In my week or so as a TCH owner, I've been most baffled my one thing: Reviews I've read of the car have different tires, and there appears to be no rhyme or reason for it.

It appears that Camry's are being delivered with either Bridgestone Turanza tires or Michelin Energy tires. The best that I can tell, the Michelins are standard on the normal Camry LE, while the Bridgestone's are standard on the upmarket XLE. I'm not 100% positive, however.

My car has the Bridgestone, which seem to be fine tires. However, I'm sure some of you have the Michelins. I find the whole thing rather odd--in my GM days, only one tire was delivered on a car, unless there were deliberate differences based on trim level. I wonder what gives?

I agree it is baffling. I have seen both Michelin and Bridgestone tires on the TCH. There doesn't appear to be any pattern.

I got Michelins on mine in NJ. Here are links where you can read reviews on each tire:

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires....Energy+MXV4+S8
The Michelins are in a tire class called Grand Touring all-season at Tire Rack. Grand Touring All-Season tires are often used as Original Equipment and place more emphasis on handling and high-speed capabilities than Standard Touring tires. http://www.tirerack.com/tires/types/grandtour_as.jsp


http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires....=Turanza+EL400
The Bridgestones are in a tire class called Standard Touring all-season at Tire Rack. Standard Touring tires are typically available in the lower speed ratings and higher aspect ratio sizes and place more emphasis on ride comfort and treadwear than Grand Touring tires. http://www.tirerack.com/tires/types/touring.jsp

So, if you can believe Tire Rack editors the Michelins are for better handling and higher speed, but the Bridgestones should last longer and ride easier. It looks like the Michelins are a little more expensive at Tire Rack than the Bridgestones.

Link comparing the 2 tires:
http://www.tirerack.com/tires/Compar...10&sortValue=1

The info at comparison link indicates the Michelins should last about 70% more miles than the Bridgestones, which doesn't match the tire categories the tires are in.

The other major difference is that the max tire pressure on a Bridgestone is 51 PSI while the max pressure on the Michelin is 44 PSI.

Link to My Hybrid Car News Web Page

I'm not 100% sure but most hybrids will come std with low rolling resistance tires for added fuel economy. Changing to a different tire may cause a slight mpg hit. There are many threads that will give you more info on the subject.

Ferrari were 1-2 with Bridgestone tires at the Indianapolis F1 race this weekend whilst the Michelins only managed a 3rd place. Last year at Indy, Michelins were failing and all the Michelin shod cars were parked.


I don't know that it matters. I have Bridgestones and I'd be just as happy with the Michelins. Tires only start to show their abilities once they are beyond 50% worn. Noise, grip and ride characteristics then become more apparent.

Mountain Home, Arkansas



www.frappr.com/tchowners

I suspect the tire selection is regional and that the Michelins are more likely targeted in areas where winter snow is typical.

Two climate control systems, one inside and the other at the tailpipe.

2007 Camry Hybrid (in service June 2006)
FE: 6.77L/100km (34.8 mpg) over 37750km (23450mi)
75% city - Ave trip 20 min - 2 Winters

I'm located in NW Arkansas - on the base of the Ozarks. We get 2-3 weeks of snow per annum. My car came in through the Port of Long Beach and I got Bridgestones.

Mountain Home, Arkansas



www.frappr.com/tchowners

Sounds like a mild winter to me, we might get 2 or 3 weeks of snow in the fall before winter even starts. I have Michelins... When I got my Sienna it was coming with Michelins and Bridgestones too and there was a lot of talk on the Sienna forums about the reason. I got Michelins on my Sienna too, and I don't recall having seen anything but Michelins on Camrys/Siennas around here. The Michelin web site refers to snow performance and winter traction capabilities whereas the Bridgestone web site makes little or no reference to winter capabilities. So that, plus that fact that here we seem to get Michelins here leads me to my assumption. Maybe time for a poll of some sort. Harsh / mild / no winter and which tire brand.

Two climate control systems, one inside and the other at the tailpipe.

2007 Camry Hybrid (in service June 2006)
FE: 6.77L/100km (34.8 mpg) over 37750km (23450mi)
75% city - Ave trip 20 min - 2 Winters

I will let you all know what I get on mine when it arrives. I'm in Michigan, and we get plenty of snow around here...

I'm in San Diego and my TCH was delivered with Bridgestone Turanza EL400 tires. So far I've been happy with them, quiet on the freeway and reasonably grippy accelerating around corners (no rain yet) I am curious as to how the tires behave when the tread wears down some, and what the tread life will be with the TCH.

My past experiences with Bridgestone M&S tires on snow and ice (freezing rain in Washington state) was good.