Help choosing tires for my VX.

[Ryland]

I just put my summer tires back on my VX and realized that they are almost down to the wear marks so I need new tires by mid summer or so.
I haven't checked to see what I can get in town yet but I've found that tirerack.com is cheaper even after the shipping and if I'm not in a rush and can wait till a slow time I can get tires mounted and balanced for $10 each at a local shop instead of the normal $20-25 each if I bring in my own tires.

So what I'm looking at as my first choice are the Sumitomo HTR T4 tires in the 165/70R13 size, this is the correct size for the VX, Wiki also lists this tire as being a low rolling resistance tire but does not give a number, draw back of them is the reviews all say they have poor wet traction.
I suspect that when I go to see what I can get at local shops that the only size I'll be able to get will be the 155/80R13 tires as the correct size is a bit rare, in that 155/80R13 size are there any brands/models that I should look for or avoid?

[brucepick]

I'll bring up something you might not have thought of as being related:
You'll likely run your new tires for LOOOOONG time.
Because my guess is you'll be running them at 50 psi or maybe more... (increases tire life considerably, in my experience).
So get the lowest rr rated tires you can afford.
You'll be stuck with these tires for a long time and probably won't want "sorta" LRR tires.
Especially 1-2 years from now when you make more $$ than now, maybe.

I bought tires in Oct. of '08, 18 months ago. Am running them at about 50 psi.
I now have 40k miles on them and have barely made a dent in the tread.

I didn't get LRR tires, but now I wish I had.
I believe there's more information out now. At the time the only report I found was the old Green Seal report and I don't trust that those models were the same years later when I bought tires. I also wanted to keep the cost down... I wish I "needed" tires now so I could get some truly LRR Michelins. These will likely last me another 30-40k miles.

So - If your wallet is up to it, I'd suggest going with one of the top "winners" in the reports you mentioned
Low-rolling resistance tires - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

New models by 2009:

* Michelin Energy Saver
* Goodyear Assurance Fuel Max

And the earlier Consumer Reports article (they didn't say what year)
# Michelin X Radial
# Michelin Agility Touring
# Michelin Harmony

I see a trend here. Michelin seems to always turn up at the top...

My two cents worth.

[Old Mechanic]

Replaced the original Bridgestones on my VX with Michelin X in 175-70-13. Got them at Sam's Club on a special $60 off for a set of 4. Total cost was $231 including lifetime rotate and balance.

I have been a Michelin fan since the 1960s.

At first I was disappointed with the mileage compared to the original Bridgestones. The hit was almost 7 MPG.

15,000 miles later the mileage has improved. It will never be as good as the original tires (on the car when it was built and made in March of 1993) but in every other aspect there is no comparison.

Noise is about 50% less ride is much better and handling is much improved.

I might see a couple of 60 MPG tanks this summer.

The speedo is off by 1%, so the larger size is not really any problem. I just add 1% to the odometer reading when I calculate the mileage. The original Bridgestones were 1% under reading, but that was probably due to the fact that the tread was worn almost to the wear indicators when I replaced them.

Maybe the Michelins will get the same mileage when they are worn to that point, but with an 80,000 mile tread wear warranty its going to take a while.

I run mine at sidewall max, 44 PSI.

regards
Mech

[Ryland]

I checked at the Michelin web site and they don't list a tire for the vx, the closest they have are the 175/70R13, wider then is stock, I've had that size on my old vx and have them on my current vx and they make the handling slugish, the mileage drops, I currently have the Michelin X radial, but as I said they are 175/70R13 and I get the same mileage as with my 155/80R13 snow tires.
I suspect that I'll go with the Sumitomo HTR T4 tires as they do come in the correct size and are LRR.
I just wanted to know if there was something better, maybe narrower as well.

[Daox]

I'm going to be needing new tires for the Paseo come fall. A little while back I put this thread together to gather info on 155/80/R13s. It really just seems like there isn't anything out there.

155/80-13 tires (looking for LRR options)

[basjoos]

Get a set of 14" wheels and set of Potenzo RE92 165/65/14 tires. You can get Honda oem wheel "take offs" (trade-ins for people buying fancy alloy wheels) very cheaply. The OEM 14" wheels for 96-2000 Civics fit. I didn't experience any new tire mpg hit when I went from my old Sumitomo HTR T4 to the new Potenza RE92 and it has only been getting better as they wear in.