Ya..the sensors are wireless and transmit to a reciever in the car. I'm not sure if there are four recievers for all tires for just one for all. dunno...

But as far as the alignment, I woulnd't worry about it on just tires. Unless you've tagged a curb, or possibly autocross alot you should be okay. If you do get some pull after tires, it's most likely a bad install or they F'd somehting up.

Actually when I went in for my 15k mile service, my rep told me the same thing. I said I'm getting tires elsewhere, but she mentioned that i'd be coming back from the alignment. RIIIIGHT i told her. Hope she isn't still waiting.

 

I too have the Goodyear Eagle F1 GS3s in 235/50/17. The difference from the old Turanzas is night and day. My slip light would come on during any spirited turn before. Now it seldom comes on.

I'm running about 38psi and feel like they might want more pressure. They're rated up to 51psi I believe. Anyone got recommendations?

 

Anyone notice a marked drop in gas mileage when moving to stickier wider tires? Mine seems to have dropped by 3-4 miles per gallon coincidental with mounting my new Eagle F1s.

 

What??? You kidding right?

I am only getting 17mpg and I am considering swapping for 235/40/17. If it drops 3 to 4 miles then I am down to 13mpg. That's probably as bad a mpg as driving a bus.

Can some of you that swap to a wider tires confirm this?

 

Hmmm...then what is it running on? Batteries? Then if that's the case, don't you need to change the batteries eventually?

 

for the life of mine I ran 34psi and the result was a completely even wear throughout the width of the tire, so I guess I was doing something right

With the F1's being as soft as they are though rotation every 3k is kind of important. I did manage to stick to that.

In response to the alignment questions... If you're taking off, rotating, or otherwise inspecting tires and you see lots of wear on one side of any tire then that might tell you it's time for an alignment. As far as simply changing tires though alignments are generally unnecessary.

 

I definitely noticed a drop in MPG going from 215s to 245s. Went from around 20 to around 17. ...Of course the turanzas are like ice skates so going from those to anything would have decreased MPG I'm sure. I'll let you know if I see an INCREASE in the next week when I go from 245 to 235.

...Incidentally, I was just having this conversation with my wife... The Eagle F1's at the wear bars STILL provide better hydroplane resistance than the Turanzas when they're new. It's a crazy world.

 

Hmm...it's that true I don't even know if I should up the width. My mpg's are as bad as it is. A v8 mustang probably gets better mileage. It's insane.
Adding width shaves off as much as 3mpg??? A lot of people here up their tires to 19 inches. Can someone chip in their mpg after the upgrade? I mean if we get like 15 - 17mpg then the ones running 275's should be getting like 10 mpg.

 

Bear in mind I went from turanzas to F1s. I think if I'd done that, regardless of width, I'd have seen a decrease in MPG. Remember the Turanzas have about as much traction as an air-hockey puck.

I also changed to the F1s in November and I think this car seems to get less MPG in colder weather anyways (which doesn't make much sense but there ya go)

I think I somehow worked back up to 19mpg with the F1s so it may have been a combination of weather conditions and just putting on new tires period.

 

I have the Michelin Pilot Sports A/S on my car...I LOVE them!! excellent grip in the snow and SUPERB in dry/wet weather..I have gone as far as driving faster then like 80mph in the pouring rain on the highway taking sharp turns and these tires grip like crazy..HIGHLY recommended..

 

These are on your Contour though...right? Yeah those wheels are nice but it's hell alot more expensive than the Avon's 550's. I know it's probably better but Avon's + installation and balancing and you still have money left in your pocket vs the Pilots.

 

I'll start monitoring my MPG and let you all know if I see a drop over the next few fill-ups. I don't really see how the tires alone would provide a drop in MPG, unless the extra mass from more tire requires more power to turn.

Also, have you considered that you might be driving harder or faster in your car since you got the wider tires. Cause a wider tire does allow for more traction, hence more spirited driving.

I've had two mustang Gt's in my life all performance upgraded and tires upgraded and when doing the tires, never noticed the MPG decreasing. Of course when you are only getting 12 MPG it really doesn't matter

I wonder if the G's are this sensitive?

 

Got the Wide Ovals on yesterday, pushed them a little but they're still a little greasy from the factory so I will reserve judgement and a more complete review until at least the weekend.

The short answer is, these seem like solid tires. Much quieter than the F1's and Turanzas.

Although there's only a 10mm difference in the advertised tread width (235 vs 245) from what I had before, the actual contact patch is considerably smaller than the F1's based on a rounder edge, and when driving, it's noticable. (Though as yet this is not a negative thing) - Steering is easier and lighter feeling but at the expense of a more solid, anchored feeling on the road that I got with the F1s.

Traction so far has been 1000x better than the turanzas but somewhat less than the F1's (of course 235 vs 245 has some effect there).

Wet traction seems great so far.

When pushing these tires to the limit, they'll let you know before you lose traction. They do squeal more than the F1s ever did (under heavy cornering), but I think this is a good thing. With the F1s, traction was binary. You were either gripping or you were sliding and there was no gentle introduction to the latter. With these you are much more forewarned that you're about to lose traction and I think it makes handling a lot more predictable. They also seem to hook back up after losing traction in a much more predictable and linear fashion that the F1s. But having said all this, the F1s had a much higher threshold for traction loss.

I'll post more as I discover more but I'm very happy so far, they are nice looking, grippy tires, with great dry and wet (wet was important for me) at a very low cost. I picked these up for $123 a piece which is over $40 cheaper than the F1's and supposedly I should be seeing close to 30K from them.

 

Thanks for all the practical tire reviews!! I am ready to bite the bullet and replace my RSA's with new rubber, and had narrowed it down to the Avon 550's, the Pirelli P-Zero Nero M+S, and possibly the Michelin Pilot Sport A/S. I have to look at bang-for-the-buck though, so will most likely check out the Avon's mostly for financial reasons.

Anybody have some long-term experiece with the Pirelli P-Zero Nero M+S? How are they in winter driving.

I am a foriegner here in the midwest, having moved from North Texas. The winters are unpredictable here (light one year & 12" of snow the next) and I need a tire that can do it all. In Texas, I was used to 2-3 days of sloppy snow/ice a year, but up here in ShowMe-land...who knows?!!

Any help would be appreciated. Thanks!!

 

I definitely agree the Horenzas are like Hockey pucks, I can't even drive out of my apartment complex w/o the slip light coming on... So essentially if I get the Avon 550's there shouldn't be any issues? How does ordering them from tire rack work, can I get them balanced / fitted any place I'd like? My roommate has a Michelin Pilot Premier I think, are the A/S directional?