Are Fuel Efficient Tires Worth It
In the past decade or so, the automotive industry has taken a turn towards efficiency. Gone are the days of large engines, meaning that today, most of what we see on the road has a small turbocharged engine under the hood.
Even though it’s no secret that I’m not a fan of this new era of efficiency, I have to admit that automakers should at least receive a high five for it. Modern engines are tiny, but at the same time, they managed to get more horsepower than what we had in the not-so-distant past.
Car manufacturers started going with smaller engines and turbochargers for many reasons, and one of those is efficiency. Modern cars can produce more horsepower while consuming less fuel than cars from the 2000s.
The engines aren’t the only thing that helps newer cars achieve this efficiency. Tire manufacturers have been following the trend for a while and have been producing fuel-efficient tires. There are many things in this niche that people think are just fancy marketing, and today, I’ll be looking into fuel-efficient tires.
Are these tires really worth it, and will they help you consume less fuel? The important thing to note here is that while fuel-efficient tires go well with a modern car with a fuel-efficient engine, it doesn’t stop you from fitting them to an older one.
My IS250 is a gas guzzler, so will fitting a set of fuel-efficient tires help me save a few dollars, or is it all just marketing?
What are fuel-efficient tires?
The name is pretty self-explanatory, but let’s go through the definition anyway. Fuel-efficient tires are exactly what they sound like – tires designed to consume less fuel. In this regard, there is a little thing called rolling resistance.
In this industry, we refer to fuel-efficient tires as ones that have a low rolling resistance. This is the main thing that helps them, at least in theory, reduce fuel consumption and help you save some money on it.
What is rolling resistance?
Whenever your car is stationary, the engine needs to work to get it moving. Considering that the only part of the car that’s in contact with the road is the tires, they can play a crucial role in how much fuel is used to get the car moving. The same goes for when the car is already moving. Your engine is working and consuming fuel in the process, thanks to which your car is moving.
There are several forces that act on it, and we call them resistance. They act as sort of invisible breaks, meaning that for the engine to overcome them, it needs to consume more fuel. This is why, in modern times, we have aerodynamic cars and tires with a low rolling resistance.
As the tires roll on the road, the constant friction is one of the forces the engine needs to overcome to get the car moving. Considering that there are different types of tires, each one of those will resist the movement differently.
Performance tires are grippier thanks to the increased friction between them and the road. Tires with low rolling resistance are the opposite. They don’t resist the movement as much, meaning the engine needs to work less to get the car moving.
How are low rolling resistance tires different than the others?
You’ll see many tire manufacturers talking about low rolling resistance tires in their marketing material, giving you a sense that they are a special type of tire. The thing is that these aren’t specifically designed for a certain car. They are just regular tires you can get for your Corolla.
Tires with low rolling resistance are touring tires you’d get if you’re looking for longevity and refinement. Not all touring tires have low rolling resistance, but the general idea is that, in a way, they all help you save fuel.
When you compare a performance and a touring tire, the first thing anyone will mention is the difference in performance. UHP tires offer more grip end traction, shorter braking distances, and more dynamic handling characteristics. On the other hand, touring tires will offer less performance because they won’t offer as much grip and traction.
Even in this comparison, any touring tire will be more fuel-efficient than any performance-oriented one. This is because the engine will need to work less to keep the touring tire rolling when compared with the UHP one.
The most important thing to note here is that not all touring tires have equally low rolling resistance. There are multiple aspects that go into how much rolling resistance attire can have, and the two most important ones are the compound and the thread pattern.
Even two different models from the same manufacturer in the same category will have different rolling resistance. This is why it’s essential to at least look at some reviews before deciding which tire would be a better option for you, at least in terms of low rolling resistance.
Are tires with low rolling resistance really saving fuel?
The shortest answer to this question is that tires with low rolling resistance really save fuel. Unfortunately, in the real world, things aren’t as simple and straightforward, meaning that there are multiple aspects that we need to consider.
Installing a set of low rolling resistance tires in your car should help you get better MPG. With that said, it’s not always up to the tires to keep that number as high as possible. You can install these kinds of tires but still get worse fuel economy because it’s not all up to the tires to get you better MPG.
Driving habits
A while ago, I did a guide on saving fuel, one of the many things I mentioned was your driving habits. Here’s an example that should help you better understand how your driving habits can impact fuel consumption regardless of what kind of tires you have.
Without diving too much into the specifics and numbers, the example I’m going to outline is driving your car smoothly with a set of UHP tires and driving it aggressively with a set of low rolling resistance tires. The low rolling resistance tires we’ll try to get better fuel economy, but you’re aggressive style won’t be doing any favors. As a result, the smooth driving style with the UHP tires may offer better gas mileage.
Tire size
Most people get their car and drive it without modifications until they decide to sell it or retire it. When I say no modifications, I mean daily driving in the car with the same tire size that it came from the factory.
Regarding the tire size, there are several reasons why larger tires will worsen fuel consumption. For this example, it doesn’t matter if we’re talking about a tire with low rolling resistance, a performance tire, or something from the off-road segment.
Bigger tires mean that there is more material wrapped around the wheel. More material means more weight, meaning that the engine needs to work more, and as a result of all of this, you’re looking at increased fuel consumption.
Even if we take models with the same diameter but different tire widths, we may see some differences. Wider tires are good for performance applications or enthusiasts wanting more grip and traction. As I mentioned before, more grip and traction means increased rolling resistance, meaning that a wider tire, even from the same model, would consume a bit more fuel.
You’re reading this and probably tempted to put some skinny tires on your new Supra. Technically, you may get better fuel economy, but you’ll be destroying the car’s driving characteristics and almost have no usable performance in daily driving or enthusiastic situations.
Tire pressure
I often talk about proper tire maintenance, and the pressure is something that many people seem to neglect. A properly inflated tire will offer optimal performance, and the same goes for the rolling resistance.
If you’re driving a tire with a pressure below the optimal one, it will have an increased rolling resistance. The result of all of this would be attire that will consume more fuel.
You’re reading this and thinking that if underinflated tires use more fuel, overinflated ones will use less. That may be true in theory, but things are a bit different in practice. Over-inflating your tires will improve fuel economy because as you increase the pressure, you also reduce the contact patch.
As mentioned in the previous section, skinnier tires are more fuel-efficient, so this part is true. With that said, over-inflating your tires can bring all sorts of problems, mainly revolving around the longevity of the tires. The most common problem you face with overinflated tires is uneven wear down the middle of the thread. Tires with uneven wear won’t last as long as ones that wear evenly, meaning that technically, you may save a bit on fuel, but you’ll spend more replacing your tires sooner than needed.
Conclusion
Fuel-efficient tires or tires with low rolling resistance exist to help car owners achieve better MPG. It seems that these kinds of tires became especially popular as soon as electric vehicles became trendy. Regardless if we’re talking about reducing fuel consumption or increasing battery range, fuel-efficient tires are a good way to achieve that.
These kinds of tires work and are not just a marketing campaign from tire manufacturers. How much extra range or better MPG you’ll get depends on many factors. Switching to tires with low rolling resistance will show some results as long as your driving and tire maintenance habits don’t change too much.
With that said, it’s also important to keep your expectations realistic. If you’re getting 20 MPG at the moment, fitting a set of low-rolling tires won’t double the number. The tires will do their magic to reduce fuel consumption, but they won’t do miracles and get you 40 MPG. In a realistic scenario, you’re probably looking at an increase of several MPG. It doesn’t sound like much, but when you factor in how much you save over the course of several years, you’ll see that it’s not as negligible.