Tread Wear Rating and Rolling Resistance

[99metro]

I have some POS Primewell PS850 155/85-13 and they are getting me much better FE than the BFG 175/85-13s that came off. These Chinese tires are 460 tread wear rating and I'm having a hard time getting used to the vastly lower rolling resistance. This is strictly seat of the pants data. I always neutral coast at specific places at specific speeds and have noticed that I have a higher end speed at my normal braking points. It has been difficult to readjust my driving to compensate

Although I can't recommend these tires due to their terrible reviews, I can say in the first 800 miles that they are performing well above expectations. This is a very highway-only tread.

I used to think that higher treadwear rating would translate to lower rolling resistance, but a little homework knocked that idea out of my head!

[wdb]

Sometime over the next week or so I'll be putting the OE tires and wheels back on my Honda Fit. The replacement wheel/tire combination is much, much lighter, but the RR of the new tires is such that it is costing me 3-4 MPG. I love the addtional traction, especially in the wet, but my scotch pride is getting the better of me; the old tires have a few miles left in them. So I'm going to risk the lower traction, hope it doesn't rain much, and hopefully finish them off before winter.

clif notes: put me in the treadwear/traction/RR triangle camp.

[RobertSmalls]

I also ended up with Primewell POS 850's after little research, and people were impressed with my numbers at the recent AMEC economy run. Terrible reviews? Ignore them. The reviewers only know how to judge comfort and treadlife, both of which I'm willing to sacrifice in exchange for fuel economy.