Are new tires "stiffer"?

[Danh]

Just replaced a set of Michelin Cross-Terrains with Firestone Destination LE2s. The new tires seem really good except for one thing.

I normally push the car back from the driver's seat when it goes outdoors for a wash. With the Michelins, not much force was required. The Firestones seem need considerably more. Neither tire is LRR, but I'd obviously prefer tires to offer less rather than more rolling resistance.

Is this common with brand-new tires? The Firestones do have a nylon ply, so I suppose flat-spotting could be a factor as well. I realize it's really unlikely an increase in rolling resistance would be obvious in watching fuel consumption, but just the same...

Thanks.

 

[sciphi]

The last few sets of new tires I've driven on have been pretty stiff right from the get-go. A set of Pirelli P4's were so stiff when brand new that I felt every crack in the road through the "floaty ride" FE1 suspension on my Buick LeSabre, and the tires at 30 PSI. They loosened up within a few hundred miles, though.

 

[Artem]

Tires seem to come pretty stiff from the factory when new, then loosen up a bit and eventually start to get rock hard again towards the end of their useful life.

Give them a few thousand miles to "break-in".

 

[Russell]

This is interesting. Has there been any studies on this?

 

[Quattro Pete]

Tread squirm?

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tiretech/techpage.jsp?techid=177&

 

[meep]

the LE2's are actually written to have lower rolling resistance--- they equaled the over-inflated set of variety-tires my truck came with in terms of observed mpg.

Tires do tend to get better mpg when aged than when new, I have read.

Worn michelins do seem pretty easy to roll-- have had a few sets get old. They also get a little noisy and slick, in my experience, at that point.

Check your inflation pressure. I'm running my LE2's about 4psi over the door placard and it seems to be a sweet spot for me. (36-37 psi).