New Tires for the Escape

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My 2017 Ford Escape came with Michelin Energy Saver AS. They were pretty good tires for OE except for their wet weather performance. As time and miles went by, the hydroplaning got worse. At 26,000 miles they had to go. They were anywhere from 2/32 to 3/32 tread left. After a great deal of research and availability at the local Ford dealership, I went with Hankook Ventus s1 Noble 2. The Hankook is classified as a UHP all season tire. It's UTQG is 500 treadwear, AA traction, A temperature and a W speed rating. These things are far better than the Michelin OE tires in every aspect. I got a great deal on these tires and I have a $70 rebate coming. And finally, they were made in the USA. Thank you Capri Racer for answering some questions for me.
 
I'm surprised a '17 Escape came with Michelin Energy Saver A/S tires, as they are expensive in the aftermarket at $200 each or so. Ford gets them cheaper for sure though I guess. ...

That tire is found on many high-MPG hybrids, and electric vehicles as OE: Chevy Bolt & Volt; Ford C-Max Hybrid, Fusion Hybrid, & Focus Electric; Honda Accord Hybrid.
It is chosen for those since rolling resistance is about the lowest available today, kind of a specialty high-performance high-MPG low-hysteresis Michelin all-season invention.

If saving gas is important, that tire is about the best one can do. There are of course many other choices that would increase performance in other areas, although that infomation is hard to find clearly. The Hankooks you mentioned should be fine. .... Lately I've been into General G-MAX AS-05 & Kumho Ecsta 4x II tires, good all-around performers I'm running now. Rebates available and prices count as well.

It all depends on what driving properties you want to the most of: rain, snow, ice, dry, MPG (rolling resistance) .. all up to your priorities, and price of course.

Wet performance wasn't very good for the Hankooks in the tire rack test: https://www.tirerack.com/tires/tests/testDisplay.jsp?ttid=200
 
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Hankook only makes that particular tire in the USA in ONE size. The other sizes are made elsewhere. I'm guessing the one off tire made in the USA is used for an OEM.
The TireRack states that Hankook tire could use a bump in wet weather performance.
My tire research indicates the Kumho ECSTA 4X II is the tire to have for cold, wet weather performance. Pep Boys has a good deal on the Kumho's right now.
 
Originally Posted by skyactiv
My tire research indicates the Kumho ECSTA 4X II is the tire to have for cold, wet weather performance. Pep Boys has a good deal on the Kumho's right now.
Pep Boys has the same deal Discount Tire stores got a few months ago when I got mine. Good price when on sale like that. The Kumho's seem fine so far. I like asymmetric tread patterns, and these perform well. Still, the Hankooks the OP got sound pretty good.
 
I really wanted a tire that had good traction in rain. The OE Michelin Energy Saver was horrible in the rain when new. Sure, they were quite, gave a comfortable ride and had fair dry performance.These Hankook Tires are just as quiet. They are a little firmer. I expect the will last about as long as the Michelin Energy Saver. I really wanted the Toyo Proxes 4+ but, there seems to be a supply problem with some Toyo and Nitto tires according to the Ford dealership. I think I will be happy with these tires.
 
MParr, I see now, looking at some tests ( https://www.tirerack.com/tires/tests/testDisplay.jsp?ttid=121 ) that the Michelin Energy Savers were a bit bad in the wet. I never really noticed anything over the miles I drove on them.

You mentioned Nitto. At the time I was shopping replacements for Michelin Energy Savers, the unique tread pattern of the Nitto Neo Gens caught my eye. Unusual pattern, didn't know if it was really better than others. Looked great.
[Linked Image]
 
Michelin Energy Savers, a bit bad in the wet? I compare them to water skis. I looked at several brands with similar specs. They were the Nitto Motivo, Toyo Proxes 4+, Cooper RS3-G1. The tire distributor the Ford dealership uses couldn't get the Nitto or Toyo for some reason. It came down to the Cooper or the Hankook. I'm not real sure about the Cooper. I did know that Hyundai puts the Ventus S1 Noble 2 on the Genesis and higher end Sonatas.
 
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Originally Posted by oil_film_movies
MParr, I see now, looking at some tests ( https://www.tirerack.com/tires/tests/testDisplay.jsp?ttid=121 ) that the Michelin Energy Savers were a bit bad in the wet. I never really noticed anything over the miles I drove on them.

You mentioned Nitto. At the time I was shopping replacements for Michelin Energy Savers, the unique tread pattern of the Nitto Neo Gens caught my eye. Unusual pattern, didn't know if it was really better than others. Looked great.
[Linked Image]



I don't think I'd want to drive in the snow with a set of those.
 
My wifes 2017 Ford Escape 2.0t came with 19 inch wheels factory, and ContiProContact. At 22k miles the tires have over 50% tread left. I am not a big fan of Continental tires, but these have been pretty good.
 
https://www.discounttiredirect.com/buy-tires/continental-pure-contact/p/14022


My parents bought a 2015 Escape last year from a local dealer and it had new tires put on it just before they bought it, the link above is what tires they bought in Continentals


Nice looking tires and my parents said it handles great in the snow etc.

I see they are on the pricey side so they probably won't be going back on it when they need to be changed but so far they are wearing great.
 
Rubber chicken
I bought my Escape new and I wanted it equipped with the 17" wheels. I new that having the higher profile tire would give me the best overall ride. I knew the replacement tire costs would be cheaper. I knew there would be less of a chance in damaging a wheel from a pothole. If I lived in an area where we got snow, I probably would have chosen another type of tire or bought a dedicated snow tire and wheel combo.
 
Originally Posted by oil_film_movies
I'm surprised a '17 Escape came with Michelin Energy Saver A/S tires, as they are expensive in the aftermarket at $200 each or so. Ford gets them cheaper for sure though I guess. ...
That tire is found on many high-MPG hybrids, and electric vehicles as OE: Chevy Bolt & Volt; Ford C-Max Hybrid, Fusion Hybrid, & Focus Electric; Honda Accord Hybrid.
It is chosen for those since rolling resistance is about the lowest available today, kind of a specialty high-performance high-MPG low-hysteresis Michelin all-season invention.
If saving gas is important, that tire is about the best one can do. There are of course many other choices that would increase performance in other areas, although that infomation is hard to find clearly. The Hankooks you mentioned should be fine. .... Lately I've been into General G-MAX AS-05 & Kumho Ecsta 4x II tires, good all-around performers I'm running now. Rebates available and prices count as well.
It all depends on what driving properties you want to the most of: rain, snow, ice, dry, MPG (rolling resistance) .. all up to your priorities, and price of course.
Wet performance wasn't very good for the Hankooks in the tire rack test: https://www.tirerack.com/tires/tests/testDisplay.jsp?ttid=200

I think price vs. performance is a huge scam on many OEM tires, I know the flavor/size of Dueler that came on my FXT was crazy expensive on TireRack yet they were also quite possibly the worst tires I have ever had on a vehicle.
Pretty funny to see horrible user reviews for a tire they were asking $200+ for, as a point of reference I think the well regarded and sorta pricey Michelin Premier A/S was about $180 for the same size then (I see it is almost $200 now). I think I paid about $130 per tire for the Goodyear Eagle Sport A/S that I picked up for non-winter use after the OEMs wore out early and they flat out owned those Duelers in every way.
I think some people feel safer just buying the OEM tire at replacement time or maybe just don't do their research, and they then get fleeced for an inferior product.
 
I tend to take tire reviews with a grain of salt. I have been bitten in the rear after buying tires based on reviews in Consumer Reports and Tire Rack. The Goodyear Eagle Sport AS is an excellent tire. I have a set on my wife's KIA Optima. They run rings around the OE Kumho KH 25 tires.
 
Virtus_Probi & MParr, those Michelin Energy's aren't that bad in the wet. And not a bad all-around performer either. I drove on them for 40,000 miles & have few complaints. Tire Rack tested them and found them to be on the lower end, but OK, in the wet. Still over priced in the aftermarket. I steered away from them. pun

About consumer tire reviews, yes, they can be unreliable. Certainly not a real test.

Originally Posted by dishdude
I don't think I'd want to drive in the snow with a set of those.
Right! Thats what I thought. Makes me think they did that to look cool without real technical merit. Reminded me of the old Goodyear AquaTred which was not good in snow becuase it bunched-up the snow in the middle too much, but the tire was really interesting looking.
[Linked Image]
 
oil_film_movies
The Michelin Energy Savers were awful in the wet from day one for me. Different cars can perform differently. They were pretty good other than that.
 
My 2015 Chevy Equinox LT, AWD V6, came with Michelin Latitude Tour tires. I replaced them at 42,300 miles a few weeks ago with a set of Cooper Evolution Tour. All 4 Michelins were down to 4/32's tread depth. The Coopers ride better and are quieter than the Michelins ever were [even when the car was new].

The Coopers handle water way better than the Michelins. No hydroplaning, and the car feels better and even sounds different when going through water.

We had several inches of snow and ice yesterday and the Coopers performed flawlessly. The traction control light never came on during my nerve wracking 3hour drive home last night. It was quite impressive.

Fuel mileage is down about 1mpg with the Coopers. While Cooper advertises the Evolution Tour to be a "fuel efficient design", the Michelins had a slightly lower rolling resistance. However, I will gladly take the trade off in fuel mileage for the quieter and more compliant ride the Coopers provide.

My Dad has a 2010 Ford Escape. His also came new with Michelin Latitude Tour tires. He hated them, especially in the rain. He replaced them with Bridgestone Dueler Ecopia 422, and by the time they were worn out he decided they were noisy and wet weather performance was subpar. He put on a set of Firestone Destination LE2 after the Bridgestones and has been completely satisfied. Now that he is retired and only drives the Escape as a second car a few times a week, he said when it comes time to put another set of tires on the Escape he is going to go toward a more budget minded tire like Lexani, Nexen, etc.

Primary car for my parents is a 2013 Toyota Highlander. It came with Toyo Open Country A20 that were done after 25,000 miles or so. Replaced with Yokohama Geolandar G056 that have been absolutely great.
 
The Hankook Ventus S1 Noble 2 are broken in. I am really liking these tires. I haven't noticed any significant fuel mileage drop versus the OE Michelin Energy Saver tires. I have to say, they are indeed better than the Michelin from day one. I may get 30,000 miles out of these tires. That's OK, that's all I expected from the Michelin Energy Savers. Would I recommend the Hankook Ventus S1 N2? ABSOLUTELY!
 
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I run Michelin Pilot Sport A/S 3+ on my '14 Escape. I'm on my second set now. They are absolutely fantastic in the wet, including in torrential rain. Got about 45K miles out of the first set before I got rid of them at 4/32. They do pretty well in light snow too. I think I'll be continuing to use them for quite some time.
 
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