I need to replace OEM Bridgestone Turanzas on a 2009 Honda Fit.

The Bridgestones were, for me, decent tires that made it to 50,000 miles (about 25,000 on the highway, and 25000 on severe New Orleans city streets).

I want to preserve fuel economy, maintain the current level of performance, and possibly improve the ride quality on rough streets.

The Bridgestone Ecopia EP422 seems like it meets these requirements. I'm considering that tire in the 195/55 and 205/50 sizes, and also considering going with the OEM Dunlops in the 185/55 size.

New wheels are not an option; we want to keep the stock 16x6 alloy wheels.

Any experiences with the EP422 tire? Any comparisons between 195/55, or 205/50 tires?

TireRick's site shows 185/55R16 as the only size available in regular tires for OEM Sport wheels. TireRack does show the 205/50 as an alternative for winter tires. Both TireRack and DiscountTire's phone reps say either size will work, so I wonder why they're not listed as an optional alternatives.

For what it's worth, I found an excellent tire size comparison tool online:

Ejelta.com: Tire Size Calculator: 185/55-16

 

If you decide on the OEM 185/55-16 Dunlops, I'm selling them off my 2012 Fit Sport I recently bought. They only have approx 400 miles on them, and I'd take $175 for all four (Tirerack sells them for $103 each).

My new tires will be mounted this weekend, so these will be available on Sunday.

BTW, I bought a set of Continental DWS tires in 205/50-16 to replace my almost new Dunlops. I would highly recommend looking at those tires in that size. Look on www.tirerack.com to read the reviews for that tire.

 

I'm interested in the tires. Can you find out how much shipped to 07726? Thanks

 

OP, the 185/55 will get you better fuel economy while the 205/50 will give you better handling and likely less issue with "drifting" due to uneven surfaces or wind. Neither will likely provide you any softer ride quality as the sidewall height will remain the same if you want to keep the overall diameter the same. Smaller wheel would be the way to go there and that's not an option for you. The 195/55 may prove to be a bit more comfortable but the car will ride a little bit higher and the odo/speedo will be a little bit high which can have its negatives... My winter tires are setup this way but I like having my summer tires at the stock diameter.

The OEM Dunlops are supposedly worse than the Bridgestones but for $175, that ain't bad at all. I'd go with the Continental DWS or the hankooks as they seem to be decently priced. with a good tread wear rating.

~SB

 

205/50/16 Continental DWS, period! Had em' on my Fit and they perf in EVERY situation and believe me, I got the chance to test them in everything, rain, sleet and snow....flying colors and they're a 50k tire and they're even Z-speed rated, can't beat that!

 

195/55/16 in high performance all seasons or max summer would be perfection!

i also have the conti dws in 205/50/16 and ive had them for about 30k miles. my mpg has dipped a bit but i am enjoying the stability and handling benefits.

195/55/16 would increase stability and overall grip while retaining the original mpg unlike when you go 205.

p.s. the stock dunlop on the fit sport is the worst tires ive ever drove on.

 

I much prefer the Dunlops. My parents' GE comes with the Bridgestones, while I have the Dunlops. I've driven theirs enough to be able to assess the differences between the 2 tires...The Dunlops favor performance as they have tremendous lateral grip, quicker steering response, even quieter ride but a firmer ride, although it feels correct for the Fit. The Bridgestones dampen the ride just a tad more, but it feels like the Dunlops with only 26-28 psi, IOW, they feel mushy by comparison and the handling, even around town, is noticeably sloppier. Add to this the fact that my parents' car is an AT, while mine is MT, and my car feels like a different car entirely...like a sports car.

 

205/5016 is the way to go. also, really any tire you get in this size is going to be much better than the stock 185's. I love my 205's, but fyi, you will lose a couple mpg because of the bigger size. Well worth it imo!

 

Multi-generational Fits. I like that. I agree about the feel, especially given the closer ratios of the MT. I wish it had another top gear for the highway, but it's acceptably smooth and quiet up through about 75 mph.

That speed kills the mileage, so we tend to hang down around 65 on road trips. With the AC off, we top 40 MPG.

I ran some live comparisons between GPS and OBD speeds, and even with the stock 185 Bridgestones worn down to the indicator bars, the OBD (speedometer) is about 1-2% slower than GPS. (This presumes the HTC Android GPS speed is accurate). With that, I didn't want to go to a larger diameter with the 195/55s and increase that error.

The Conti DWS are tempting, If not for the annual trip to frozen climes, the Conti DW summer-only tire is another choice I considered. We do a lot of highway miles and fuel economy is important, and I'm worried about the extra width creating additional wind and contact patch drag. With that in mind, I'm ordering the 205/50r16 Ecopia 422s (which, by the way, have suddenly turned up short in Tire Rack's inventory. Nevada is the only warehouse with them as of today).

Tire Rack says they sell these with no clearance issues. The stock Mugen wheel has nearly the same offset (55 vs 53 mm), is 0.5 inches wider, and comes with the 205/50 size. The 205/50 tire is rated for 5.5-7.0 inch wheel widths.

Ours (OP) is an MT. The only issue we've had is the tearing and separation of the rubber grip on the shift knob, which I replaced with the Honda stitched leather knob that we all like. The ratios are ideal for city and hill driving, but I do wish there was a sixth gear for the highway. I agree that it really is a different car with the manual--one of the best kept secrets out there, as it's both fun to drive and roomy enough for a vacationing family of four.

 

Both My Droid X2 & Garmin show Identical speeds which are almost always 1-2mph higher than what the fit says. it seems like the tires are either undersized in 185/55 or he odometer is off. Upsizing to a 185/65/15" (smaller wheel, taller tire) for my snows gives me dead-on speed ratings with my Garmin & Droid.

~SB

 

Wouldn't that be lower than what the fit says. Ie, fit says 40 but GPS say 38 or 39.

With stock, my GPS was showing that I was going slower than the Fit said on the speedo. But 205/50/16 tires made the speedo and GPS match, despite the fact the tire is very close in size (could be the extra pressure I was using 38 new tires vs 35 in stock).

 

Hmmmm the overall diameter of the 205/50 & 185/55 is almost identical. the difference is literally 0.2% so you shouldn't see any difference... unless... It could be that your old tires were worn enough to make a difference (if you measured at the end of your OE tires life and the beginning of the conti's.)

As for me, since the Fit's odometer is based upon tire revolutions/mile, when I am traveling 60mph, the fit thinks I will have 840 revolutions per mile (1 minute) based upon the OE tires. If I put 840 revolutions on my winter tires, I'll have actually traveled 103' further than the OE tires which means if I travel 5,383' in 1 minute, I'll be traveling at 61.1mph. Since my odometer was saying I was running 58-59mph when the GPS Said 60, the Additional tire thickness evens things out.

~SB

 

I drove the dunlop only up to 13k miles... then I got a bubble and a tiny hole IN that bubble. From my best guess, it had at least half of its life left.

like i said, i know the 205/50 are close in size to 185/55, but I also mentioned that I used more pressure in the tires. i also think the 185/55 are cheap enough that the sidewalls deform more than the Continental tires.

The change in speed was about 1 mph at 35. ie, the Fit would say I was going about 35, but the GPS (and local police "your speed is" radar posts) would say 34.

This was true from the day I picked up my fit.

Once I replaced the tires, the Fit would match my GPS (and police). However, after some 22k miles, they are showing some difference again, though it could be the recent temperature drop and my not refilling the air in the past few weeks.

it's speedometer, not odometer.

again, i mean, you should not be saying.

but instead

Because yes, by up-sizing your tires, you are increasing the actual distance traveled per revolution. Which means that external measurements of the car's speed would go UP... and those external ones are the GPS and phone. And if they match AFTER up-sizing... it also means that prior to up-sizing (ie stock), the actual speed is lower than indicated. ie, GPS shows 38 when Fit shows 40.

uh, you're confusing the matter.

if you're speedometer was INDICATING 58-59 mph while the GPS was indicating 60 mph on stock tires. Then additional tire thickness would NOT even it out, but make it worse. The 1-2 mph change would make the speedometer indicate 56-58 mph, when the GPS shows 60.

in this case, you would need to DOWN-size your tires to match.

 

I agree totally, have the conti dws, in 205 and they handle MUCH better in all conditions.

 

yeah... speedo... odo.... Meant speedo.

I'll clarify a few things with some facts.

• on the 185/55/16, my speedo consistently shows 1-2mph lower than the garmin.
• on the 186/65/15, my speedo consistently matches the garmin.
• Last night while writing the post above, I had some wine.
• Yes - putting on a taller tire should show a greater difference between actual speed (Garmin/DroidX2) and the Fit

Goob,

• could the amount of tire wear over 22k miles plus lower pressure due to temps be throwing you off?
• Have some wine

~SB

 

On my new tires? I think so.

I don't like wine. Not a big fan of beer either. I do like mixed drinks, those "hard lemonades"... or just straight up Vodka (Rum is good too). Hum, looking through those, I think the common part is, all based on hard liquor.

Unfortunately, I haven't been drinking much of anything alcoholic lately, so my tolerance has tanked so badly, just one 12 oz bottle of anything (beer or "lemonade") is more than enough to buzz the hell out of me. As evident at my friend's place the other night. Not that my tolerance was ever high, but this is just embarrassing.

I need to go drinking more often or something.

 

Yeah, the wife and I aren't big drinkers. A bottle of wine lasts few days and a 6-pack of Woodchuck Draft Cider lasts 1.5-2 weeks (between the two of us). we maybe hit a 6pack a week between the two of us in the summer but never more than 1 drink/night. It ain't like college. (having a 5 yr old also puts a damper on that whole party thing... at least for us.) sometimes though after a night of having a 5 year old, a glass of wine is what you need. ;-)

OP, what did you decide on for tires?

~SB

 

Wistlo
if you decide to go with the Ecopia 422, please post your opinion after riding awhile. I am curious as to whether they actually improve mpg as claimed & still improve the ride & handling.

 

205 50 R16 is what im buying after winter is over. snow tires on right now on ep3 wheels.

 

205/50-16's...better and more precise handling, lower gas mileage.