14" LRR tire size selection

[EcoBill]

Hey all,

I read the thread on LRR tires and the only 14" tires mentioned are the

Bridgestone B381 - 185/65/14 or 185/70/14
read some reviews and heard that they dry rot and are expensive.

The other ones I was looking at was the

Bridgestone Potenza RE92 - 165/65/14
I think these might be a bit small?

Goodyear Assurance Fuel Max - 185/65/14
read somewhere that it didnt help fuel economy?

Not sure which to go with or other options out there that are 14" LRR

[Sven7]

http://ecomodder.com/forum/showthrea...ble-23757.html

Conti EcoContact 5

Also try Kumho Eco Solus HM... available in 175/65, 185/65, 185/70 and 195/70 along with 175/70/13 (hard to find 13's!)
TireRack seems to not carry these anymore... shame, as they were $67 per on closeout.

http://ecomodder.com/forum/showthrea...res-14406.html

http://ecomodder.com/forum/showthrea...res-24091.html

Good luck in your search, sir. You may just have to start searching individual tires to browse sizes. I'll be watching the thread for ideas for Ren

[EcoBill]

so tirerack only seems to have the following LRR tires in 185/65/14

trying to see which of these 3 would be best

Goodyear Assurance Fuel Max - Set of 4: $364.00
Bridgestone B381 -Set of 4: $476.00
Michelin Defender - Set of 4: $376.00
Kumho eco Solus HM KR22 - close out and none left...

Tirerack told me that 185/65 would be to big and that 185/60/14 is recommended but then they dont have any LRR tires in that size.

[fusion210]

I have (well, had) the Insight RE92 165/65/14 on a Dodge neon with some weight reduction, probably around 2400 with driver based on other neons I've weighed and my meticulous and anal weighing of parts ( www.neons.org • View topic - Calorie counting, my weight reduction list. ) and I'm stretching getting 35k out of them. I've self aligned the car to remove almost all toe. They've been at high PSI while on the car and they still have much more wear on the outsides vs the inner tread. I've heard of this with these tires on Insights, it has to be further compounded on cars that weigh a few hundred pounds more. I really don't know if it's because of the tire's design keeping the inner tread from expanding with stiff bands or my gentle (and I do mean gentle) cornering but the wear on the outside edges of the tread is really visible. I have portions on the inside that look good while the outside is starting to gnaw on the wear bars. While they would work great for some kind of max effort mpg figure, I can't recommend them for their value. All these other tires with 65,000 mi guestimates should mean something to our wallets, both in the cost of the tires and the mounting/balancing/disposal.

I'm just trying to get some last life out of them while it's rain free and then retiring them. One idea is using them for drag racing skinnies, they definitely have the advantage in being DOT approved, lrr and lightweight. Plus mine are paid for.

[Sven7]

Originally Posted by EcoBill

so tirerack only seems to have the following LRR tires in 185/65/14

trying to see which of these 3 would be best

Goodyear Assurance Fuel Max - Set of 4: $364.00
Bridgestone B381 -Set of 4: $476.00
Michelin Defender - Set of 4: $376.00
Kumho eco Solus HM KR22 - close out and none left...

Tirerack told me that 185/65 would be to big and that 185/60/14 is recommended but then they dont have any LRR tires in that size.

This should help, in the big link I posted. You want low numbers in RRC. It looks like the B381 is your best bet for LRR.

http://ecomodder.com/forum/showthrea...tml#post341757

[turbovr41991]

Originally Posted by Sven7

This should help, in the big link I posted. You want low numbers in RRC. It looks like the B381 is your best bet for LRR.

It costs more and you will get less miles out of than others on the list. That is a bad combination to never pay itself off.

Originally Posted by EcoBill

so tirerack only seems to have the following LRR tires in 185/65/14

trying to see which of these 3 would be best

Goodyear Assurance Fuel Max - Set of 4: $364.00
Bridgestone B381 -Set of 4: $476.00
Michelin Defender - Set of 4: $376.00
Kumho eco Solus HM KR22 - close out and none left...

I went with the Michelin Defender. It is cheap and is a 90k mile tire! Where it lacks in being the best LRR tire it makes up in better handling, braking, and wet traction.

Also, look for good local sales too. When I got mine I got $120 off from instant savings and rebates. I also got them to knock off another $10 per tire making it about $380ish installed, no shipping costs, a free alignment, and lifetime rotation/ balancing.

[ezeus1]

Did you ever make a decision? I'm actually in the same boat.

My last set of tires was the Bridgestone B381s.
I've had them for about 2 years and put 15000 miles on them.
They're completely dry-rotted. I wouldn't recommend this tire at all.

I'm considering the GY Fuel max, but I'd like to hear what you decided on and what the results have been.

[sully06]

We put Michelin Defenders on my wife's car. I would recommend them she has put 25k on them already and you can't tell it!

[hat_man]

I have looked at the Defenders also. My only concern is with it being a 90k mile tire just how hard is the compound and how does it really handle in the snow. 120 miles round trip everyday to work and home and I really don't want to be sliding off the road in the winter. Does anyone have any "real world" winter experience with these?

[cbaber]

I tend to stay away from the LRR tire hype. Is it really economical to spend extra money on a tire that adds 5% to your fuel economy? The additional cost that comes with most LRR tires, and the reduced performance and tread life all but doom these tires in my opinion.

Pick a tire that has a long lifespan, 60,000+ miles. Go to tirerack.com and read the reviews. Pick a tire that will do what you need it to do, in the conditions that you drive in.

I chose the Kumho Solus KR21's. Not only did I get them at a great price, they are rated at 80,000 miles. If you pick a set of LRR tires that last 40,000 miles you paid more than me, plus you will need to buy 2 sets in the same time I bought 1. There is no way the 5% fuel savings is going to make up for that price difference.