Time to change tires - recommendations anyone?

thegrapeguy

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2013 Mazda CX5 GT
I have the original Toyos on my 2013 GT AWD and at 41K it's time to change. I was all set to go with Pirelli Cinturato P7's until a CX-5 owner reported louder noise and decreased mpg compared to original tires. Tire Rack guy recommends the Pirellis greatly but maybe he was biased because a sale of that tire got him the most profit. I doubt it though since he was adamant that that was the tire of all that he had. I want maximum mpg and decreased noise in an all season tire. The Pirelli's go for $170/tire and the stock Toyo's are like $250/tire. This CX-5 owner hated the Pirellis so much that he wished he spent the extra $80/tire for the decreased noise and better mpg. Any tire rec would help - Thanks!
 
The Michelin Defender and the Continental ProContact EcoPlus are the top rated all season tires in Consumer Reports with both having good ratings for noise and rolling resistance. The Pirelli Cinturato P7's are performance all season tires with only average rolling resistance and good noise and they are pricey. The Michelin Primacy MXV4[H] are a better choice for performance all season tires with an excellent rating for both rolling resistance and noise. Keep in mind though that you will likely get less tread life from a performance tire in comparison to an all season tire.
 
I am going to need to tires this fall....

Looking at tire rack, these seem to have great ratings:
GeneralAltiMAX RT43 (T-Speed Rated)(Standard Touring All-Season)
http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires.jsp?tireMake=General&tireModel=AltiMAX+RT43+%28T-Speed+Rated%29&partnum=265TR7AMRT43&vehicleSearch=true&fromCompare1=yes&autoMake=Mazda&autoYear=2013&autoModel=CX-5&autoModClar=Sport%20FWD&tab=Survey

or
General AltiMAX RT43 (H- or V-Speed Rated) Grand Touring All-Season
General AltiMAX RT43 (H- or V-Speed Rated) Grand Touring All-Season

They have a A A 700 ratings, would be good to hear actual performance from a cx-5 owner
 
I just put some Pirelli Scorpion Verde All Season Plus's on the wife's Lexus RX350 today (235/55R19's). They have a 740 TWR! I took it through a few twisties (roughly 5 miles or so) on the way home from the tire shop and the grip seemed to be more than acceptable for a family hauler. The ones we replaced were the Pirelli Scorpion Verde All Seasons (minus the "PLUS") and they had a 600 TWR. And those were great tires!

Also, another feature I like about this tire (besides the lower rolling resistance) is the sipping it has. They look like they'll do pretty good this coming winter.

Also, they have a $60 Visa gift card promotion going on now if you buy 4.

From tirerack.com:

Size: 235/55R19
LRR: EcoImpact
Sidewall Style: Blackwall
Serv. Desc: 105V
Load Range: XL
UTQG: 740 A A
 
The Pirelli Scorpion Verde All Season Plus are interesting, but so far pretty bad reviews: http://www.1010tires.com/Tires/Reviews/Pirelli/Scorpion+Verde

The car dealer is paying for the 1st set of replacements, so price is no object as long as they less the originals (~ $220/tire)

hard to beat those Continental CrossContact LX20 with EcoPlus Technology, so many good reviews too... dont need high performance, just long wear, quite, decent handling, safe, good/decent in snow.
 
The Verde you linked to is the summer version (not the All Season Plus). Notice the tread is different and the little "summer" icon in the top right. And it has no sipping. They just got their description wrong. I looked around the 1010tires site and didn't see a review of the Verde A-S Plus. They had one review of the older Verde A-S (not the plus) and it got a 3.7. The guy that gave that one review gave it a 3 out of 5 stars for snow because "I rated the tire a 3 in the snow because we don't have any snow here in San Diego." (uhm)

Anyway, like I said, we had a really good experience with the last Verde A-S's we had (the last model before they introduced the "Plus). I've only run across 1 review on the Verde A-S Plus... http://blog.tirerack.com/blog/tire-rack-consumer-reviews/tire-rack-consumer-review-of-the-pirelli-scorpion-verde-all-season-plus-v4 I realize it's only one survey, but I didn't see anymore from end users.

Here's a "professional" (I guess) review... http://tirereviewsandmore.com/pirelli-scorpion-verde-all-season-plus-reviews.php
 
Just had the Pirelli Cinturato P7's installed...

I drive a TON, getting nearly 50k miles out of the A23's. I wanted to see how much further I could stretch fuel consumption, so opt'd for both a LRR and OEM size to see if I could get even a marginal uptick in mileage. The 700TW was a bonus, but wasn't weighed into the decision.

After 1k miles on them this week, I can say they ride slightly softer than the A23's. In addition, they absolutely let you know much earlier that they are trying to give up adhesion to the road with a mid-tone scrub. One thing for certain, they are FANTASTIC in the rain. All week was torrential downpours, which would have had the Toyo's hydroplaning all over the place. The P7's instilled a HUGE amount of faith in inclimate weather.
 
Did some research. Continental LX-20's and not available in 225/55/19. Continental Eco Plus being discontinued plus not available in stock size. All the tires recommended from posters who went up to a 235 size I have a question. Every tire dealer and tire manufacturer I spoke to said it would decrease the gas mileage, maybe not a lot but a decrease nonetheless. What's the benefit in going with a bigger tire? If I want max MPG wouldn't I want the original size 225/55/19?
 
Generally:
Wider tire = better grip
Skinnier tire = better MPG

Or look for a 235 with a LRR (low rolling resistance). I don't have any hard figures, but I'm guessing that a slightly wider, LRR tire won't noticeably negatively affect your MPG's... 225 stock tire vs. a 235 LRR tire. Just look for a higher tread wear number (eg. 700, 740, etc.). Some of these tires seem to be getting an "eco" or "green" label attached to them.

I guess if you're truly looking for more MPG's you could go with a LRR tire in the skinniest width the stock rims will accommodate.
 
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