replacement tires for 2013 vw passat s

[jstert]

size 215/60r16. first set oem conti replaced at 42k mi with kelly edge that are now 4/32 at 91k mi. conti gave 2mpg + and better handling. passat is driven mainly in mid atlantic area with mild winters but rain. as of this morning i plan on keeping the passat to 120k mi (actually this is a whole other question as i like it, spend what relatively little it takes at an honest dealer to service it religiously to spec, it’s in great shape, but being an older vw it’s worth little as a trade.)

im looking at discount tire website. i narrowed my three choices: 1. $103 cooper gs5 gt. 2. $96 road hugger gtp as. 3. $55 sentury touring.

here are some of my thoughts: they all offer decent wet/dry braking and comfort at two distinct price points. the korean and japanese brands’ wet braking were rather worse and thus didn’t make my list. not looking at goodyear products or other dealer aside from dt. i don’t mind foreign-made tires from a reputable dealer such as dt. if my passat were younger and if i were doing more long road trips i would just get the cooper. if i knew for sure that i will trade or sell the passat by 100k mi i would settle for the sentury. at a $7 savings the road hugger doesn’t seem to be a better value than the cooper.

please share your wisdom! thanks!

 

[Boomer]

I have a VW All Track and I put Bridgestone Ecopias on it. I get about 2+ mpg more on these compared to the tires that the car had on it when new and they give excellent wet traction and ride very well. SO I can certainly recommend those to you as well.

 

[SatinSilver]

I’d go with Coopers in case you end up keeping it longer plus they may help keep you out of a ditch compared to the others. Cheap insurance in other words.

 

[cb_13]

Looks like Discount Tire sells the Altimax Rt43 95H rated at $98/each. In my experience they have been an excellent tire and are slightly cheaper than the Cooper in this instance. I have no experience with the GS5 but am not a fan of Cooper tires due to experiences with their truck tires.

For a cheap tire I really like the Uniroyal touring a/s but I'm not seeing it as carried by Discount Tire.

 

[paqza]

I have a VW All Track and I put Bridgestone Ecopias on it. I get about 2+ mpg more on these compared to the tires that the car had on it when new and they give excellent wet traction and ride very well. SO I can certainly recommend those to you as well.

Interesting. I had Ecopias on my Mazda3 and they were the worst tire I've ever had in the wet. Traction control would come on with gentle acceleration from a standstill on a car producing under 160HP. Tire Rack reviews suggest it's a mediocre tire: https://www.tirerack.com/tires/tire...&tireModel=Ecopia+EP422+(H-+or+V-Speed+Rated)

 

[redbone3]

I have the Sentury touring on my 2014 Passat.
Work fine and no noisier than the oem.

 

[pezzy84]

I know you mentioned against the Koreans due to wet performance. I have been browsing tires for my E-Golf because the Ecopias are pure trash in the wet and I can't wait for them to wear out, I stumbled upon these Hankook Kinergy ST that are quite highly rated (very similar ratings to the Cooper) and they run ~$90ish/tire at DT. In my size 205/55/16 they are lighter weight (1 lb) than the Ecopias not to mention the ratings are worlds better than the Ecopia. Looking at your size they are 2 lbs lighter per corner vs the Coopers, doesn't seem like much but does make an impact to fuel economy, handling and ride comfort.

Hankook Kinergy ST

Tire Rack Standard Touring ratings. < - Kinergy ST #7, Cooper CS5 #5

Now the Kinergy GT tires........those have pretty poor rankings on TireRack, avoid those.

 

[RooflessVW]

Coopers

 

[jstert]

sorry i should have followed up. on veterans day 2020 i got a non repairable flat. discount tire beat the cooper price offering continental true contact at $100/ea then me my 10% veterans discount, a $70 conti rebate and a $25 dt credit card rebate. now 13 months and 10,000 miles later: noise, handling and mpg all noticeably better with the contis over the kelly edges from the get-go of both tire sets. im highly pleased with both dt and conti.