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Tire decisions for 17" wheels

11K views 34 replies 14 participants last post by  ATR 
#1 · (Edited)
Recently I got a nice minty set of 04ish TSX wheels that look like they never were used on eBay. I've been searching for the last two weeks off and on. So I've really come to the conclusion that I should ask fellow accord drivers their thoughts on tires.
Bare in mind that I live in Maryland, so we do get some snow/ice in the winter. I have the stock 16" wheels that I can toss winter rubber on if needed. I *might* just sell the stockers and put all seasons on the 17's...
For the winter/summer combo,

Summer/all season tires:
Bridgestone Potenza RE970AS Pole Position
Continental ExtremeContact DWS
Bridgestone Turanza Serenity
Michelin Primacy MXV4
Yokohama AVID ENVigor

Winter (if I decide to keep the 16's):
Dunlop SP Winter Sport 3D
Continental ExtremeWinterContact
Michelin X-Ice Xi2
General Altimax Arctic

I currently have the yokohama h4s on the 16's that are very close to needing replacement (next 5-7k miles). While I'm happy with the performance of these tires, I'm not as happy with the hit in gas mileage that I got. With the OE Turanza EL41's I got roughly 32-34mpg depending on how mean I am to the car. Now I get at best 32mpg. That's with ~70-80% highway driving.

I'm not too worried about the winter tires as they will be on the car ~3-5 months out of the year (that is again if I keep the 16's).


I'd like to play the ultimate balancing act here and rate my priorities:

all season performance traction... rain, snow, sunny, hot and cold. I'd like a decent feel of the road as well. I simply can't stand tires that feel like I have a giant marshmallow under each corner of the car.

Mileage... It'd be nice to get a tire on the 17's that got close to what I was able to get MPG wise with the OE set of tires.

Noise/comfort... This is an area I'm not too picky about so long as it's not super intrusive. The yokohama H4S (H rated) I found to be fine noise wise until recently. Also, while I don't want a tire that will jar me on every single bump I hit I again don't want it to feel like a Lincoln town car.

Tread life... So long as they last at least 30-40k I'm happy. Anymore then that it's a bonus. I'm pretty pleased that the H4S lasted the 35k that they have. I have a feeling they will make it to 40k.

My driving style is for the most part pretty average. Though at times I do tend to drive spirited. So I'm leaning in the direction of a good performance tire.
 
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#4 ·
I appreciate the comment, but I'd like a bit more insight on why you're recommending them.

I'm rollin' the Bridigestone Turanza Serenity's right now. Have about 10,000 miles on 'em and really like 'em. Fairly grippy and VERY QUIET, which is what I was going for. Don't notice much change in mileage from the stock Michelins (which would hydroplane if someone spit in the street) or a set of BFG Super Sport A/S that I had on for about 30,000 miles and took off early because I couldn't handle the road noise.
Nice! :thmsup:
Do you remember what modem michelins you had?
Have you had the chance to romp around in the snow with the Turenzas yet?
 
#3 ·
I'm rollin' the Bridigestone Turanza Serenity's right now. Have about 10,000 miles on 'em and really like 'em. Fairly grippy and VERY QUIET, which is what I was going for. Don't notice much change in mileage from the stock Michelins (which would hydroplane if someone spit in the street) or a set of BFG Super Sport A/S that I had on for about 30,000 miles and took off early because I couldn't handle the road noise.
 
#5 ·
I have Primacy MXV4's H rated on my 05' and MXM4 V rated on the 06'. I prefer the older M4's for wet and dry grip though they are wider and have a narrower sidewall and softer compound. Can't comment on wear yet but the V4's have not worn spectacularly with normal rotation and mostly sedate driving. Looking at about 22k to the wear bars. I'm not impressed with their wet traction either as was mentioned. Going to try to get some prorating... You should check out tirerack for some tests if you haven't.
 
#10 ·
Yeeesh! I expected much better then 22k out of the mxv4's. Normally the H rated tires last longer from what I'm lead to believe from reviews and such. I've also read similar comments regarding their wet traction or rather lack there of.

Check out the Nitto Motivo.
They look interesting:
http://www.driveaccord.net/forums/showthread.php?t=6708
However they JUST came out so there aren't too many people that have them on their car yet for more then 1000-3000 or so miles. And very few if any have seen snow yet :(
Though the 60k tread-life warranty does look pretty sweet!

I'd go with the Continentals too. I've been recommending them ever since they came out.

They're a great all season tire. And they meet most of your requirements....

- very good all season performance traction
- low noise
- long treadlife

Not too sure how they do in the MPG area though.

Check out Tire Rack's review as well.


I recommended the Bridgestone Potenza RE960AS before and the RE970AS are it's replacements and are suppose to be better. Knowing what I know about the DWS's, I'd still go with those.

The DWS are also lighter than the RE970AS so you'll see a MPG increase with the DWS.
I'm really leaning in the direction of the DWS. They seem to fill pretty much every want/need I have for tires. the only thing I'm fuzzy about is not much info about MPG.
Are you currently running the DWS on your accord?


I would go with all season michelin primacy
Care to elaborate on your experience with them? I'm not looking for a book, just a brief 1-5 sentence explanation on why you're recommending them and how it fits my needs.


I can't really tell you which is best. But I do have 2 of the tires on your list, so I'll give you my impressions of them.

Yokohoma Avid Envigor.
I replaced my Bridgestone Potenza RE050A Pole Position's this spring with the Yokohama's. The Envigors have very good wet and dry traction, good on center feel along with good turn in feel. I was put off at first because they felt a lot softer. I was concerned they might not handle as well (mine are H-rated) as I wanted, but I was pleased to find that they gripped well and were perfectly predictable when pushed. An offshoot is that they are quite comfortable. They are not the quietest tire I've owned, but not to the point that I would characterize them as noisy or objectionable. I really bought mine as summer tires so I can't comment on winter traction, but ratings indicate they should be fair to good. Similarly ratings indicate you should get the thread life you're looking for. I've seen no mpg decrease as a result of the tires and of course Yokohama claims they provide good mileage.

General Altimax Arctic
I've had these on my wife's 03 for 3 winters and put a set on mine last winter. That should tell you that I think they are good winter tires. I believe that most winter tires are biased toward either snow or ice performance. The Generals are probably biased toward snow since their performance in the snow is very good in my opinion. I don't have experience with other winter tires but I can't imagine anything being much better in snow. They are also very soft and squishy feeling but ride very well as a result. I found that adding an extra 4 - 5 lbs of pressure seemed to help them. And they are noisy. However I consider these drawbacks as reasonable trade offs for their grip.

To change the subject a bit. Have you considered going with 235/45-17 instead of the 215/20-17 stock size? For your all-season's of course. Presuming the TSX rims are wide enough to support them. I felt the car benefited from a slightly larger tire. Again I didn't note any significant mpg decrease as a result. Your list of choices look well researched and I'd expect that you'll be happy with your ultimate choice.
Those RE050A's are some pretty serious tires. At least in the dry. Your experience with the Envigers sounds very similar to my thoughts on the older H4S. They still do great in the rain even with only 5/32 tread remaining. They even did fairly good on i95 during the snowpocolipse a couple years back. Though at the time they had a full tread.

Thanks for the info on the General altimaxs! I figured they would be a bit squishy they are meant for severe winter conditions after all. How many PSI did you pump it up to? And how's the overall dry traction with them?

215/20-17?! :tongue:
The tsx wheels are 17x7". I'm thinking that overall the best size will be the stock 215/50-17. That's the stock size for the tsx as and the recommended +1 size on tirerack for my accord.
 
#14 ·
I'm really leaning in the direction of the DWS. They seem to fill pretty much every want/need I have for tires. the only thing I'm fuzzy about is not much info about MPG.

Are you currently running the DWS on your accord?
MPG for the DWS should be better than the others in your group due to weight.

Comparing 215/50-17 size:

Bridgestone Potenza RE970AS Pole Position = 25 lbs
Continental ExtremeContact DWS = 21 lbs
Bridgestone Turanza Serenity = 26 lbs
Michelin Primacy MXV4 = 24 lbs
Yokohama AVID ENVigor = 26 lbs

You should also keep in mind that going from 16" to 17" wheels/tires will also decrease your MPG.

I'm not running the DWS. I have the Hankook Ventus V12 Evo's right now. I really wanted the DWS, but at the time they were so popular that they were back-ordered. I waited almost 3 months for them before giving up and going with the Hankook.
 
#16 ·
MPG for the DWS should be better than the others in your group due to weight.

Comparing 215/50-17 size:

Bridgestone Potenza RE970AS Pole Position = 25 lbs
Continental ExtremeContact DWS = 21 lbs
Bridgestone Turanza Serenity = 26 lbs
Michelin Primacy MXV4 = 24 lbs
Yokohama AVID ENVigor = 26 lbs

You should also keep in mind that going from 16" to 17" wheels/tires will also decrease your MPG.

I'm not running the DWS. I have the Hankook Ventus V12 Evo's right now. I really wanted the DWS, but at the time they were so popular that they were back-ordered. I waited almost 3 months for them before giving up and going with the Hankook.
Have you had to drive in snow with the hankook's yet? Those looked like a nice summer/warm weather only kinda tire.
I'm scouring the web for more reviews on the DWS and they seem like they will be the ones I end up with. They seem to do everything I need them to be able to do. Chances are good if it snows more then a foot or so everything will be shut down regardless of what tires I have on my car. That's just the way it is here in Maryland. so decent all seasons will likely be what I end up with.


I really liked the RE050A's which were also really good in the wet, but not surprisingly barely lasted 20,000 miles. The Envigor's are nearly their equal with the advantage of a better ride, no tendency to follow ruts like the Bridgestones and hopefully a longer life.

The Altimax's seem less squishy this winter. I'm not sure if it's just me or that putting some miles on them last winter helped reduce the feeling. I'm putting in about 4 - 5 lbs more than what Honda calls for on the stock tires. So probably about 36/33 front/rear. Dry traction seems ok. It's kind of hard to tell since I don't put them on till it's about 40 degrees or less and I just don't do any spirited driving in cold weather.


Oops, another typo for me. 215/50-17 was my coupe's stock size and using similar logic the 235/45-17 is the stock size tire for the TL wheels I bought. The 215's should be a worthwhile upgrade for you and should go well with he 7" rim width. One of the reasons I went with the TL wheels is that they are 8" wide which I thought was a good improvement over my stock 6.5" wheels which I felt would not allow optimal results with a wider tire.
Thanks for the info man!! :thmsup:

What wheels exactly are you using from the TL? any pix? :biggrin:
 
#9 ·
I can't really tell you which is best. But I do have 2 of the tires on your list, so I'll give you my impressions of them.

Yokohoma Avid Envigor.
I replaced my Bridgestone Potenza RE050A Pole Position's this spring with the Yokohama's. The Envigors have very good wet and dry traction, good on center feel along with good turn in feel. I was put off at first because they felt a lot softer. I was concerned they might not handle as well (mine are H-rated) as I wanted, but I was pleased to find that they gripped well and were perfectly predictable when pushed. An offshoot is that they are quite comfortable. They are not the quietest tire I've owned, but not to the point that I would characterize them as noisy or objectionable. I really bought mine as summer tires so I can't comment on winter traction, but ratings indicate they should be fair to good. Similarly ratings indicate you should get the thread life you're looking for. I've seen no mpg decrease as a result of the tires and of course Yokohama claims they provide good mileage.

General Altimax Arctic
I've had these on my wife's 03 for 3 winters and put a set on mine last winter. That should tell you that I think they are good winter tires. I believe that most winter tires are biased toward either snow or ice performance. The Generals are probably biased toward snow since their performance in the snow is very good in my opinion. I don't have experience with other winter tires but I can't imagine anything being much better in snow. They are also very soft and squishy feeling but ride very well as a result. I found that adding an extra 4 - 5 lbs of pressure seemed to help them. And they are noisy. However I consider these drawbacks as reasonable trade offs for their grip.

To change the subject a bit. Have you considered going with 235/45-17 instead of the 215/20-17 stock size? For your all-season's of course. Presuming the TSX rims are wide enough to support them. I felt the car benefited from a slightly larger tire. Again I didn't note any significant mpg decrease as a result. Your list of choices look well researched and I'd expect that you'll be happy with your ultimate choice.
 
#18 ·
Looks great!! are you lowered at all?
I considered those weels as well, but I wanted OE wheels that were light the lightest I could find was the 2004 TSX wheels. They were supposed to be ~21lbs, but after weighing them it turned out to be 22lbs even. Everything else was ~25-28lbs per wheel :eek:

Anyway, after really considering all the choices I may just grab the DWS tires. I'm not completely 100% happy with them from some of the reviews that I've read about them being a bit squirmy. However, they fit the bill better then any other tire out there at the moment unless someone would like to say something at the last minute :p
 
#20 ·
Thanks, you're too kind. No, it's not lowered. Actually I kind of like the idea that my car should be kind of "invisible". What is sometimes called a Q-Ship. There must be a bazillion silver Honda Accords. Silver is often the most popular color for all cars and the Accord is kind of ubiquitous. Based on the research I did on tires this spring when I was shopping I would also go with the DWS's if I didn't have winter tires. I also had some previous model all season Conti's on my last car and I liked them enough to buy a 2nd set. If you're inclined to do so, I would enjoy reading your impressions of the Conti's after you've had them for a while.

Same reason I got the 8" winde TL rims as well (my avatar is still the old rims), I think I might even go for 245 width tires next time around, but I drive less now because I'm closer to the new(er) job so it might be a while before I need to replace these tires.
You're probably right about the 245's. I thought long and hard about them each time I bought tires. They should grip well and fit fine. I was concerned about weight, mpg, and cost. Ok, ok, mostly cost. :)
 
#21 ·
You will experience a pretty significant increase in heaviness of steering if you get the Envigor. Not only because of the tire's characteristic but also the tire's weight increase. My mileage decreased when I went from stock Michelin's to the Yoko Envigor. My wet and dry tracking got way better however. I have driven in the snow with the Envigor and I don't recommend it, you will slip when you brake. How do I know? I almost got into accidents twice. Now I have a set of 16" RSX rims with snow tires. The immediate feel change was the lightness of steering when I put them on, also quicker acceleration off the line. The more unsprung weight you add, the more off-the-line acceleration you suffer. Braking effort is greater also.
 
#22 ·
The heaviness of steering is due to actual dry grip. The stock Michelins are not designed for that, so you can spin the wheel while the car isn't even moving quite easily. It takes me a lot of force to spin my wheel if I'm motionless with super sticky tires on my front wheels.
 
#23 ·
Recently I got a nice minty set of 04ish TSX wheels that look like they never were used on eBay. I've been searching for the last two weeks off and on. So I've really come to the conclusion that I should ask fellow accord drivers their thoughts on tires.
Bare in mind that I live in Maryland, so we do get some snow/ice in the winter. I have the stock 16" wheels that I can toss winter rubber on if needed. I *might* just sell the stockers and put all seasons on the 17's...
For the winter/summer combo,

Summer/all season tires:
Bridgestone Potenza RE970AS Pole Position
Continental ExtremeContact DWS
Bridgestone Turanza Serenity
Michelin Primacy MXV4
Yokohama AVID ENVigor

I'd like to play the ultimate balancing act here and rate my priorities:

all season performance traction... rain, snow, sunny, hot and cold. I'd like a decent feel of the road as well. I simply can't stand tires that feel like I have a giant marshmallow under each corner of the car.

Mileage... It'd be nice to get a tire on the 17's that got close to what I was able to get MPG wise with the OE set of tires.

Noise/comfort... This is an area I'm not too picky about so long as it's not super intrusive. The yokohama H4S (H rated) I found to be fine noise wise until recently. Also, while I don't want a tire that will jar me on every single bump I hit I again don't want it to feel like a Lincoln town car.

Tread life... So long as they last at least 30-40k I'm happy. Anymore then that it's a bonus. I'm pretty pleased that the H4S lasted the 35k that they have. I have a feeling they will make it to 40k.

My driving style is for the most part pretty average. Though at times I do tend to drive spirited. So I'm leaning in the direction of a good performance tire.
I'll put in my two cents worth and say that I have been impressed by the Michelin Primacy MXV4's I bought in October 2010. I also have 17 inch wheels (it's a V6 SE) and got the V rated one. I love how they handle, they're quiet and they did great in a snowstorm here last January. I have had minimal tread wear on them (maybe up to 2/32's over 15 K miles) However, they are expensive, so I would compare them with the other ones mentioned elsewhere on this thread for cost/value/performance, etc. Good luck!
 
#24 ·
Thanks alot for the input man! at this point I'm pretty much set on grabbing the DWS's.
They have a 60 day ride guarantee along with the best snow traction for all season tires from the tests I've read so far.

The Primacys were a pretty close second. I wanted to ask what you thought about the ride quality and road handling of the MXV4's. How do they feel during abrupt turning maneuvers? How's the road noise with them so far? And also, how's gas mileage compared to the OE tires?
 
#25 ·
I can say my 16'' V4's are very quiet and composed. The ride is above average and the handling is not bad in quick transitions... at least relative to the capability of the suspension. The snow performance is fine as well just an insecure feeling in the rain, no real hydroplaning just not confidence inspiring.... hard to explain. Can't comment on the mileage vs.stock.
 
#26 ·
I can say my 16'' V4's are very quiet and composed. The ride is above average and the handling is not bad in quick transitions... at least relative to the capability of the suspension. The snow performance is fine as well just an insecure feeling in the rain, no real hydroplaning just not confidence inspiring.... hard to explain. Can't comment on the mileage vs.stock.
FWIW: a second opinion.......

I went thru a heavy socal storm 3/2011. Saw four major traffic pileups on four differing freeways.....fire trucks, police, flashing lights - really bad scenes. Primacy MXV4 tires inspired this sailor as he headed toward nocal with great confidence. But the are a tad pricey (which is why I remained in the Navy Reserve)........

ez
 
#29 ·
Finally made the decision to go with a set of tires...
I got the Michelin Primacy MXV4 215/50 17 V.

Got a bit of highway and back roads driving in. They are a little nosier then the Yokohama H4S that I had on the 16's. But that was to be expected because these mxv4's are a one two punch of V rated and plus sized tires. They have a 55k mile warranty according to the paperwork that came with them. We'll see how well they'll last with time.

Playing the ultimate balancing act of MPG, treadlife, road feel, wet, dry & light snow seems these tires forte.

I'll try to update in a few weeks with a MPG update...
 
#30 ·
I have my 03 v6 mt6 since day one, and I have 160,000 Km on it now. It came with factory mounted 215/50 17 Michelins cant remember which ones though. Tires lasted for about 80,000km they weren't teribly bad
mounted Pirellis 225/45 17 Pero neros M+S v, what a mistake. loud from day one, lasted about a year and wore down with in a year and could never ballance them properly
switched over to Pirellis P4 225/45 17 what a fantastic tire, 2 years on them now and still going great
 
#32 · (Edited)
So I was looking at the tires today after I scraped a curb lightly while parking and noticed that I didn't get the MXV4. I actually have the Primacy MXM4. Paperwork confirmed that I did indeed pay for the MXM4.

I'm able to get some decent mpg out of them as well so far. First tank I drove it like I didn't care about mileage and got ~30mpg (about what I got out of my old tires). The last tank I drove a bit more gingerly and ended up with 32mpg.

Handling/ride wise...
They handle very well. Much better then the yokohamas I had on there before. Turn in is much crisper. Which is to be expected since I plus sized and went up in speed rating.
Now, all things considered I didn't expect the ride to be as comfortable as it is. These tires ride very well. And tire noise is a bit less then the yokos as well.
 
#33 ·
I put on a set of primacy MXM4's about a month ago.. they're technically a rung up the ladder performance wise from the Primacy V4 which I have on my 05'. They don't wear quite as well according to the rating but its close. I'm very happy so far. Better in the rain, a bit better on off ramps all out, not quite as good in the snow but competent. Purely subjective of course but hopefully they wear well. I've got about 30k on the V4's and they are about 30%. Not impressive but ill get them prorated. My heavy foot certainly doesn't help.
 
#34 ·
I must say I'm quite happy with my accidental choice. These tires were not even in the running for most likely to buy.

That said from a few reviews that I've read on them they might need a set of winter tires if the weather gets rough. I figured the way this winter is going I won't have much to worry about this year. (I really hope those aren't famous last words :paranoid:)
 
#35 ·
A bit of a update on the tires. I still love 'em!
They've seen all kinds of weather that you can throw at 'em.
a few weeks ago I had to drive home from work in a "winter's last gasp" sleet/freezing rain mix. This is one area they don't do very well in. I was able to just barely keep from loosing it just before a turnabout (sharp right just before the turnabout had me wondering if I'd be kissing the car coming the other way).

They are otherwise a great 3 and a half season tire. They deal with rain very well and aren't sliding all over the place as soon as rain hits the ground. They have a very nice and balanced overall feel too. sporty when called on (17" wheels help) yet very quiet when I'm just crusing on the highway.
 
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