A Review of the Yokohama Avid ENVigor tires
#1
12-12-2011, 07:04 AM
A Review of the Yokohama Avid ENVigor tires
I decided to get new tires at 5/32 of tread and at that point I had put on 28000 miles on the stock Dunlops. I would have waited a little bit longer, but it seems like winter season is right here and I had some time. After pouring through test results, I decided on the Yokohama Avid ENVigor:
Yokohama AVID ENVigor (H&V)
My belief is that a tire should last for at least 50,000 miles and the stock Dunlops simply did not come through. The Yokohamas have a tire wear rating of 560 where as the stock Dunlops are 320 so the Yokos should last about 50,000 miles. The Yokos had very favorable ratings both in the instrumented testing done by Tire Rack and the customer reviews.
In driving around on the Yokos, the ride is somewhat softer and more refined. There is less noise then with the Dunlops, but it is not whisper quiet. Going over potholes is a more manageable experience. Steering seems to be a bit duller, but that is not a bad thing. I have almost gotten into a few accidents because the steering on the Honda Fit with the Dunlops was simply too sharp. I like having a little play in the wheel because sometimes you have to do things in the car like look down at a cell phone or adjust the radio. I found that with the Dunlops even the slightest turns of the wheel would change the direction of the car. The Yokos seem to make this less so.
I did consider the General Altimax HP, however, the Yokos seemed to have a better wear rating and I know the Honda Fit eats tires. The Yokos seemed to have better wet weather traction and rolling resistance in Tireracks results. The Generals would probably be better then the Dunlops and good for most people, but I wanted the longest lasting tire as I hate taking my car in for repair. One of the reasons why I got the Fit in the first place was to avoid the mechanic.
As tires wear down, the fuel economy gets worse. At 5/32nds the stock Dunlops were giving me about 26 mpg. I was worried and even considering taking the car in for warranty service because the mpg was simply not that good. When I drove the vehicle off the dealers lot, I was getting on average 32 mpg. After replacing the tires, I am back at around 30-32 mpg again. In Tireracks tests, they got only slightly better mpg with the Ecopia and worse mpg with the Generals when compared to the Yokos.
I am pleased with the Yokos as it gives me more ride comfort and will probably last a lot longer then the Dunlops. The cons to the Yokos is the ride is softer (some folks may like the crisp ride of the Dunlops) and the steering response is simply duller (some folks may like that crisp steering response).
Yokohama AVID ENVigor (H&V)
My belief is that a tire should last for at least 50,000 miles and the stock Dunlops simply did not come through. The Yokohamas have a tire wear rating of 560 where as the stock Dunlops are 320 so the Yokos should last about 50,000 miles. The Yokos had very favorable ratings both in the instrumented testing done by Tire Rack and the customer reviews.
In driving around on the Yokos, the ride is somewhat softer and more refined. There is less noise then with the Dunlops, but it is not whisper quiet. Going over potholes is a more manageable experience. Steering seems to be a bit duller, but that is not a bad thing. I have almost gotten into a few accidents because the steering on the Honda Fit with the Dunlops was simply too sharp. I like having a little play in the wheel because sometimes you have to do things in the car like look down at a cell phone or adjust the radio. I found that with the Dunlops even the slightest turns of the wheel would change the direction of the car. The Yokos seem to make this less so.
I did consider the General Altimax HP, however, the Yokos seemed to have a better wear rating and I know the Honda Fit eats tires. The Yokos seemed to have better wet weather traction and rolling resistance in Tireracks results. The Generals would probably be better then the Dunlops and good for most people, but I wanted the longest lasting tire as I hate taking my car in for repair. One of the reasons why I got the Fit in the first place was to avoid the mechanic.
As tires wear down, the fuel economy gets worse. At 5/32nds the stock Dunlops were giving me about 26 mpg. I was worried and even considering taking the car in for warranty service because the mpg was simply not that good. When I drove the vehicle off the dealers lot, I was getting on average 32 mpg. After replacing the tires, I am back at around 30-32 mpg again. In Tireracks tests, they got only slightly better mpg with the Ecopia and worse mpg with the Generals when compared to the Yokos.
I am pleased with the Yokos as it gives me more ride comfort and will probably last a lot longer then the Dunlops. The cons to the Yokos is the ride is softer (some folks may like the crisp ride of the Dunlops) and the steering response is simply duller (some folks may like that crisp steering response).
#3
12-12-2011, 11:45 AM
agreed. i really like mine. way quieter and grip is worlds better. no more scary driving on bridges during those windy days.
#4
12-12-2011, 10:42 PM
I got these tires for the same reasons back in April - I wanted a longer lasting tire that would perform well. At a bit over 30k miles on them though I'm quite disappointed in their wear. I'm already down to 4/32 - Discount Tire will give me a credit for the difference in their rating, about $60/tire, but a replacement set is still going to run me $300-$400.
All my driving was on highway/finished roads, mostly constant speed.
All my driving was on highway/finished roads, mostly constant speed.
#5
12-13-2011, 07:13 AM
I just looked on the Consumer Reports website. Its listed as an ultra high performance all season tire. The main weakness of the tire listed is ice braking which they rate as "fair". The main strength is dry handling and braking. Wet handling, noise and rolling resistance were also good/very good.
Consumer Reports lists it as one of their recommended tires with a score of 80.
The General Altimax HP had a score of 70 and listed as Performance All Season tire. The weakness of those tires was also ice braking. It seemed like all categories except for ice braking and tread life were at least good, however, it did not make the "recommended" list.
Consumer Reports lists it as one of their recommended tires with a score of 80.
The General Altimax HP had a score of 70 and listed as Performance All Season tire. The weakness of those tires was also ice braking. It seemed like all categories except for ice braking and tread life were at least good, however, it did not make the "recommended" list.
#7
12-14-2011, 05:21 PM
There is snow around here from time to time along with rain so I wanted something which would do better then the Dunlops. We will see how these do when it snows, I will report back. According to Consumer Reports, it should do well with all winter tasks except for ice braking...
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