Ecopia EP422 tires suck

They may be acceptable for some people, but IMO they suck. Not only is the cornering/handling mediocre (some people don't care about this understandably), but they are very fragile. Two people on the forum already destroyed tires in potholes. I just destroyed the sidewall [gently] on a curb.

I did it at the end of my driveway, at about 1mph about 1ft before I was going to come to a complete stop anyway, just barely glanced the curb (yes I am still getting used to the absolute dimensions of the car, and if it wasn't me scraping a curb it would have been the wife eventually). Got a little 1" strip of curb rash on the rim and put a couple big gashes in the tire sidewall (I don't consider it safe to drive on so I'll have to replace it). I've rubbed curbs before with different types and sizes of tires (truck tires, car tires, etc.) and while it made the tires look bad temporarily (until they re-oxidized in the sun and rain), I never had sidewall damage significant enough to require immediate replacement.

The Ecopias may give a couple more miles range on the Leaf, but at the expense of durability, and that's a bigger issue to me than absolute range, especially in a car with no spare. Tomorrow I think I'm going to replace all 4 tires with something more to my liking... hopefully Discount Tire will give me the $50/tire trade-in on just 3 tires.

Sometimes it is just luck of the draw. Shortly after we got our MDX, my wife slightly misjudged the curb when parking at a very slow speed and just glanced the curb with the rear tire. It ripped the sidewall and the tire intermediately deflated and was ruined. These are Michelin Cross Terrain SUV tires and are very good, rugged, and quite expensive. She just hit it just right is all, so I won't necessarily say that the Ecopia's are junk...

kballs said:

I just destroyed the sidewall [gently] on a curb. I did it at the end of my driveway, at about 1mph about 1ft before I was going to come to a complete stop anyway, just barely glanced the curb (yes I am still getting used to the absolute dimensions of the car, and if it wasn't me scraping a curb it would have been the wife eventually).

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I have the 422's on my Prius, and they are excellent compared to the Goodyear Integrities that they replaced.

There are lots of people in the Prius community that also love the 422's. I think you just had a fluke!

-Phil

They aren't total junk, they are very smooth, quiet, and efficient tires. They have decent axial traction and braking. They also have average turn-in, mediocre lateral Gs, and 4 noted destroyed tires by forum members already... I don't know if that's a normal rate of destruction or above normal. I feel that I personally will keep wrecking these if I keep them though so I want something tougher, and maybe with improved performance or cold weather traction while I'm at it.

I like mine. A little slippery when cornering 90 degrees with full pedal to the medal but that is likely operator error.

I blew out several expensive brands of beefy 4x4 tires on my 4 runner from hitting a rock wrong, running over a bolt, gashing the sidewall on a curb etc. **** happens when your in motion. I would't be so quick to replace the tires. I replaced 2 of my prius tires with some stupid high rolling resistance big o tires and lost 5 plus% in mpg's vs the stock tires. I had huge buyers remorse on that mistake and i'm still paying for it years later at the pump.

I've had Ecopia EP100s, which is the summer version of the EP422, on my Prius for over two years and I've been really happy with them. They are much better than the stock tires in handling (both dry and wet), road noise, and fuel efficiency. The biggest difference was the comparative lack of road noise versus the stock tires.

I've also found them surprisingly durable. They've suffered through all manner of back road driving including some dirt roads, the potholes of Los Angeles (on a daily basis), and long journeys to San Francisco and Louisiana. I just bought new ones after around 50,000 miles.

I'm hoping the EP422s don't sacrifice too much compared to the EP100s, I have heard the EP422s maybe a little softer riding due to their all season nature. I would be curious to know if anyone has actually done a direct comparison of EP422s and EP100s.

Add me to the list of those that have had problems with these tires. My wife said she clipped the curb yesterday and the tire was destroyed. I couldn't tell how much of the damage was from the initial strike versus her running while flat as she pulled over to park. I know others have posted similar problems. Are these just a bad design or is this a common issue with low rolling resistance tires?

In general, regardless of the intended use fo which the tires were designed, the walls are the most vulnerable area of the tire.

After driving San Diego highways and Freeways since 1965 with no tire damage, I impacted an unseen object in my LEAF the other day. The result was a large bubble on the sidewall. Since this is my first cash outlay for repairs on the LEAF in nearly two years of ownership, I shouldn't complain. But, I am an old miser.

Of course, since I am old, maybe the object was not really invisible. :mrgreen:

I do LOVE my LEAF in spite of this minor setback!

Manufacturers often mount OEM tires that are slightly different construction and compound than the same brand and model sold in the aftermarket. I am fairly convinced that the tires that came on our Leaf are not the same Ecopia EP422 that I might buy as a replacement tire, but their performance soured me on Bridgestone entirely. I never had any structural failure, but they wore out twice as fast as I expected, considering how gently the Leaf is driven. I elected to replace them with the Kumho ecowing KH30. We'll see how they perform, but I don't think it will be worse. A lot of people are opting for the Michelin Primacy MXV4.

TT

Yep... I'm surprised how quickly the factory tires have worn. I am just a hair under 20,000 miles and the two original factory tires I have left are needing replacement.

I replaced 2 of them a few months ago due to punctured sidewalls thanks to a couple of screws I ran over. I used the Ecopia tires for the brand new ones. The guy at the firestone dealer said that was the most commonly used tire on hybrids, etc..

Because they are cheap, not because they are good...

adric22 said:

The guy at the firestone dealer said that was the most commonly used tire on hybrids, etc..

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We replaced the stock tires on our LEAF at 14K miles, at which point the shoulders were completely bald from constantly driving mountain twisties. I'm not an Ecopia fan. For us, this isn't a problem unique to the LEAF's stock tires. Every time we buy a car (new or used), we end up having to buy new tires before long. We try to choose all-season replacements with excellent wear ratings.

Our LEAF's current Kumho Solus KR-22 low rolling resistance, "high mileage" tires are still going strong with 16K miles on them. Maybe we'll be able to do another 16K miles before they're spent. I've driven them on rocky dirt roads and on snow and ice without problems, the only exception being a slow leak that we had patched.

I drove 17,000 miles on the OEMs and they're still like new. Right from the start I put 41-42psi in them.

I have 29k on mine. I expect to see 40k+. I also run 40+ psi.

LEAFfan said:

I drove 17,000 miles on the OEMs and they're still like new. Right from the start I put 41-42psi in them.

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I've been afraid to put that much in them. I've kept them at 38 psi. I think the sticker in the door jams recommends 37. But every time I've had tires serviced the car always leaves with 35 psi. I think the technicians don't bother to look at what is correct for a specific car.

Does 41 psi increase your range any? How does it affect the handling?

adric22 said:

LEAFfan said:

I drove 17,000 miles on the OEMs and they're still like new. Right from the start I put 41-42psi in them.

Click to expand...

I've been afraid to put that much in them. I've kept them at 38 psi. I think the sticker in the door jams recommends 37. But every time I've had tires serviced the car always leaves with 35 psi. I think the technicians don't bother to look at what is correct for a specific car.

Does 41 psi increase your range any? How does it affect the handling?

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Yes, it definitely increases range since I coast a lot. The Discount Tire guy with over 25 yrs. of experience told me going 5 psi over car recommended (LEAF is 36) is ok and will still have good braking and handling. They will last much longer.

adric22 said:

Does 41 psi increase your range any? How does it affect the handling?

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Improves the handling, imo. Better steering response, sharper turn-in, less wallowing.

adric22 said:

LEAFfan said:

I drove 17,000 miles on the OEMs and they're still like new. Right from the start I put 41-42psi in them.

Click to expand...

I've been afraid to put that much in them. I've kept them at 38 psi. I think the sticker in the door jams recommends 37. But every time I've had tires serviced the car always leaves with 35 psi. I think the technicians don't bother to look at what is correct for a specific car.

Does 41 psi increase your range any? How does it affect the handling?

Click to expand...

yes. i "probably" gain 3-5 miles of range from 36 to 42 PSI. i wanted a more definitive number but work has interfered and the one day i dropped the PSI to 36 almost came back to haunt me. lucky in that the Fife DCFC (which was "officially" not on was able to charge me up anyway or I would have been stuck for at least an hour)

also found that rain interferes with a good evaluation of range reduction so will table the experiment until Summer where range hits are less of an issue

Besides range improvement, another reason that I try to run 44 psi is that it reduces shoulder wear from mountain roads. Higher pressure also helps with traction on snow and ice.