[Isabelle]

I got new Comfortreds last Thursday and immediately (Saturday) took off on a 700 mile roundtrip...since I knew I wanted to study the effect of the new tires, I tried to take note of all the relevant variables.

Here is the result.

Pre-Comfortred Averages (summer weather only)

-normal drive: inter-suburban commuting at 35-45 mph; favorable terrain.
-AC: usually on max cold
-tires: 35/33 (Integrities)
-driving style..pretty much the Fusco method...lots of coasting; anticipating stops; accelerate to speed and then drive it.
-MPG under these conditions (MFD): 51-53 mpg


Post Comfortred Experimental Trip

Leg 1: Rindge NH to Brattleboro Vt....35 miles...new tank

-rolling hills on secondary highway; 40-50 mph
-AC/auto set to 73 F
-tires 36/34 (Comfortred)
-reading after 35 miles: 62 MPG!
-outside temp: mid to upper 80s F

Leg 2: Brattleboro to (near) Scranton, PA...all interstate
-cruise set to 66mph for about 275 miles; then upped to 70mph for
the last 100 or so.
-AC/auto set to 73F (outside air)
-outside temp: upper 80s F
-2 passengers @ total 300 llbs.
-reading at 375 miles cumulative from Rindge, NH above: 51.5 mpg (total 375 miles if I remember correctly...didn't write it down);
---------------------------------------------------
Leg 3: Scranton...Boston

-new driver (the cuter one)
-driving speed (she doesn't use cruise) about 70mph
-4 passengers @ 450 llbs.
-AC manual set to max/cold (re-circ)
-outside temp 88F
-unfortunately, the new driver did not write down the MFD mileage reading when she filled up (she started with two blips of fuel left).
-However, after filling up, she drove another 258 miles at 52.5 mpg (MFD)
----------------------------------------------------

Conclusions:

1. Comfortreds caused no MPG hit; quite the contrary, this was all highway, and we matched our normal pre-comfortred, inter-surburban preformance;

2. This is all the more surprising given that the tires had no break-in at all; they were literally fresh off the racks;

3. Note that return trip with AC on max cold actually did a little better than outbound trip set at 73F (although prob not statistically significantly so);

4. Oh yes: the tires are a dream. One of my favorite things about the Prius is the silky smooth ride...the purr of the engine and the flawless (yes!) shifting of the CVT. But I have to tell you: with the Comfortreds, it is even better...the "THUMPS" under the tires become muffled "thwumps".

So: "THUMP THUMP THUMP" becomes "thwump thwump thwump"...hear the difference?

So there you have it. Real world data. Great tires.

 

[Thomme]

Leg 3: Scranton...Boston

Phoo - I'd have been leaving skid marks, no matter the brand of tire, leaving Scranton (coal-dust-coated town of my birth).

 

[DanMan32]

When mentioning driving conditions, it is VERY important to mention the length of your trips.

Driving 10 miles per trip is vastly different than driving 30 miles, with all other conditions being the same.

People forget this, and only focus on MPH, possibly AC use.

 

[Isabelle]

oops

>>>
When mentioning driving conditions, it is VERY important to mention the length of your trips.
>>

--Sorry. In the normal, "pre Comfortred" period, the daily commute of 25-30 minutes is over a distance of about 12-13 miles, usually 35 mph between stops. About 10 stop signs and lights. Some rolling hills. Pretty favorable Prius conditions.

--Another oops. An additional confounding variable to my earlier post about the comfortreds is that the engine filter was changed on exactly the same day as the tires --somewhat late-- so it was dirty. So the long trip described in my post was with a brandy new engine filter as well.

 

[edlambert]

Thanks Richard!

Great Job! I had Comfortreads on my last car and they ARE incredible.
However,there was an MPG hit of 1.5 mpg on my '01 Saab 9/5 so I was concerned...But not anymore! The comfortreads are especially good in snow! Thanks again for your input.
Regards,Ed

 

[Ray Moore]

When I changed my air filter at 31,000 miles, My mileage increased immediately by 2 MPG. You may be experiencing a 2 MPG penalty that is offset by the new filter. That would square with what has been reported by others.

 

[Pudwuzzy]

Comfort Treds

I replaced the OEM tires on my '05 Prius the day after I took delivery. The car had 19 miles on it. I now have 6500 miles on it and the Comfort Treds are doing just fine; smooth, quiet, etc., etc. The main reason I did this is the Comfort Treds have superior ratings in every catagory over the Intregras and the 80,000 treadwear warranty isn't shaggy either.

 

[Pudwuzzy]

Comfortred - Comfortred!!

Sorry about the goofy spelling on my other post.

 

[An04Prius]

My priority requirement on replacement tires (not ready for em yet) is quiet. I am willing to sacrifice just about any other variable: price, mpg, wear, etc to get the quietest possible.

Do you folks who have experienced the Comfortreds believe they are significantlly quieter ?? Any other info, thoughts on the quietest replacements for the OEM tires ?

thanks 8)

 

[edlambert]

Quiet....

Like the difference between night and day.
Ed

 

[Isabelle]

THUMP THUMP to muffled thwump thwump

Hey Polar Bear;

The quiet ride was my primary consideration as I researched
the tire replacement (and: getting up my driveway in December).

I will give you the testimony of my 10 year old cub:

"Hey bud, whaddya think of the new tires??"

The cub: "They're nice"

"Why are they nice?"

The cub: "It's quieter in here since you got new tires".

There you have it. All the more convincing as the cub values quiet
so that he can hear his Gameboy.

My adult opinion is the same. These are very quiet tires, and that's important given the poor state of the roads here in Boston.

Of course, tastes and ears vary, but I can't imagine that you would not notice the difference.

Notice that I have not obsessed on MPG...at least not in this post.

 

[An04Prius]

Re: THUMP THUMP to muffled thwump thwump

Hey Polar Bear;

The quiet ride was my primary consideration as I researched
the tire replacement (and: getting up my driveway in December).

I will give you the testimony of my 10 year old cub:

"Hey bud, whaddya think of the new tires??"

The cub: "They're nice"

"Why are they nice?"

The cub: "It's quieter in here since you got new tires".

There you have it. All the more convincing as the cub values quiet
so that he can hear his Gameboy.

My adult opinion is the same. These are very quiet tires, and that's important given the poor state of the roads here in Boston.

Of course, tastes and ears vary, but I can't imagine that you would not notice the difference.

Notice that I have not obsessed on MPG...at least not in this post.

thanks for the info, it's a noisy world, I like the quiet :wink:

 

[JDavies]

Good report... TY.. How much for the Comfortreads..vs Integritys..?