Help me pick tires

FLaccord · #1 07-16-2012, 11:12 AM

Ok guys, I don't have my accord anymore as my username suggests. I went backwards in MPG's but that's a whole differeent story. I'm at 67k on my 2008 Lincoln MKZ FWD (Rebadged Fusion with a 3.5L V6 instead of a 3.0). Stock the car comes with some decent Michelin Energy MXV4 S8's. They weigh in at 25#'s each. 420 A A rating Grand touring all season. $189/ea.

For cost reasons and wanting a lighter weight LRR tire (I'm a firm believer in light weight rotating mass) I have narrowed it down to these two tires. I had fuel maxes on my accord. My wife's VW & MB both had/have Contiprocontacts and so did my BMW but they were RF's. Boo. so I've had experience with both tires. They are both in difference classes. the GY is a reguluar AS. the Conti is a grand touring AS. I'm looking at up front cost, road noise and longevity. As long as the tires perform "normal" I'm ok with it. not driving this car like my weekend warrior. Need to boost the MPG's a bit to keep up with the newer V6 family cars and this one of the items I can do and I'm going to need tires in about 3-5k so might as well start doing my HW now.

GY Fuel Max:
http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires....=FWD&tab=Specs

Conti's:
http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires....=FWD&tab=Specs

xcel · #2 07-16-2012, 11:15 AM

Hi FLaccord:

Fuel Max. They hold in the wet as good as the Conti's. On dry, the Conti's have an edge. For FE, the Fuel Max roll away with the savings.

IHTHs

Wayne

PaleMelanesian · #3 07-16-2012, 11:27 AM

Fuel Max is also a very quiet tire, especially coming from an old set of Michelins like I did in the Odyssey.

FLaccord · #4 07-16-2012, 11:42 AM

I'm real curious how the road noise is between the two. The tread pattern on the Conti's is much smoother, but they have the same tread depth, 10/32", and the fuel max gets an extra 80 on the tire rating. So that means the compound is harder. I'm probably going to get the GY if the road noise isn't terribly different between the two. Not to mention the GY are much cheaper to purchase upfront and have $40 rebate going on. I was happy with my Fuel maxes on the Accord. Coulnd't really comment on road noise b/c anything in a honda is noisey at hwy speeds... it's a tin box with no insulation. Wish Honda would address that. some Dynamat or something would make their cars awsome.

So far that's 2 for the Fuel max, 0 for the Conti's.

xcel · #5 07-16-2012, 12:01 PM

Hi FLAccord:

Following on with Andrew's noise assessment, the Fuel Max were much quieter than the OEM Michelin Energy MXV4 + although that was from a shot tires to a brand new ones.

We did drive the Conti's back to back with the Assurance Fuel Max during the CleanMPG Plays Its Hand in Las Vegas with a Pair of (MPG) Kings drive but they were shod on different cars. The Cruze ECO was "possibly" slightly quieter at slow speeds and about the same at high? This has more to do with aero and insulation than anything pertaining to the two tire makes however.

Wayne

FLaccord · #6 07-16-2012, 01:34 PM

I have a question.... how do the two tires I'm looking at compare to my OEM tire I currently have? Should of asked that to begin with! Again, my MKZ came with Michelin Energy MXV4 S8's stock. Tha'ts whats on there. Wondering about noise and mileage.

After reading the Tire Rack test I want a set of Michelin Energy A/S's. Are they really that good? Or was that a hype sale pitch. Seems to be the concensus that the Engergy AS are the best for MPG. And they are still cheaper than my OEM Michelins.

xcel · #7 07-16-2012, 02:15 PM

Hi FLAccord:

The Tirerack test “When Round and Black Becomes Lean and Green” showed the Michelin’s (Camry Hybrid) to have great RRc but in my comparison drive of them vs. the Assurance Fuel Max (Malibu ECO) and Hankook Optimo 426’s (Sonata Hybrid) on rain slick roads of Austin, TX last year, they (Michelins) are slick as hell in the rain. To the point of almost placing a TCH into a curb at anything above 12 mph whereas the GY were like driving on dry at 18 mph and the Hankook’s were just beginning to break loose at that point. Michelin AS' are off my top pick list for now

Wayne

FLaccord · #8 07-16-2012, 02:21 PM

^wow. did not see that coming. TR ranked them better than the OEM tire for wet performance. But if you look at the tread pattern and understand tires you can almost understand why. Hhmmm. So what is your vote Wayne? Don't limit the choice to what is just on my list. I just want a regular tire that helps improve MPG's. Not looking to turn my nice daily driver into a death trap. And I'm not spending more than what my OEM MXV4 S8's cost; $190/ea.

Harold · #9 07-16-2012, 03:00 PM

I like the Fuel Max but I may check out the G/Y triple tread in the future. Some folks swear by them. H

ALS · #10 07-16-2012, 03:03 PM

I have Michelin MXV4 Energy's on my Volvo and the car is a handful in the rain with any pressures above 40 psi, door sticker is 36 psi. Other than that I have been very pleased with the tires wear wise. I have 36K miles on these tires and they still look close to new so getting 60K miles out of them is a given. The thing you have to remember these tires have been driven all Interstate at speeds of 65 mph or less.