Tires, Tires, Tires - "Tuned?"

MrFixit

MrFixit

Well-Known Member
Well, I am starting to think about replacement tires and rather than belabor the decision, I am tempted to just get the original OEM tires which have served me well. I know there are a lot of opinions about tires but I want to ask about something odd I found when looking at these tires on 'tirerack.com'.

If you search for Michelin Energy Saver A/S tires for the Clarity, it comes up with 2 choices. There is a ~19% difference in price. Note the part I circled in red which highlights the only differences I could identify:

upload_2023-5-20_7-55-20.webp


upload_2023-5-20_7-55-35.webp

The only difference I could find buried in all of the detailed specs is that the "Honda" version is 'Electric Vehicle Tuned".

What the heck does this mean? Is there something special here that is tailored to the resonators in the Clarity wheels? Or, is it an identical tire that they are just up-selling because this is an 'electric' vehicle?

I assume some here have replaced their tires with OEM versions... Has anyone encountered this?

Edit - This difference is also reflected on the Michelin pages. They show this (two different part numbers)

upload_2023-5-20_8-49-41.webp
 
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I've run the non-oem Michelin Energy Saver A/S 235/45/18 since I changed out the OEMs at a little over 20k miles. I have seen no difference at all and I like the sidewall a little better on the non-oem. Doesn't protect the rim much, but it has to help a little. I drove my car on relatively short trips when I could not charge on the trip the past two weekends. First was 250 miles total and after subtracting 40 miles for battery, I still averaged a little over 50 mpg. The second was 350 miles. The car burned 6.18 gallons of gasoline and averaged a little better than 50 mpg on that trip as well (assuming a generous 40 miles as well on the battery). On both trips, I had plenty of time so average speed was in the 60s. On the second, it averaged 63 mph. Both trips were without using the cruise control. The last had a little more A/C usage as the temps were in the upper 80s. So I don't think the non-oem tires are hurting the mpg any to speak of. As for handling and stopping, I don't push the handling a lot, but I am happy with it. I had to stop quickly on an interstate in dry weather a year or so ago and still can't believe that the car stopped in the distance it did, so I was happy with that test as well. Haven't really tested stopping distance in wet weather.
 
Need to be honest about being this the first time I heard that but I found the following that can clarify:
"All an “Electric Vehicle Tuned” tire is, on the other hand, is a standard tire with an inner layer of foam literally glued inside to reduce vibrations and muffle noise resonance, that’s it."

So at the end is the same tire.

In the attached link there are photos that show the tunned tires from the inside and they provide further detail.


https://tiremeetsroad.com/2022/12/2...e-tuned-tires-are-they-worth-the-extra-money/
 
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