Topic: Comparison Test: 2014 Mazda3 vs 2014 Toyota Corolla

[johngenx]

cars that come with the worst OEM tires.

Most of our Mercedes' came with Michelin MXV tires of some sort (MXV4 mostly) and MB made a big deal of their cars having such premium OE tires.  What a crock.  I had nothing but problems with them and Michelin was terrible to deal with when I tried to use the warranty.  I haven't bought Michelin since.  I know they make some great tires, but after they were such a$$holes to me, no way they get my business now.  I had one Bridgestone tire develop a problem, and they stepped up big time.  One reason I'm a Bridgestone slappy now.  (And I think most of their tires are great value)

The Continentals that came on the Corolla seemed pretty good at first, but after a short while, they just seemed to lose it.  They lost their wet traction quickly and the tread seemed to get squirmier despite less depth.  They had a decent amount of depth left when I tossed them in favour of some H-Rated Bridgestones, which have been great.  Turn in is dramatically better, mid-corner stability is improved, and braking is noticeably better, especially in the wet.  It's pretty hard to engage the ABS now thanks to loads of traction.

[Fobroader]

Worst tire, easy, the Bridgestone Turanza EL42s that came on my Altima, by far the worst set of tires ever fitted to any vehicle Ive owned.

[tpl]

Worst tire, easy, the Bridgestone Turanza EL42s that came on my Altima, by far the worst set of tires ever fitted to any vehicle Ive owned.

They must be bad as I am quite sure the Dunlop SP31 that comes on the Fit make even Hercules seem like a top rated tire..

[Frontier1]

Worst tire, easy, the Bridgestone Turanza EL42s that came on my Altima, by far the worst set of tires ever fitted to any vehicle Ive owned.

Dunno, I think the Optimos on my sons Kia had to be the worst I've ever seen.

[Northernridge]

Both of my Es came with ContiProContacts and I think they fall into the category of disappointing OEMs…hard, noisy things..

[sailor723]

Goodyear Eagles on my 07 SRX

[gosteelerz]

Would be an interesting thread, cars that come with the worst OEM tires.  The Toyo Proxes that came with my Mazda5 sucked, they needed replacing at 40km.

The RE92s on the WRX were fairly terrible for grip. Then there's the IS's very low treadwear rating.

I say bring back sidewall. I miss it, and a lot of AutoX guys kill it on wide 14"s.

+1

Had OEM R92s on my Protege and had performance tire wear without the performance tire grip.   They did nothing well.

[Fobroader]

Worst tire, easy, the Bridgestone Turanza EL42s that came on my Altima, by far the worst set of tires ever fitted to any vehicle Ive owned.

They must be bad as I am quite sure the Dunlop SP31 that comes on the Fit make even Hercules seem like a top rated tire..

Squealed at the slightest provocation, soft sidewalls, no grip in corners, no straightline traction, horrid in wet, noisy, maybe 40K and they were done.....EL42s are sh!t.

[jyarkony]

cars that come with the worst OEM tires.

Most of our Mercedes' came with Michelin MXV tires of some sort (MXV4 mostly) and MB made a big deal of their cars having such premium OE tires.  What a crock.  I had nothing but problems with them and Michelin was terrible to deal with when I tried to use the warranty.  I haven't bought Michelin since.  I know they make some great tires, but after they were such a$$holes to me, no way they get my business now.  I had one Bridgestone tire develop a problem, and they stepped up big time.  One reason I'm a Bridgestone slappy now.  (And I think most of their tires are great value)

The Continentals that came on the Corolla seemed pretty good at first, but after a short while, they just seemed to lose it.  They lost their wet traction quickly and the tread seemed to get squirmier despite less depth.  They had a decent amount of depth left when I tossed them in favour of some H-Rated Bridgestones, which have been great.  Turn in is dramatically better, mid-corner stability is improved, and braking is noticeably better, especially in the wet.  It's pretty hard to engage the ABS now thanks to loads of traction.

I had Michelin MXM4s on my GTI and I hated them - I only realized how lucky i was to have an unrepairable flat when i picked up some Kumho Ecsta 712s - granted, they were summer tires and i got dedicated Blizzaks for winter, but wow, what an upgrade. I hated those Michelins - awful grip even though they still had plenty of tread left.

but back to the Corolla on 15s - have you driven it back to back with something equivalent on bigger tires? i was referring to it mostly relative to the toerh cars in the comparison, which were mostly on 16s and 17s.

[dirtyjeffer]

i've had some great Michelin tires over the years (X-Radials from Costco) and some X-Ice II winter tires too...picked up a set of WS70 Bridgestones for my Rio5 last year and was very happy with them as well...need a new set of tires as the X-Ice IIs are now 6 years old and Costco has the X-Ice IIIs on sale now, so will likely pick up a set of them.

[Black Hatch]

You guys are so negative. 
Any good reviews for OEM tires?

[Solstice2006]

You guys are so negative. 
Any good reviews for OEM tires?

Sure my Mazda6 sport came with Michelin Pilot Sports, great tire.  Though after 50km, loss of traction was a lot more noticeable in the rain, but I am not surprised given my history with Michelin.  Great for the first 50k, then a huge difference in performance.  And these are just all seasons, not a summer only tire.  Have had more success with my Continental Extreme Contacts, transferred from the Mazda6 to my Mazda5.

[Black Hatch]

You guys are so negative. 
Any good reviews for OEM tires?

Sure my Mazda6 sport came with Michelin Pilot Sports, great tire.  Though after 50km, loss of traction was a lot more noticeable in the rain, but I am not surprised given my history with Michelin.  Great for the first 50k, then a huge difference in performance.  And these are just all seasons, not a summer only tire.  Have had more success with my Continental Extreme Contacts, transferred from the Mazda6 to my Mazda5.

I agree the Mazda6 tires were good.
Also another reason why I got the Mazda6 sport (in 2004) over the Impreza.

The Toyo A23 on the CX-5 aren't bad so far.

[PJ]

You guys are so negative. 
Any good reviews for OEM tires?

Sure my Mazda6 sport came with Michelin Pilot Sports, great tire.  Though after 50km, loss of traction was a lot more noticeable in the rain, but I am not surprised given my history with Michelin.  Great for the first 50k, then a huge difference in performance.  And these are just all seasons, not a summer only tire.  Have had more success with my Continental Extreme Contacts, transferred from the Mazda6 to my Mazda5.

Interesting.  I had Michelin LTX tires on my Grand Cherokee and for about 50K they were remarkable in the rain.  After that they went downhill fast.  They lasted for quite a bit longer but you had had to keep an eye on the tail end in the rain.  I thought it was fun but my wife was less then impressed.

[JohnM]

I put Michelin MXV tires on a couple of cars and feel they were the best 3 season tire you could own that didn't cost an arm.   However, they were the worst tire I've ever driven on in the snow saving the Michelin Rain X tire.   It was a tie.   

Saving that, great tires in their window of application.

If you want good wet traction and decent dry plus excellent-for-an-all-season snow grip try the Hankook Optimo 4S.

I'll be looking at MXVs or their progeny in the spring when the possibility of snow is zero.

Great tires on excellent cars like the 3 and Corolla simply take them up a notch.  Given their mission in life I'm all for decent sidewall height to cut noise and harshness.

Cheers,
John M.

[Solstice2006]

I put Michelin MXV tires on a couple of cars and feel they were the best 3 season tire you could own that didn't cost an arm.   However, they were the worst tire I've ever driven on in the snow saving the Michelin Rain X tire.   It was a tie.   

Saving that, great tires in their window of application.

If you want good wet traction and decent dry plus excellent-for-an-all-season snow grip try the Hankook Optimo 4S.

I'll be looking at MXVs or their progeny in the spring when the possibility of snow is zero.

Great tires on excellent cars like the 3 and Corolla simply take them up a notch.  Given their mission in life I'm all for decent sidewall height to cut noise and harshness.

Cheers,
John M.

I agree, as an affordable tire, they are a great value.  I use them all year round on the Sentra, so far they have around 45k, still perform like new.

[gosteelerz]

I'm liking the BFGs T/A that came with my Mustang a lot.   They are shockingly grippy for tires with tall sidewalls and high tread wear rating.
The Firestones that came with my '97 Civic were good as well, even in the snow.

[Mike]

Would be an interesting thread, cars that come with the worst OEM tires.  The Toyo Proxes that came with my Mazda5 sucked, they needed replacing at 40km. 

A lot of Kias can now be had with Nexens from the factory

[Sir Osis of Liver]

The Yokohama Geolander G95s that came with XV work very well, and aren't too noisy.
The ContiPro Contacts on the Outback 3.6R seemed like pretty good tires too.

[Solstice2006]

The Yokohama Geolander G95s that came with XV work very well, and aren't too noisy.
The ContiPro Contacts on the Outback 3.6R seemed like pretty good tires too.

As per the Yokohamas, I expect them to work well, the car isn't even a year old yet.  Let us know when they have reached 50-70k.