tire recommendations

no kidding. helium diffuses through rubber like you left the door open.
fact is, unless you have a specific [aerospace type] need such as
corrosion resistance, condensation resistance or fire resistance, an
all-nitrogen tire inflation is utterly pointless.

 

---snippy---

OTOH, if you happen to have a tank of it lying around for other uses, it
won't hurt.

Earle

 

I live in central Ohio, too -- real close to the factory where my
Accord was made. I drive in snow only occasionally. I was leaning
toward the TripleTreds following receipt of my Consumer Reports last
week, but I wanted to see what the experts here would say. After the
responses in this thread, I'm thinking I'll probably purchase the
TripleTreds, but I'm also intrigued by the Goodyear ComforTreds. Would
you guess that the ComforTred, which is NOT promoted for handling,
might still yield better handling that the OEM Turanza EL-41?


Ron

 

I've had the tires a little overinflated but only by about 2 psi over
the Honda-recommended pressure which is still way under the maximum
pressure per Bridgestone. Would you expect that slight departure from
spec to cause cross-wind sensitivity?

Ron

 

Rolling resistance and tread wear should properly be considered in
determining how much a given model of tire actually costs, rather
than part of the measure of quality (which would be based mainly on
handling and braking in the conditions the tire will be used, and
comfort aspects to a lesser extent).

Tire Rack's survey results are useful. Consumer Reports' newest
issue of November 2006 has a report on their tire tests that are
likely to include tires of the type that the original poster is
interested in. (Unfortunately, their rolling resistance and tread
wear ratings do not have a key to determine what percentage difference
there is between the different ratings, so it is still a guess as to
whether the cheaper tire with higher rolling resistance really is
still cheaper after the extra fuel use is taken into consideration.)

 

I put ComforTreds on our 2004 Accord I4 EX to improve the highway ride
and improve traction. Successful on both counts. The ComforTreds lack
responsiveness but that isn't an issue for my daughter who is the
primary driver. My other daughter prefers the feel of her Bridgestone
G009s. To each their own.

 

I'll bet you got beat up a lot in school, didn't ya? Or did you only
recently become a prick?

 

Haven't owned a Honda-built vehicle since my '95 Integra GS-R
was stolen then stripped, but.....

I've only heard of rare praise for the RE92 in any size. Even the
Firestone shop manager agreed with me that they're not really
a high-performance tire. I recently purchased a set of Michelin
Pilot Exalto A/S for my folks family sedan (won't say what it is,
but the tires are 205/65-R15). I thought it was rather squishy,
but it was probably the car. They haven't worn in yet, so their
characteristics may change.

Bridgestone's newest performance all-season is the RE960AS Pole
Position. I just got a set in 205/55-16 for a certain AWD vehicle.
They're a bit on the heavy side in all sizes, but they're smooth-
riding, relatively quiet, and seem to handle well (so far). Reviews
of this model seem to state that it's fine in the rain although it
came out after last winter, so no reports on how it does in the
snow. It does seem to be more aggressively siped than the RE950
- especially on the shoulder blocks. I think they built it for
better traction in light snow.

<http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires.jsp?tireMake=Bridgestone&tireModel=Potenza+RE960AS+Pole+Position>

For the people posting and reading responses, I think it has to be
noted that often we're often talking about different sized tires
(sometimes with different speed ratings) even if it's the same
model. That seems to be lost a bit when people talk about the
tires they've tried. There might even be slightly different tread
or belt materials/design with different sizes. Tires definitely
behave differently with different sizes, so the reviewer on Tirerack
who just raved about how reponsive those low-profile 45-series
tires were may not jibe with the person who complains about the
65-series tire with the same model name. I'm pretty sure that
the Michelin Pilot Exalto A/S that I found squishy on my parents'
car is going to feel like I'm riding on rails in 235/45HR17 with a
stiff suspension.

I believe the stock size for the original poster's 2003 Accord is
205/60R16, where the options don't seem to include the higher
performance all-seasons like the Pilot Exalto A/S or the
RE960AS. I perused the Tirerack's offerings, and excluding
the "touring tires" (the kind that the original poster found a
bit squirmy in the wind) here are a few that look promising:

Bridgestone Potenza G 009
Yokohama AVID H4S
Pirelli P6 Four Seasons
Fuzion (Bridgestone) HRi
Dunlop SP Sport A2 Plus
Sumitomo HTR+

 

I have a year to go yet, but unless something new shows up in the
market, I've already decided, based on Consumer Reports and Tirerack
comments/survey results:

Yokohama Avid in the V-rating. Yoko has finally decided to make tires
with decent wear/longevity characteristics. I've always liked them but
they've generally only lasted 20,000-22,000 miles. This tire has good
handling, noise, ride, stopping, snow/ice, wet performance. Clearly a
winner, as is the "H" rated version.

Yoko Avid TRZ is also available in Accord size, would be great for
grandma so long as she doesn't exceed the "T" speed rating. Soft ride,
not as much handling available, but overall very good performance.

Bridgestone 009 would be a candidate in a pinch -- no where near the
RE930's and RE950's performance, especially in the wet, but a decent
tire. And 930/950's aren't available in Accord size. Unfortunately
all these Bridgestones ride a bit rough, and start making lots (!) of
noise as the tread wears down. Worse and worse, after the half-way
point.

Triple Tread -- well, this tire just seems to have inconsistent
performance for many people. The Avid is almost universally admired,
but the TT isn't. And, performance seems to go 'way down after the
first 20,000 miles according to TireRack comments. Which is something
Consumer Reports doesn't check for. (And they should: Shave those
tires and retest, folks!)

The new YK520 Yoyo at Discount Tire seems to be pretty good also.

 

I meant Yokohama, of course. This tire replaces the YK420, and is
similarly a "designed just for Discount Tire" model.

 

I was going to ask if Yokohama and Toyo merged into "Yoyo".

I will certainly keep the Avid H and V in mind when I look for good
all-seasons for my Civic next spring. I have also considered the Falken
Ziex 512 and a Kumho Ecsta tire (ASX, I think). All 3 appear to offer very
good performance for a very good price.

 

I had a similar choice to make on my 2003 Accord 4 CYL. the OEM
Michelins MXV s8 had very low rolling resistance. However, even when
they were new had quite a bit of understeer. In rain they aquaplaned
very easily. If you drove in winter on road that had more than the
frost, well you better turn back and leave the car in the garage. I
have spent some time researching for a replacement tire that would
eliminate all the negative aspects that OEM tire had, keeping in mind
that I did not want tosacrifice the fuel economy too much. A tire that
I bought was Nokian i3. I currently have 20,000K on the new tires. The
tires are slightly noisier. that's normal since the OEM Michelins were
UTQG 440 and the i3s are 620. The aquaplaning has disappeared i.e. even
in heavy rain I can still hit 140. The understeer in corners has
disappeared. The fuel economy has reduced from 5.8L/100KM with original
tires to about 6-6.1 l/100KM. They were actually worse when they were
brand new. I had the originals on for 218,000KM. The Nokians have not
shown any signs of wear yet. I believe they will last between 250,000 -
300,000K. Another tire that was #2 on my list was Toyo spectrum. The
cost of nokians was $127 per tire, while the OEM Michelins were just
over $180 per tire. A lot of tire shops now days will let you try the
tire before you commit to buying it. Hope this info is of some use to
you.

Dan.