Tires for the Sonata

[Nick1994]

Well, I thought this Tupperware car ('07 Hyundai Sonata) would be fine with some cheapo tires. I was wrong. I bought it in October and it had some 7 year old GT Radials that other than poor traction in the rain, were fine. I wanted new tires to safely drive it in our heat and maybe out of town on the interstate. I bought some cheap Milestar MS932 tires on sale as the ratings seem that they're somewhat ok. They're insanely loud, they sound like you're driving on the rumble strip on the side of the freeway when at 35 mph and 60 mph.

Anyways, I'm throwing in the towel and putting another set on it. Looking for suggestions. Thinking of just going all out and putting Continental True Contacts on it, which I have had great experiences with, and calling it good. But open to other suggestions. Just want something that isn't insanely loud. And maybe not as expensive as the Continentals? Not sure this car is worth it. But my sanity might be worth it. 🤷‍♂. 215/60R16 tires.

Not Michelin.

 

[Hyundai Respecter]

My mother recently put SureDrive (by Bridgestone) on her Accent and they seem ok. They get decent ratings on the Firestone car care website. And they’re fairly inexpensive. I also like the General Altimax Rt43 I put on my Soul back in April, but they cost considerably more now.

 

[slacktide_bitog]

What is the tire size? Is it 215/60-16?

In Phoenix, summer tires seem to be the best choice for you
Goodyear Eagle Sport
Falken ZE914 Ecorun

If you wish to stick to all-season, there's the General Altimax 365AW

 

[CKN]

My experience with the MS932 were just about opposite. The early Sonatas didn't exactly have an abundance of sound insulation. So yea-you should find the quietest tires to make up for how loud the car was when it was built.

 

[Oillover]

Whatever the car, never cheap out on tires.
I learnt that the hard way several years ago....never again!

 

[Nick1994]

What is the tire size? Is it 215/60-16?

In Phoenix, summer tires seem to be the best choice for you
Goodyear Eagle Sport
Falken ZE914 Ecorun

If you wish to stick to all-season, there's the General Altimax 365AW

Yes 215/60R16, just edited my post.

My experience with the MS932 were just about opposite. The early Sonatas didn't exactly have an abundance of sound insulation. So yea-you should find the quietest tires to make up for how loud the car was when it was built.

The tires as a whole might be fine, I think I've got a bad tire. Sounds like front left to me but I'm too frustrated to mess with it. I made the mistake of buying the tires on sale on Amazon and using their prepaid service with Pep Boys to install them, so I have no leverage with them. Amazon is refunding the tire cost though.

And you're right, this car has no sound insulation. I can have a song playing at just a normal listening volume, not loud at all. Get out of the car, close the door, and walk across the street and still hear it clearly. But the difference between these tires and the old GT Radials are night and day.

 

[Sequoiasoon]

I know you said no Michelin. My '07 Sonata came with the MXV4 S8, I replaced with Primacy MXV4. Both were nice and quiet and good until about 5/32" then got poor in rain. I run full winter on everything so can't give snow experience. The CC2 seems to be loved by many and also listed as quiet. If wear is odd I prefer an asymmetrical pattern so I can cross rotate to keep all even.

Do you need an all-weather or just all season?

My '17 Accord replaced the Sonata and I think has even less sound deadening than the Sonata if that is possible. It came with Assurance WeatherReady which I think might be the loudest tires I ever had for highway drives. Louder than all my winter tires.

I put on Pirelli P7 AS2+ based on the reviews of being very quiet. They are extremely quiet making it nice for highway trips. Good dry/rain also. I did the same on my daughters CRV with Pirelli Scorpion Verde AS+, same noise reason, same results. Much better than the worn Defender T&H that was on it. The P7 AS2+ is replaced by the AS3 but DTD shows them still available in that size. AS3 not available in 16". I put 17" Elantra rims with 215-55-17 on my '07 Sonata. They are now on the Accord.

One user on DriveAccord that does a lot of miles (100k/year) uses Yokohama Avid Ascend GT. They get great reviews for the quiet also on TR.

Nokian One also gets good ratings.

I often watch multiple videos on TR for each one as some compare to each other on one video but against others on a different video.

I'm not a GY fan from past and current experiences but the Assurance ComfortDrive I think got good noise ratings.

I know I was looking at one of the Conti's also either PureContact or TrueContact as an option instead of the Pirelli.

 

[CharBaby]

Providing any of the tires I mention come in your size and are not out of your price range, I do like the idea of:

*Continental TrueContact "TOUR" as compared to just the TrueContact
*Pirelli Cinturato P7 All Season PLUS 3 which replaced the PLUS II
*Bridgestone Turanza QuietTrack
*Good/Year Assurance ComfortDrive(previously Comfortred).
*General Altimax RT43. My favorite for the price. Although the price is up like everything else and if they're still around. The RT43 seem to get better ratings than the new RT45

 

[ET16]

Kumho LX Platinum KU27

Robot or human?

www.walmart.com

 

[nickaluch]

Kumho LX Platinum KU27

Robot or human?

www.walmart.com

I have these on 2 of my cars. Extremely quiet and a great price at walmart.com. Same price as the no name Chinese tires but so much better

 

[supton]

It just wouldn’t be me if I didn’t recommend RT43 for … everything.

Just did the Conti True Contact’s on the wife’s car, seem ok, but I’ve hardly driven it.

What is the miles per year? aging out versus wearing out.

Wild thought: are these steelies? wondering if you can score another set of steelies off CL, then toss on Douglas (from Walmart). Flip the Milestars on CL. Worst case, it’s a repeat performance, best case you found a cheapo tire. Assuming again that you’re going to age out, not wear out.

 

[JRed]

My Hyundai XG350 takes that same tire size and is likely nearly identical to your Sonata suspension-wise, and the best tires I've ever had on it were Michelin Primacy MXM4s. Nothing else has ever come close but they're too expensive for a car that I rarely drive.

I like the RT43. It's kind of a catch all recommendation. Some sets I've had have become quite loud as they've worn.

My father in law swears by the Conti True Contacts. He's put probably five sets on vehicles. Only tire he uses, I think.

I have Yokohama Avid Ascend GT on my Prius and Subaru. They're not the quietest or best riding tire I've ever run but they handle well and they're good in heavy rain.

 

[Nick1994]

Do you need an all-weather or just all season?

Just all season here in Phoenix

It just wouldn’t be me if I didn’t recommend RT43 for … everything.

Just did the Conti True Contact’s on the wife’s car, seem ok, but I’ve hardly driven it.

What is the miles per year? aging out versus wearing out.

Wild thought: are these steelies? wondering if you can score another set of steelies off CL, then toss on Douglas (from Walmart). Flip the Milestars on CL. Worst case, it’s a repeat performance, best case you found a cheapo tire. Assuming again that you’re going to age out, not wear out.

Not sure on miles, my little sister will start driving it eventually. I’m using it as a gas sipper for now. Maybe 10k-15k per year.

I thought about the Generals but they’re about the same price as Continentals now.

 

[DirtyGary]

General Altimax RT

 

[JustinH]

Kumho LX Platnium, riding great smooth and quiet.

Goodyear Reliant, riding great smooth and quiet.

Both walmart exclusives.

 

[Nick1994]

The Kumho's are scary cheap at $71 per tire, but at the recommendation of those here, I've placed the order and they'll be installed next Wednesday. Thanks all, I'll post back.

 

[NormanBuntz]

Well, I thought this Tupperware car ('07 Hyundai Sonata) would be fine with some cheapo tires. I was wrong. I bought it in October and it had some 7 year old GT Radials that other than poor traction in the rain, were fine. I wanted new tires to safely drive it in our heat and maybe out of town on the interstate. I bought some cheap Milestar MS932 tires on sale as the ratings seem that they're somewhat ok. They're insanely loud, they sound like you're driving on the rumble strip on the side of the freeway when at 35 mph and 60 mph.

Sorry about your bad experience. The Milestar MS932's I put on my wife's M35 have been excellent and reasonably quiet. It's a V rated tire, not a touring tire. Mine have been better than the previously installed Goodyear Eagle RS-A, Cooper Zeon and Toyo Versado, each of which wore faster and ran louder.

 

[nickaluch]

The Kumho's are scary cheap at $71 per tire, but at the recommendation of those here, I've placed the order and they'll be installed next Wednesday. Thanks all, I'll post back.

Great budget tires for the price you should be happy. They were tested on Tire rack did really good took second place to the general RT but at a much cheaper price. The one thing is there really not good in the snow but in your area shouldn't be a problem

 

[slacktide_bitog]

The Kumho's are scary cheap at $71 per tire, but at the recommendation of those here, I've placed the order and they'll be installed next Wednesday. Thanks all, I'll post back.

That is a great price. You can't beat that

 

[CharBaby]

I like a good tire even if it's just for the 3 season(Spring-Summer-Autumn) use here in the NE.
The reason that I say this is because, I've had bad tires. Meaning, tires I bought by price rather than quality/reputation-scoring/testing. And they looked great! Nice tread, nice sidewall appearance. But not anymore, NO, NO!

Those inexpensive tires(not good tires sold inexpensively) but cheap unknown private label tires where the reviews are hit or miss. They're fine for the first year maybe(MAYBE) but when the weather turns bad or in an emergency situation, they show their true colors. Then, 10,000-15,000 miles down the road, they're JUNK. Broken belts, one or more tires wearing differently than the others, NOISY/poor riding, radial pull etc.

I don't care how good of success someone else has had with their private label tires, I've had my own experience. I will no longer buy, MasterCraft, MileStar, Cordovan, Hercules, GrandPrix/GrandAm and you name it. Keep'em!

The tires I buy don't have to be the best tire on the market but they do have to be darn good and good for my vehicle/situation/climate/driving style. What a difference good tires make in a torrential down pour of rain on the highway...while driving like a responsible adult.