okduffer

I posted this in response to Need decent tire thread but got no reply. So will try here.

I have Michelin Defenders on my 2012 XB, the ride is good, the life as expected, I have about 90,000 on them now and getting close to replacement. But the NOISE. WOW they are NOISEY. I am looking for something better, was considering the AS SPORT, but the mileage rating is not as good. Tirerack.com recommends the Defender. I spend a lot of time in this car and it would be nice to be able to listen to the radio, but frequently is hard, depending on the road surface.

xseveredveganx

I'd recommend sound dampening material. It'll be much better in the long run.

retlaw

On my 3rd set of tires with 118k miles. This time paid more and went with Yokohama YK-580 225/50-16. Quietest tires I’ve had by a huge margin. Factory Bridgestones were quite noisy; next set was a Kumho Ecsta ASX 225/50-16. Quieter than bridgestones but not dramatically so (although improved handling). These Yk-580s reduced road noise markedly. On very coarse texture, heavily broken and repaired, asphalt pavement that is part of my daily drive, the noise level dropped so that you needn’t run the radio up or have to talk over the road noise. On smooth payment, or the rubberized pavement that AZ uses on the freeways now (which quiets most tires) road noise is totally gone. The difference alone made my Xb noise competitive with low road noise vehicles I’ve driven on the same pavement. For me, the road noise level has been one of the few dis-satisfying factors of my Xb.

Added plus that these tire are ‘fuel saver.’ Seems like my gas mileage over the last 3 months has increase 0.5-1MPG, commensurate with the tire change, and sustained. The difference is not weather/seasonally related. Note these are calculated numbers not the dash numbers which are always optimistic since I’ve owned the car. I record every fuel up, oil & filter change, maintenance and all other expenses in the app Road Trip on my iPhone and have a record going back to purchase in October 2007.

I run 225/50s over the 205/55 tire simply because I like the extra rubber on the road and the better grip the larger tires give. Which is one other difference with the Yokohamas compared to the Kumhos - the car tracked well before but now tracks like it’s on rails. I stayed with the 16” tires due to budget constraints, plus the low profile tires on 17 and 18 inch wheels are too susceptible to road damage (and the 16” rides better).

We’ll see how they hold up over the long term. I have about 6k on them now; they are manufacturer guaranteed for 70k miles (not rated, GUARANTEED). IMHO these were a better choice the Falken ZIEX tires on my wife’s Tc. Her tires made little road noise difference.

elwaylite

iTrader: (1)

Ive had cooper CS5's and now bridgestone ecopia. Both were nice. I hate noise freakin tires... Worst I had on another car were Sumitomo's. Got all my mileage from them, but man as they wore they SUCKED.

m1keteam

Lots of threads about it like this-- https://www.scionlife.com/forums/sci...-tires-169842/