Next silly question from the admin then.......... are tires marketed with a rolling resistance value? I guess what I am getting at is how does Joe Consumer (who doesnt happen to be a tire geek) know what to expect from a set of tires? We cant just keep dropping 700-800 a set till we find the one we like and gives us optimal performance.
No.
And it kind of blows, because I knew sometime I was going to get asked this question... lo and behold, here we are.
But on the other hand, I can see tire companies not publishing any thing on it, because untill you learn how to interpret it, it's pretty much a useless number.
-edit- And as in the case of UTQG ratings (400 A B) would be left up to the tire manufacturers to determine their own baseline tire (100 B B).
So, like in the case a of a certian manufacturer I can think of, specially built a tire for their baseline ratings that was an absolute roach, and made all their other tires look like they outperformed the Big 3...
Anyway, back to the point, remember General Ameri-Way auto tires with their "RRR" (Reduced Rolling Resistance) designation on the sidewall? Wore like iron.. were as slippery in the rain as two pieces of glass with bacon grease between them..
Rules of thumb...
the more agressive the tread is, the worse fuel economy it'll get.
the deeper the tread is, the worse fuel economy it'll get
the flimsier the sidewalls are, the worse fuel economy it'll get
and the weaker the belt package is, the worse fuel economy it's get.
How do you judge them?
Dump them on a sidewall and jump up & down on them.
