Tires that give better gas milage than BF Goodrich Traction T/A's but with similar wet traction?

[JEDI]

I was getting 33/36mpg (city/hwy) with OEM Toyo tires.

I chose Traction T/A's because i wanted great wet traction (Rated AA, whereas all other tires at Costco/Walmart were only Rated A for wet traction). But HOLY hit to my gas milage.
i now get 29/32mpg city/hwy.
Tire is 60k miles. I dont even want to calculate how much extra $ i've spent on gas.

I'm close to 2/10" warning point. I need to get new tires by end of year or early next year.


What tires do you recommend for my Mazda3i that has similair wet traction as the Traction T/A's, but better gas milage?

THX

 

[alphatarget1]

Did you check the inflation?

 

[JEDI]

Originally posted by: alphatarget1
Did you check the inflation?

yep. i was actually +3psi over. (suppose to be 32, i was at 35.)
imagine how much worse my gas milage would be if i was at 32psi?

anyway, recommendations for new tires?

 

[ballmode]

Car and Driver or Road and Track did a tire shoot out.

 

[alphatarget1]

Better traction = better braking and stuff. I'm not sure if I like the ideas of super low rolling resistance tires anyway...

 

[Gibson486]

dunlop sport signatures

 

[Gibson486]

Originally posted by: JEDI

Originally posted by: alphatarget1
Did you check the inflation?

yep. i was actually +3psi over. (suppose to be 32, i was at 35.)
imagine how much worse my gas milage would be if i was at 32psi?

anyway, recommendations for new tires?

that is a myth. Just keep the tires at what they are rated for (look in door). Also, measure after it has been sitting overnight. If you measure after you been driving, your reading will be off.

 

[Vetterin]

Goodrich makes 4 Traction T/A tires (Spec, T, H and V). Which ones do you have?
Either way, if you want an all around great tire (with better wet handling than any of the T/A's) check out the General Altimax HP.

 

[MovingTarget]

That is part of the price you pay for high traction tires. I'd recommend the Touring T/A if you are going to stay with BF Goodrich. Sams Club had a decent deal on those recently for 70k mile tires...

 

[Aharami]

Originally posted by: Gibson486
dunlop sport signatures

i have that on my wife's tc now. avg mpg dropped from 26 to 24 ever since those tires were put on. but i like these tires a lot more than the stock yokohamas

 

[CupCak3]

I put some Michelin HydroEdges on my wife's car. Supposed to be good traction along with fuel efficiency (marketed by Costco to be most fuel efficient in the category). I haven't checked her mileage though to see if it really changed from her stock tires.

 

[overst33r]

Originally posted by: Gibson486

Originally posted by: JEDI

Originally posted by: alphatarget1
Did you check the inflation?

yep. i was actually +3psi over. (suppose to be 32, i was at 35.)
imagine how much worse my gas milage would be if i was at 32psi?

anyway, recommendations for new tires?

that is a myth. Just keep the tires at what they are rated for (look in door). Also, measure after it has been sitting overnight. If you measure after you been driving, your reading will be off.

What's a myth?

If your tires is inflated over the recommended pressure you will get better gas mileage (smaller contact patch). If it is under inflated you will get worse (greater contact patch).

 

[thomsbrain]

Better traction and lower rolling resistance are not generally compatible qualities. You need to decide which is more important to you and pick a tire that offers the compromise that works for you. A good indication will be the treadwear rating. It's not the end-all-be-all traction and resistance statistic, but it will give you a ballpark idea. A 600-rated tire (very hard and slippy) is definitely going to offer better MPG but worse traction than a 180-rated tire (very soft and grippy).

 

[JEDI]

Originally posted by: CupCak3
I put some Michelin HydroEdges on my wife's car. Supposed to be good traction along with fuel efficiency (marketed by Costco to be most fuel efficient in the category). I haven't checked her mileage though to see if it really changed from her stock tires.

costco.com doesnt list hydroedge as a tire option


edit:
also, what category is costco referring to?
wet traction tires?

 

[PandaBear]

Originally posted by: thomsbrain
Better traction and lower rolling resistance are not generally compatible qualities. You need to decide which is more important to you and pick a tire that offers the compromise that works for you. A good indication will be the treadwear rating. It's not the end-all-be-all traction and resistance statistic, but it will give you a ballpark idea. A 600-rated tire (very hard and slippy) is definitely going to offer better MPG but worse traction than a 180-rated tire (very soft and grippy).

Very true, you can get one or the other only, all else being equal.

I pick a compromise by choosing a soft/thin sidewall tire with summer compound, then inflate the hell out of it (37 instead of 30psi). Your ride suffer but your fuel economy and your traction is good.

Tire I used is Sumitomo HTR 200 inflated to 37psi to replace a Goodyear Integrity inflated to 30psi on a corolla.

 

[CupCak3]

Originally posted by: JEDI

Originally posted by: CupCak3
I put some Michelin HydroEdges on my wife's car. Supposed to be good traction along with fuel efficiency (marketed by Costco to be most fuel efficient in the category). I haven't checked her mileage though to see if it really changed from her stock tires.

costco.com doesnt list hydroedge as a tire option


edit:
also, what category is costco referring to?
wet traction tires?

I think they're being phased out to a "green line".. can't remember the exact name. you'll have to read Michelin's website for the other two