Which Tyre?

[Glyyde]

what is the recommended tyre to be used with the Prius 17" wheels? and how much is it?

[timberwolf]

The tyre size is displayed in relief on each tyre. If your car isn't close to you at the moment I'm sure a quick search of this forum will turn up the correct size.

Given the time of year, I guess the first question is are you looking for a Summer or Winter tyre?

Note: In my own humble opinion, if you put on brand new Summer tyres at this time of year they'll be good enough for the first winter and it probably isn't worth considering winter tyres. BTW as I do little mileage I have never considered the winter tyres worth the expense or that necessary, I just try to drive more carefully or I don't take the car out at all.

[sjrainsford]

incidentally, haven't the tyre prices shot up!

I'm looking for a couple for my Gen 2 and can't believe the prices of those poxy 195 width tyres.

[Glyyde]

as stated, the tyre size is 17 inches. I am looking for an all year round tyre to use which will couple well with the prius to provide good fuel efficiency. Any suggestions?

[sjrainsford]

I believe they use a 215/45R17 tyre size.

All year round tyres tend to be classed as summer tyres. These are your normal sort of tyres. You won't get a low rolling resistance winter tyre or all weather tyre I don't think as the two don't really go hand in hand.

[Glyyde]

pardon my non-existence knowledge of tyres. There's more to do with the inches when it comes to tyre size then.

Is there a certain brand or type of tyre that will fit my usage then?

Thanks.

[Sagitar]

I believe they use a 215/45R17 tyre size.

All year round tyres tend to be classed as summer tyres. These are your normal sort of tyres. You won't get a low rolling resistance winter tyre or all weather tyre I don't think as the two don't really go hand in hand.

Low rolling resistance winter tyres are available. It is all relative of course. Michelin now put a green X on their low rolling resistance tyres and I think both the Alpin and the Alpin Primacy are classed as low rolling resistance. I haven't checked, but I would be surprised if other manufacturers did not have similar schemes. Don't expect your local tyre supplier to be knowledgeable about it. You will have to do your own research on manufacturer's sites and review sites.

There is independent test information available on sites like this one

[sjrainsford]

If you're that unsure about tyre sizes etc, it may pay you to have a good read up on what everything means rather than getting people to explain it on here. There are plenty of sites giving explanations either from the manufacturers, suppliers or enthusiasts.

Perhaps a trip to Toyota may be a good bet for you. They'll most likely give you the standard tyre that is normally fitted, plus I've found their prices to be on a par with other well known tyre fitters. You can always ask them exactly what they will fit, then get quotes from elsewhere to compare too.

I don't know what brand of tyre is normally fitted to the Prius with 17" wheels though. I guess you're talking about a 3rd generation Prius here?

[B&J]

I don't know what brand of tyre is normally fitted to the Prius with 17" wheels though. I guess you're talking about a 3rd generation Prius here?

My new Prius T4 (October) came with Michelin Premacy, 215/45 R17 as standard.

B&J

[Mistermena]

Take a look at the new Cont 5 rubber. If they're anything like the award winning Conti 3 then they'll be a winner

[johalareewi]

Low rolling resistance winter tyres are available. It is all relative of course. Michelin now put a green X on their low rolling resistance tyres and I think both the Alpin and the Alpin Primacy are classed as low rolling resistance.

Certainly are. The Michelin Alpin and Alpin Primacy are LRR winter types and are available in Prius sizes.

[wass]

I myself have been looking at tyres too. There seems to be very little actual technical information available for such a commonplace vehicle requirement. There are lots of websites telling us all about economy and tire sizes but there doesnt seem to be any information about the hardness or softness of the tyre compounds or any guideance on which ambient temperatures the tyres are designed to best in.

It used to be that cheap tyres wore out more quickly than expensive tyres but was this because they were softer compounds which were more suited to lower ambient temperatures? Who knows? The low rolling resistance tyres which are currently in vogue dont seem to have any information as to why all tyres arent built this way.Does the low rolling resistance mean that these tyres arent very stable whilst cornering?Does the low rolling resistance mean that the tyre wears out quicker?

I have always viewed buying tyres as a lottery. Sometimes you get a good set which suit the vehicle, hold the road brilliantly and last for ages and sometimes you get a bad set which slip easily in wet weather and wear out in no time.In the 70s I remember using some michelins for45,000 miles and then changing them for some more tyres which looked the same, carried the same model code and load rating and yet barely made it past 15,000 miles. Clearly, my car hadnt changed, I hadnt changed my driving style and so Michelin must have changed the tyre structural design in some way without changing the tyres appearance or model designation.

There always seems to be too much sales information and not enough USER information available for tyres.

[johalareewi]

At least with the internet you can search for tyre tests and wade through the results. Something that wasn't possible a few years ago. The Germans do some pretty thorough testing...