2 parter, need tires & i got 40MPG

[ajac]

A Quick story
Well the sunday before last my mother took me and my sister down to some autoplace that was having a sale. Where she bought my sister and me "new" cars, I love my Mom. Sis got an '05 VW Golf auto and I got an '05 Chev Cobalt 5spd manny. It turned out to be cheaper to buy new cars ( monthly payment) than to maintain our older cars with worse mpg.

Anyways on my first 2 tanks of driving stick, learned on the first one. I got 33 and 41 mpg. I just want to boast a lil about that. 40mpg means that it only takes 3oz to go a mile... YES!!

I would like some advice on trying to find some LLR tires. Personally I am more used to looking for load E truck tires. Is there such a thing as a LLR all-season tire?

Rim size is 195/60-15
THANKS

[VetteOwner]

are the tires bad? id just drive the tires till they wear out then go looking... im sure the cost of new tires vs the saveing of gas from them cant be economical sicne u have good tires already...

[kamesama980]

new tires, even LRR will take like almost the lifetime of the tire to break even. they probly won't ever if yours are still OK. just bump up the pressure to the sidewall max (or beyond) and drive em bald.

that is, unless you can sell them for a decent price.

there ARE load range E truck tires in 14" and 15" wheels BUT they aren't going to be less than 70 trim in that size.

[fumesucker]

Congratulations, you have joined the elite few who can drive a stick in today's America.

33 mpg to 40 in one tank is pretty fast learning.

[roadrunner]

I ordered four this week. They are LRR tires, and 51 psi max. Nice!

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/Sizes....&model=HTR+200
195/60HR15
Blackwall Serv. Desc: 88H Price: $48.00 (each)

Estimated Availability:
06/30/08

[Rower4VT]

Those are nice and light also. Good choice. Did you go with a tire narrower and/or taller than stock? My stock size is 205/60r15, and I'm going with 195/70r15 (few choices out there for this size). This is a 51psi tire, lighter than stock size tires, and the tread "looks" smooth rolling. What do you think?

[theholycow]

Why do you want to go narrower? Aerodynamics? Wider tires may have better rolling resistance, though there are conflicting data and theories. See the links in my sig about tire pressure and width.

I previously believed that wider tires had lower RR due to less sidewall deformation for a given area of contact patch, which I thought was constant regardless of width, based entirely on pressure and load. That may actually not be true, but there are other factors at work (RR may be based on percent of carrying capacity actually in use, and a larger tire usually has larger capacity whether it's taller, wider, or both), and actual measurements of RR may indicate extra width reduces RR (though the tests did not test specifically for it and lack sufficient data to say for sure).

Either way, RR differences between similar models/sizes may not be large enough to pay off, and the best way to save money may be to simply get the longest-wearing tire.

My personal strategy: Best treadwear/cost ratio, widest available in the height I want (remember that height is expressed in percentage of width so it's necessary to calculate it, either manually or with the tire size calculator linked in my sig), inflated to its rated maximum pressure. The extra width may or may not affect RR, but it definitely allows me to carry more speed through a turn rather than having to bleed it off with brakes.

[VetteOwner]

wider tires weighmore, might have a wider contact patch but narrower tires have a smaller patch but the same weight is on that smaller patch vs wide tires SO on wet and snow conditions they cut thru down to pavement better. (hence why metros, festivas, chevettes, etc can sometimes outhandle a fullsize car)

[ajac]

I was looking at tires because the set that came with the car will need replacement before fall. The tires have only 1/8 tread left, so they still work. But i just like to think ahead.

I think the main reason. Why I got the good MPG wast that the cobalt has one of those nifty tank MPG computers. Whenever the average dropped even one tenth. I would get mad and fight back that for that .1 . It is funny how quick I changed from the stereotype lil ****head. To someone who'll choose to go 5 under the limit.
sorry about the delay in reply. During first week of summer camp they don't give the counselors much time off.

[RoadWarrior]

Originally Posted by kamesama980

there ARE load range E truck tires in 14" and 15" wheels BUT they aren't going to be less than 70 trim in that size.

I was looking at/for truck tires a little while back, smallest I found was BFG Long Trail T/A 205/75R14 and they seem to be the only ones that do that size.

[froggy81500]

on the subject of tires, what effect would it have to get tires with a higher load rating than what is required for the car? My car's minimum is 87 and I spotted a good deal on some Bridgestone's that are 91. I figure they probably have a stiffer sidewall but unsure how this would impact fuel economy. I'm sure it would help with handling though.

[theholycow]

Higher load rating won't make the sidewalls stiffer, or at least not enough to reduce FE. Based on my studies, I think they would actually help.

Do they also accept higher pressure? If so, they're a no-brainer.

Either way, I suspect that in the long run, paying less for tires and/or getting longer treadwear saves more money than shopping for rolling resistance.

[jprich]

roadrunner
Good choice. I ordered my HTR 200's yesterday. Expecting delivery one day this coming week. ^_^

[froggy81500]

http://www.monro.com/tiredetail_popu...token=56255494

they are Bridgestone Potenza G009 and I believe they have a sidewall pressure of 44 max. They are only a 50K mile tire, but the OE tire on my Ion is the Goodyear Comfortred that is an 80K mile tire and at just shy of 40K I am almost to the wear bars. Up until a few months ago I was running them at 35 psi instead of the door sticker of 30. Right now they are closer to 40 psi thanks to this site. My wife also has an Ion that is a little over 16K on it now (bought both new). I have already raised the pressure in hers to around 37-38 so hopefully her's might actually get closer to 80K miles than mine.

[thornburg]

G009's are great tires. But you probably already knew that, since you bought them.

I have no idea how they are for FE, since I was not even aware that tires affected FE when I was driving the Jetta. I've got some slim pickins when my Celica needs tires--not a lot of 13"s on TireRack. Maybe I'll just get some junk-yard tires.

[froggy81500]

I haven't bought them yet, but seriously considering at that price. I see PA listed as your location so I'm sure you see some snow. How are they in the snow? We get plenty here so I usually look for something that will be adequate all year round.