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H rating necessary???

5K views 19 replies 6 participants last post by  BattleRifleG3 
#1 ·
I've been shopping for tires for some time now with really frustrating responses from salespeople. But yesterday I heard something new - that the Elantra requires something called H rated tires. Not because of its speed or weight, but because of its suspension - according to the fellow at Sears.

Is this correct? If so, why? Anything else I really need to know before buying simple moderately oversized tires for my Elantra?

Thanks!
 
#2 ·
H-rated or above(V, Z, W ). By going to a lower rated tire, like an S or a T and you're going to feel it on the interstate and any speeds ove 50. The sidewalls tend to squirm.

Most people strictly associate speed ratings for how fast you can go, but it has a huge affect on ow the car handles. I had T-rated tires for one winter. I'll never do it again. The cost in savings will usually be less than $20 for a set. Just buy the H-rated and be done.
 
#3 ·
^ I agree.

I don't know if I've ever driven on anything lower than H. But I'd tend to think it could be dangerous even at 60 mph. Imagine if you have to take evasive maneuvers to avoid an 18-wheeler that jackknifes across the highway.
 
#4 ·
It's not a fun experience trying to do evasive manuevers at 65mph, that I can tell you. Car was all over the road. Almost caused more problems than what I was trying to avoid!
 
#7 · (Edited)
P-93mph
Q-99mph
S-112mph
T-118mph
U-124mph
H-130MPH
V-149mph
Z-149+mph
W-168mph
Y-186mph
 
#9 ·
After frustration after frustration in my tire shopping, I must ask another question on this subject - where have you folks found the best deals on H rated tires?

I'm looking to go up to a 205/65-R15 (which was discussed on another thread and found to be viable). 205/60 and 195/65 may be considered if availability is an issue.
 
#12 ·
As far as actual stores, Costco's tire are usually the cheapest, especially when they have their coupon for $60 off of a set of 4. The only problem is their selection is limited, even moreso now because they got rid of their BF Goodrich's and I believe they're mainly pushing Michelin tires now. Costco used to be the best place for tires, but they now have some anal policies and unless you're getting OEM sized tires, you're out of luck because they won't help you.

Tirerack.com is a great place to shop for tires online. They have the most comprehensive tests and probably the widest selection of tires, all at a pretty decent price. Discounttiredirect.com is also a good place to shop for tires online, although they have a smaller selection.
 
#13 · (Edited)
only1db said:
why that size...your actually larger than the stock size...205 usually callsf or a 55 profile. so it would be 205/55 r 15...which i know you will find.

there is a thread about falken 512's my wife has this on her car and it feels very steady 80+
As I said, that was discussed on another thread, basically I am going for larger diameter than stock. That's half the reason for buying new tires. The other is that my stock tires are a bit low after a mere 23k miles.

Your report on the Falkens helps, that was the next tire up that I was looking at.
Falken Ziex ZE-512 205/65R15 $65.00

Would that mean that they're Z rated? I have such a hard time finding the rating within their designation.
 
#15 ·
no i believe they are h rated...


usually the larger the tire and smaller the profile USUALLY the speed rating goes up due to the sportiness of the tire....they make the tire stronger to reduce flex in tire for performance driving and at the same time the stronger the tire the faster it can go.

i hope that makes sense to you...

and you due realize that going over the oem size will hurt your performance and gas mileage....and will make the rim/tire combo weight more and could hurt braking as well.
 
#16 ·
Hurting performance is a bit subjective, it's more like it changes the gearing ratio and when to shift. I've always found my Elantra to have power to spare, so acceleration in the max and min gears should be ok. The radius difference is 5.28%, which is how much the resultant acceleration and braking would be different. I believe it would add about 5/8" to the height of the car. The larger tires simply due to their geometry will take bumps more easily, which is important in my neck of the woods.

It will be interesting to note exactly how different fuel economy is. 5/8" out of the total height of the car isn't that significant, less than 1% just about, which in 3rd year engineering is directly proportional to drag. This of course is the real world, so I would expect it to have a greater effect for a number of hard to express reasons.

Right now my car gets over 40mpg on the super highway at 60mph or less. Guess we'll see how that changes. Of course I could always blame it on the aging of the car. ;)
 
#17 ·
Welp, the end result was that I got the Falken tires for $65 each. This was due to their ability to slice through water, something I run into in my daily commute. I got size 205/65-H15.

My experience with the oversized tires is generally good so far, which I'll write up about on another thread titled something like "Resizing in the OTHER direction".
 
#18 ·
i guess...but also knowing my physics with 120whp cars...any percentage in the wrong direction is a big diffrence.

your 0-60 time probably increased by a good .3 or better...and the weight of the tire and the roll of the tire will affect cornering aspects as well.

good luck to ya!
 
#20 ·
Just a quick report that those Falken tires have been amazing in their traction. Where I had previously slipped simply accelerating into traffic on a wet parking lot, I have no difficulties now. It's been a very rainy week and my commute is on a highway notorious for hydroplaning, but I've been able to stay in complete control in some relatively adventurous driving.
 
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