour until they sanded the road.

[Smokey]

Thanks for the info. I'll check into the fuel max tires, when you say tiger paw are you talking about Uniroyals?

At $500 (Pirelli) to $600 (Michelin)I don't want to buy something that is not going to be an improvement over what I have.

[Jeremy airjer W]

yup, uniroyal tiger paws. There the higher end touring tires. By the way they may be ten percent off at the right place.

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[RangerJack]

We used to sell Uniroyal tiger paws (still have some on the shelf). They were a decent tire, but we never sold crazy amounts. For the last few years we've been selling Hankook tires. Currently there is a $50-80 dollar rebate on all Hankook H727, H724, and Ventus V12 Evo models. I've mounted thousands of these tires, and have yet to hear a complaint. We have never really been concerned with fuel economy when it comes to tires. I've put on quite a few sets of Hankook, Dean, Goodyear, and Michelin tires on Hybrid cars for people. People just seem to buy what they can afford when it comes to tires. Read up on consumer reports, and try what you think will work best! When it comes to fuel economy, watching air pressure might make the biggest difference.

Good luck finding tires! They ain't cheap! I just spent $520 dollars on a set of four at COST!