Fuel saver tyres

[MINESAPINT]

Guess this is the best board on here for this post......

Not sure how new they are but there seem to be a new breed of tyres around. Fuel savers. Apparently they are designed to have a low rolling resistance LRR. I understand they are fitted to electric & hybrid cars.

Although these tyres will not be available in the correct size or load rating for my Land Rover Defender I do need to purchase some new tyres and in order to make an informed decision I would like to know the rolling resistance of any tyres I am considering purchasing. However this information is not published, in fact I have been advised it is closely guarded secret.

I have used real information from people who have changed their tyres from standard to heavier winter tyres and have reported an increase in fuel consumption of approx 4 mpg. At the sort of prices we are paying for fuel this equates to an extra £300ish for someone doing 10,000 miles pa.

As the RR of a tyre has a direct effect on fuel consumption and consequently the environment I suggest the manufacturers should publish this information to enable us all to make more informed choices.

Minesapint

[The Riff-Raff Element]

As the RR of a tyre has a direct effect on fuel consumption and consequently the environment I suggest the manufacturers should publish this information to enable us all to make more informed choices.

Minesapint

Sometimes things that are held secret in one country are required to be published in another, which is often as good as secret because it is in Foreign. I'll have a look around the French bit of the interwebbythingy if you like but I have a feeling that the German / Dutch bit may be a happier hunting ground as those governments are more forceful about requiring the publication of such information. My Dutch is passable, but my German is non-exitent beyond asking the way to the railway station, but I believe we have some German speakers here....

[Green Aura]

One of my neighbours is German and this sort of info would be right up her street - I'll ask her if she fancies doing a reccy.

[greenorelse]

A neighbour, who I trust, runs a tyre centre and, when I asked him about 'fuel saver' tyres some years ago, he replied 'Pah! A scam!'. Not sure if they've changed much in that time, maybe they have. I must ask him again.

I remember replacing all four tyres at once on a car and the ride was noticeably quieter! Does this mean you might unwittingly drive faster?

[MINESAPINT]

It seems a lot of people are of the opinion the fuel saver tyre thing is just good sales patter. Others would not consider fitting them to their cars irrespective of the fuel savings as they believe them to be unsafe. They argue they save fuel because they have less grip. Because they have less grip they are dangerous.

How much of the above is true I have no idea. It is just what I have read.

One thing is clear to me is that different tyres have different characteristics. For my Land Rover Defener I could choose between tyres that are 100% designed to be used on the road then 20/80 50/50 80/20 and others in between.

When I go to purchase a fridge, washing machine, freezer or dishwasher I have the opportunity to purchase A B C or D rated appliances. Why not tyres??

I would be delighted if anyone could turn up data published in other countries but cannot understand why it is not published in the UK?

Mike

[Ellendra]

My dad's truck has LRR tires. Not deliberately, they were just made with the cheaper, harder rubber, which has the same effect. (Marketing is everything) Works great in the summer, but on an icy road the tires have no "grip", so his truck slides all over the place.

[MINESAPINT]

Just had a google. There is an entry in wikipedia for rolling resistance. There are also some RR values published for a few tyres but not the ones I am interested. There are also some links, it seems the residents of California have access to RR data.

Mike

[The Riff-Raff Element]

It seems a lot of people are of the opinion the fuel saver tyre thing is just good sales patter. Others would not consider fitting them to their cars irrespective of the fuel savings as they believe them to be unsafe. They argue they save fuel because they have less grip. Because they have less grip they are dangerous.

Mike

Appearantly their fitting to all new cars sold in Europe will be compulsory from 2012 First I'd heard of it.

And nowhere - yet - have I found a definition of what LRR will be required for a tyre to qualify, nor a table of brands for comparisson purposes, though there seems to be a high level agreement that Michelin are currently selling the best at the moment.

But actual figures...

The fuel saving has nothing whatsoever to do with reduced grip (there are legal specifications for that and they ain't been relaxed) but is to do with less energy being lost to the tyres in terms of heat and noise. All seems a bit nebulous to me.

[pumpy]

I think i'd just have tyres that grip the road properly, without all the technical hoo-ha.

[oldjerry]

Think I'll just end up with the cheapest....and drive slowly.

[The Riff-Raff Element]

Think I'll just end up with the cheapest....and drive slowly.

Yeah. That's what I do.

Ever since that bloody former assistant deputy vice chief constable of Manchester and his "I'm convinced that these tyres make a significant contribution to road safety!" tyre advertising has thrown me into an unaccountable rage. Particularly Pirelli with their "Buy our tyres and grow a bigger zizi" approach to the whole sordid buisness.

[oldjerry]

If I thought the Pirrelli claims were any good,I'd flog the motor and just keep the tyres!

[MINESAPINT]

There are many issues to consider when considering purchasing new tyres. The tyres on my Land Rover Defener 110 are Michelin XPC 7.50 x 16 and after only 19,000 are looking in need of replacing. This is compared with the tyres on my last 2 Land Rovers that I sold at 80,000 miles still running on the original tyres both with tons of tread left. These tyres were General Grabber A/T on a Land Rover Defener 110 200 TDI and BFG A/T on a 110 TD5.

I would need 5 or 6 sets of MIchelin XPC to cover the same mileage as the General & BFG tyres.

This consideration is quite apart from the fuel consumption issue.

Mike

[MINESAPINT]

Just managed to find out there is going to be a rating system introduced for tyres similar to the one for electrical goods in November 2012.

Minesapint

[The Riff-Raff Element]

Just managed to find out there is going to be a rating system introduced for tyres similar to the one for electrical goods in November 2012.

Minesapint

Now, that is a good idea. Do you a link to any details about how it will work, please?