whats the real gains of newer tires.

[kit352]

say going from the most aggresive mud and snow tires to the best lrr tires how much mpg improvement would one expect to see? im just curious to all these claims.

[bowtieguy]

Originally Posted by kit352

say going from the most aggresive mud and snow tires to the best lrr tires how much mpg improvement would one expect to see? im just curious to all these claims.

it seems you're asking a rhetorical question. you either new mud/snow tires or you don't.

the minimal gain is likely not worth the extra cost, if that applies. there are sumitomo and yokohama tires at tirerack.com that are cheap and LRR.

in regard to gains, that certainly depends on the driver, the vehicle, and driving conditions--just like any other mods yielding more MPG.

[theholycow]

If you're talking about mud tires for off-road trucks, it could probably be a pretty sizable difference going to highway tires.



If you're just talking M+S rated highway tires vs. LRR car tires, I imagine it's only significant enough to be worthwhile when (as is the case for so many FE mods) you're already buying new tires.

[kit352]

i dont need new tires im just curious. seems all the major manufacturers market big gain lrr tires.

[JanGeo]

Yeah you save enough gas to drive . . . what . . . a few thousand more miles during the life of the tire according to the ads. This assumes that there is no significant reduction in braking traction to cause you to crash when you really need to stop quickly.

[theholycow]

Simple solution for the braking worry: Buy at Town Fair Tire or another tire seller that has a money back guarantee.

Many years ago in another life I bought high performance tires from Town Fair and they did not make a single mph of difference on my favorite exit ramp. I returned them and bought a different brand recommended by them, same result...the car just wasn't going to do any better. So I returned those and bought long treadwear tires instead. I didn't pay a single cent more than if I had just bought the long treadwear tires first, despite putting about 5,000 miles on returned tires.

[bobc455]

I think Michelin claims a 7% reduction in rolling resistance by switching to their Energy tires (compared to a standard radial tire). And I think I've heard elsewhere on this forum that RR is about 15% of total energy consumption, so if you multiply 0.15 * 0.07, that will give you your savings.

-BC

p.s.: It might not sound like much but Michelin also claims that over the lifetime of the tire, that difference will pay for the tire. I haven't calculated that out to verify...

[kit352]

i know that their are alot of claims out their but i havent really seen any numbers to back it up.

[palemelanesian]

How about this extensive test, then: http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tests/...irePageLocQty=

Keep in mind these are all LRR tires already, and there's still a 5% mpg improvement from the best of them.