[uRabbit]

I am looking for a tire that will last quite a while. So, tread wear (rather, the lack thereof) is of utmost importance. Second to that would be road noise / ride comfort.

I am looking to spend under $320. $380 if it has to be shipped.

The top tires I have come across seem to be the Kumho Eco Solus HM KR22's and the Continental ContiPro Contact. Both are LRR tires, which is not a huge selling point for me. While I am a hyper-miler (pumping 39-40 mpg out of each tank lately), LRR tires do not provide much of a boost. And, being in Idaho, winter traction is pretty important. However, I cannot buy another set of winter-only tires.

Anyone got some suggestions?

Tire size is 195/60R15.

 

[DrkKnight614]

I am looking for a tire that will last quite a while. So, tread wear (rather, the lack thereof) is of utmost importance. Second to that would be road noise / ride comfort.

I am looking to spend under $320. $380 if it has to be shipped.

The top tires I have come across seem to be the Kumho Eco Solus HM KR22's and the Continental ContiPro Contact. Both are LRR tires, which is not a huge selling point for me. While I am a hyper-miler (pumping 39-40 mpg out of each tank lately), LRR tires do not provide much of a boost. And, being in Idaho, winter traction is pretty important. However, I cannot buy another set of winter-only tires.

Anyone got some suggestions?

Tire size is 195/60R15.

Posted via FF Mobile Well, dont get lrr tires, where they excell in getting you better fuel mileage, they dont as far as grip goes. So braking distances will be longer, turning will be harsher, any kind of driving besides straight will be harder for the tires compared to other tires. So depending on how you drive, this could cause the tires to wear even faster. I know if I had these tires they wouldnt last very long, not to mention they may get myself and others in trouble as far as avoiding accidents go. Theres a guy on here who just posted he got rid of his continetals lrr tires that come on the 2012 sfe focus because they werent very good. He said they hydroplanes pretty badly.

Heres my suggestion, I know you want to keep it cheap, but also remember cheaper tires wont perform as well throughout their lifetime compared to other top tier tires. Kuhmos are great, they cheap, they perform well, but do wear faster then other tires and their performance degrades greatly below half wear. But you get what you pay for. Tires are one of the most important part of the car, it is something I personally dont cheap out on. Its the biggest safety feature on the car. Consider going higher in price. Also look at tire rack, they have rebates on tires all the time, each month or so a different company puts out a different rebate. Try going up $100 in total price, you will be better off. Especially considering Idaho gets some good winters and you dont want to run snow tires anymore.

Michelin has a $70 rebate on tirerack right now. I just got Continental ExtremeContacts DWS tires, $490 shipped. Im running 205 50 16s though your size should be cheaper. The michelins I was looking at I think were about the same price.

 

[DrkKnight614]

Ok nvm I didnt realize how much cheaper tires it that size really were lol. I guess your in the right price range. Just from looking quick id either get the Bridgstone Potenza REs, Bfgoodrich super sport A/S (which I had), but Id probably really get the Michelin Pilot Exalto A/S tires. I dont see the cotinental dws tires in your size.

 

[uRabbit]

All of the tires you mentioned are high performance category tires. I mentioned the Eco Solus HM KR22 because of the UTQG rating of 800 for tread wear.

 

[TwentyTwelve]

I recommend researching Nokian Entyres : )

 

[uRabbit]

I recommend researching Nokian Entyres : )

Did some research and they sure seem to be leading the way in green tech. However, they are mighty expensive!

$134/tire for 195/60R15 Nokian WRG2. [V]

Also, cannot find information about tread wear.

 

[Geezer]

I'd look up your tire size on the Tirerack website. Then do a search by UTQG ratings. If a particular tire catches your eye say price wise, I'd then see if Tirerack tested that tire and what the results were. They do very good job of explaining the strengths and weaknesses of the tires they test.. Compare the features that you are most concerned about to help your decision making.

Just remember the UTQG numbers are not very helpful in comparing tires between differing manufacturers. They are more helpful when comparing tires from the same manufacturer. The UTQG number also cannot be converted into anticipated mileage numbers etc. But, in general, a higher number will at least give some indication of how a manufacturer compares a tire to others that they make. Higher UTQG will mean that the tire has a denser/harder tread compound which means that grip (for steering, braking, etc.) will in most cases not be as good as a softer tire compound.

 

[ElectricAL]

Somebody in the thread recommended the Michelin Pilot Exaltos. They are on my Focus (for 3 seasons) and I would NOT recommend them. Dry traction is not very good. Way too easy to spin these things from a launch. If you don't do launches, or ever try to pull out quickly, then that might not matter to you though. Cornering is good and hydroplane resistance is good. But they ride overly-stiff for a tire that is anything other than an ultra-performance oriented tire. If you don't deal with bumpy roads (I do), you might not care. They're also not very quiet. And they weren't cheap.

Also, I had 'em in snow once (took off the winterset and it snowed one more time) and they were not good, even for an A/S tire (which I don't expect much from to begin with). Go with somethin' else. Next time around, I'm gonna.

 

[dirtbiker348]

I have fuzion hri's with a 400 tread wear rating and they hold the road very well for the price. Im a spirited driver and they dont seem to wear fast at all. Ive had the backs for 2 years, they were on the front for a year, and theyre at a little over half tread. The fronts are a year old and almost look new but i have snow tires for the winter so theyre not used in the winter. I do wish i bought summer tires instead of all seasons just to get better handling, but i dont have money to buy tires every year. If you want them to last and handle well, i would deff recommend these

 

[uRabbit]

I'd look up your tire size on the Tirerack website. Then do a search by UTQG ratings. If a particular tire catches your eye say price wise, I'd then see if Tirerack tested that tire and what the results were. They do very good job of explaining the strengths and weaknesses of the tires they test.. Compare the features that you are most concerned about to help your decision making.

Just remember the UTQG numbers are not very helpful in comparing tires between differing manufacturers. They are more helpful when comparing tires from the same manufacturer. The UTQG number also cannot be converted into anticipated mileage numbers etc. But, in general, a higher number will at least give some indication of how a manufacturer compares a tire to others that they make. Higher UTQG will mean that the tire has a denser/harder tread compound which means that grip (for steering, braking, etc.) will in most cases not be as good as a softer tire compound.

This is precisely what I did before and the HM KR22's have the highest, with 800. TireRack has not done a test on them, however, I do remember seeing them in a fuel economy test on TireRack, but cannot find it now. Maybe the Kumho's are just the best deal all around. Just don't want to end up with a cheap tire that performs like one. Also, the Kumho does not have any survey ratings on TireRack, which is generally what I use when I make a tire purchase. Worked for my Continental tires I had on my MINI Cooper S that pushed 220 hp, and was hoping to find something for this car as well. Will keep looking.

With the Kumho's, I'm looking at $422 for buying, shipping, mounting, disposal.

If I remember correctly, I put tires on my MINI that were not the exact OE size, but it was completely safe to do so. I have since forgotten the method used to determine which sizes are okay.

edit: Trying to understand these warranties. Looking at the eco Solus warranty, it says that the tread life warranty is 6 yrs / 100,000 miles. This means that when all four tires reach 2/32" (or wear bars) within that time/mileage frame, then Kumho will pick up the tab for replacement tires? Correct?

 

[Geezer]

If I remember correctly, I put tires on my MINI that were not the exact OE size, but it was completely safe to do so. I have since forgotten the method used to determine which sizes are okay.

edit: Trying to understand these warranties. Looking at the eco Solus warranty, it says that the tread life warranty is 6 yrs / 100,000 miles. This means that when all four tires reach 2/32" (or wear bars) within that time/mileage frame, then Kumho will pick up the tab for replacement tires? Correct?

The formula you want to start with is quite simple. Whatever tire size you choose needs to be close to the overall diameter of the stock tire size. For example, a 195/60-15 is aprox 24.2". If you wanted to go with 16" wheels the tire would be 205/50-16 and for 17" wheel 205/45-17. All these are very close to 24.2". The following site can be used to get tire diameter etc. http://www.miata.net/garage/tirecalc.html

Regarding warranties the key is usually having a reputable tire shop to deal with. I recently had a set of tires prematurely wear out that were covered by a mileage warranty. They were some Yokohamas I had bought from a local Discount Tire store. The tires had a 60,000 mile warranty and they were pretty much gone at 40K miles. Three of the four tires were at or below the wear bars one was just above the bars. Discount measured the tires and credited me a prorated amount toward another set of tires based on the original price. The credit was in the area of 30 to 35% per tire which in this case equated to about $40.00 per tire (each was a little different due to varying amounts of wear). The process is done on a per tire basis not per set. The manager could have refused to adjust the one tire until it was down to the wear bars (and I have heard of some shops doing this) but he went ahead and and did credit me since it was clear it would not get the warrantied mileage and the other three were "officially" worn out for warranty purposes (and it was simply good customer service to do so). We agreed to a 35.00 credit on that tire. That's a pretty good example on how the process works if your lucky enough to get a tread wear warranty.

 

[TwentyTwelve]

Did some research and they sure seem to be leading the way in green tech. However, they are mighty expensive!

$134/tire for 195/60R15 Nokian WRG2. [V]

Also, cannot find information about tread wear.

Yes pricy BUT worth every penny. the "WRG2" has unmatched traction ability BUT research the "Entyre" .. 80k tire .. low rolling resistance .. polished grooves .. best value on the market IMHO : )

 

[uRabbit]

Yes pricy BUT worth every penny. the "WRG2" has unmatched traction ability BUT research the "Entyre" .. 80k tire .. low rolling resistance .. polished grooves .. best value on the market IMHO : )

Ah yes, I believe I got sidetracked from looking at the correct tire.

Okay, so I looked up prices for the eNTYRE first, and the cheapest I found is $94/ea. Total after mount and balance, purchase, and shipping comes to $468. $46 more than the Kumho tires if I bought them from TireRack, as shipping from tires-easy.com is cheaper for the eNTYRE. Hmm...

Definitely worth thinking about. Now I'm going to look at reviews for it.

 

[uRabbit]

TwentyTwelve,

Do you own a set of these tires?

 

[2012F]

sfe tire size confusion

I am looking into buying low rolling resistance tires that match the ones that come with the Focus SFE. I went to the dealer I bought the car from today, they only had one Focus SFE on the lot. I was surprised and somewhat dissappointed when I saw the tire size, it was Hancook Optimo H275 P195/60R15/37T. When I looked at the window sticker the engine was a 1.6TIVCT! I had read the 1.6 would be available at the end of 2012, I expected a better overall fuel average, the sticker read 29city 40highway). The VIN is 3FADP4BJ3CM101003

I wanted to know what tire size the 2.0 L SFE came with, (alot of time searching on the Internet suggested a version of the Continental ContiPro in a P215?16 size might be it). The parts man at the counter wasn't sure, he printed at least 15 pages of tires that were listed for the 2012 Focus. (Not one was labeled as lrr or for the SFE package). He checked with Sales, they gave him a size of P215/56R16. He didn't think this was right, so he called Town Fair Tire (he stated that's where they get all their tires from) and was told that size doesn't exist, that the tire I was referring to was actually 215/55R16 Michelins, they had some in stock.

I went to another Town Fair Tire where I had done business with and highly recommend in New London CT where I spoke to a very knowledgeable Manager. He looked up the SFE package and the only option listed in their database was the P255/55R16 Continentals. (This is what I have now). I'm more confused than ever. Can someone who has a 2012 Ford Focus SFE 2.0Litre respond back with what brand and size tire you have? I told the Manager at Town Fair Tire I would let him know what I find out, If you're a Ford dealer and have the information I would really appreciate it.

 

[Geezer]

Tirerack is your friend. With a vehicle search on their site you'll come up with the tire you're looking for. (hint: they say its 215/55-16) and the cheapest eco tire in that size is the Bridgestone Ecopia (sp?) @ 103.00 ea.

 

[2012F]

runaround

Thanks for the info Geezer,

I got off the phone with Ford Customer Relation Center after nearly an hour. I still do not have an answer. I spoke to Kit who although polite, could not answer my question. When Kit checked with someone, he came back with a statement like since these tires were not stock on your vehicle you could potentially void your warranty if they cause another part to fail. I mentioned I wasn’t putting on 33” slicks and going to Milan Dragway to run ¼ mile times, just seeking an extra couple miles per gallon by upgrading my tires to the same size as the 2012 Ford Focus SFE package, and I was giving Ford a chance to verify what size the tires are, as the information I find when doing a VIN search on ETIS shows a P215/56R16 tire. I stated I didn’t want Ford to look silly by giving out the wrong information to it’s customers, is this size tire a mythical beast or does it actually come on the 2012 Focus SFE? I asked Kit if I could speak with a Supervisor, Kit put me on hold for about 8 minutes.

Milli came on the phone, she stated she was confused, did I want to know what size wheel was on my personal vehicle? I told Milli I just need to know what size tire comes on the 2012 Ford Focus SFE, as the advertised size noone seems to be able to find. Milli stated I should go see my Ford dealer, I told Milli I had done this yesterday for an hour, noone could give me an answer and had sent me to Town Fair Tire. I explained to Milli the procedures for resolving customer issues on the Ford website .

“If you have questions or concerns about your vehicle, we suggest you follow these steps
1. Contact your Sales Representative or Service Advisor at your selling/servicing dealership.
2. If the inquiry or concern remains unresolved, contact the Sales Manager or Service Manager at the dealership.
3. If the inquiry or concern cannot be resolved at the dealership level, please contact our Customer Relationship Center via one of the methods below.

Phone
United States
+1-800-392-3673
+1-800-232-5952 (TDD for the Hearing Impaired)
Available 8:00 a.m.- 5:00 p.m. Local Time Monday-Friday

Canada
+1-800-565-3673
Available 8:30 a.m.-5:00 p.m. Local Time Monday-Friday
“
Since I had done 1 and 2 yesterday, I was calling Ford per number 3! Milli started to say if these tires had come on my Ford originally, they could provide me with this information. I stated what would you tell someone who had these tires and got a flat looking for a replacement? Would you offer them 4 new tires?? Milli asked if she could call me back either today or tomorrow after she researched this further, I said that would be great.

This is not the first time Ford gave misinformation about the 2012 Focus. When I first purchased mine, the owner’s manual and window sticker stated I had a Line-in jack. It was supposed to be located at the base of the console between the front seats. I looked for 15 minutes and couldn’t locate it. I went to my dealership, they had the Sales Manager come out to show me where it was, he looked for 5 minutes and stated Nope, you don’t have it, we’ll have to call Ford and get back to you. Three weeks went by, nobody called.

I went in my glove compartment and noticed a strange hole in the driver-side front, this turned out to be the line-in jack. The dealership said they checked with Ford, the manual was a misprint, the only Focus models with the jack in the middle were SEL’s. I still wonder if this is true, or did someone at the factory just put it anywhere? This is absolutely the worst position possible.

Update: I went back online and found a link on YouTube to this video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JE7b19vhbXw

As the young man gives a nice presentation of the features on his 2012 Focus SFE, if you increase the video resolution to 480P, at position 51 of 9:37 you can just make out the tire size, it is a 215/55R16 ContiTouringContact (Continental I believe). You called it right. I’ll be interested to know what Milli has to say if and when she calls back. I’m a lifelong Ford fan, I just want the correct information when I ask for it.

 

[2012F]

Tirerack low rolling resistance

I went to Tirerack and entered the info for a 2012 Focus SE 5-door (no option to input SFE) the tiresize I searched for was a P215/55R16. When the options came up, a little blue dot next to the tire size indicates it is low rolling resistance. When I brought up the picture, the exact same tire I have from the factory appeared.

This tread pattern is different from the one in the video I mentioned above, so still not sure if Ford has a special version of this tire or not. I did a screen capture of the tire in the video, I just can't find a way to attach a picture from my hard drive to my post.

 

[Geezer]

2012 F, You're really making this much more difficult than it needs to be. Tirerack has the info if you go about it correctly.

On the Tirerack Website:
When you search by make, select- Ford
Then select- 2012 for year
Then select FOCUS SEDAN (the SFE package only comes on a sedan as far as I know)
In the "Additional Model Info" box select "SE SUPER FUEL ECONOMY PACK."

All tires listed for that package will come up as 215/55-16

As for 215/56-16, it has to be a misprint. There is no such tire size.

We (Focus Fanatics) have a Tirerack rep you can e-mail ([email protected]) or call. He's here to answer any questions you might have with no obligation of buying anything. You can confirm the info I gave you with him if that makes you more comfortable.

Is there a very specific reason why you have to have the factory eco tire? I bet the other eco tires that are equally as good (maybe better). This is the type of info that Miles is really good at providing! Tirerack is unusual in that they test the majority of the tires they sell. They have a test track, skid pad, can replicate wet/dry conditions, etc. at their headquarters in Indiana Sales reps like Miles actually get to participate in the testing and evaluation. That's truly hands on experience that most tire sales people will never have.

 

[2012F]

making sure

Thanks Geezer,
I just wanted to be sure that the tire size Ford advertises IS a misprint (like the one about the line-in jack) and that there isn’t some special size/compound Ford was using on this model. I remember when I changed tires at Sears years ago Ford had one particular year Mustang that could only have one particular size tire, nothing else would fit.(This quote is from Wikipedia for the 1979 Mustangs) “The 2.3 and 2.3 Turbo and V8 models could also be optioned with the newly developed TRX handling suspension, which utilized Michelin 390 mm tires and specific metric wheels.” At the time, Sears didn’t sell these tires, the customer had to go somewhere else. That is the reason I want to know the factory eco tire size/compound

Thanks for the tip about the SFE being a sedan only option, I didn’t realize that nor did I notice that subcategory when I visited the Tirerack site. An oversight on my part. I believe I’ll drop Miles an email, the tread on the SFE in the video I mentioned looks different than any other Continental I have seen, (obviously I haven’t seen all that are available). I’m looking to find the lowest resistance tire at the same size without spending an exhorbitant amount, the extra savings in fuel should pay for the tires in a short period of time. That’s a great service Tirerack offers.