TheSamba.com :: View topic - Tire Review - Michelin HydroEdge 215/60-16

Mon Jan 05, 2009 9:10 pm

On dry or wet pavement these tires are great. Good stick to the road and really do well in rain, which is important in the Pacific NW. Low road noise as well.

In the snow - these tires are bad and have no bite. On a recent trip up to Mt. Hood I had to chain up the tires and I still felt the front end was sliding around. I wish I had chains for the front as well.

grain of salt - my preferred vehicle for snow travel is our Subaru Forester. Additionally, some of the handling issues in the snow could be directly related to the VW or the fact that the roads were pretty bad.

Tue Jan 06, 2009 1:05 am

I agree with your assessment of the Hydroedge's wet weather performance. I also have an '87 camper with the same wheel/tire package. Very good handling, would definitely buy these again when the time comes. I've got ~ 11k miles on mine with virtually no wear to speak of. I run them at the recommended 44 psi.

I don't have any experience with these tires in the snow, however, as we rarely get snow in San Francisco :D. Most of my driving is up and down the coast, and occasionally up in the Sierras when it isn't snowing, so these tires are more than adequate for my use.

-Dan

Tue Jan 06, 2009 8:45 am

Below is a link and excerpt to a site that discusses tire pressure.. Here is my take on it.. You could run the Hydroedge at 37lbs if your loaded van weighs no more than 5000 pounds.

Heres the math
Stated maximum load for the Michellin Hydro Ege is 1477 pounds per tire at 44 pounds maximum inflation.

So at 44lbs, the 4 tires can carry 5908lbs

If your Van, fully loaded only weighs 5000 pounds, you could run the tires at 37 pounds pressure. (5000/5908*44= 37)

That might very slightly improve snow performance, but I agree, the Hydroedge is NOT a snow capable tire, its a pavement and rain tire. It also does not qualify as a Light Truck tire, as it is only a Passenger Tire, meaning weaker sidewalls. So, I dont recommend the Hydroedge for ANY vanagon.

Note also, when using chains, they should be used on ALL FOUR wheels.

just my 4cents
Enjoy the ride
Jonathan

source info on tire pressure calculation:
http://www.4x4now.com/sfjun96.htm
"Do you really need maximum load pressure?"

"Four tires times 2000 pounds each (1990 MAX. LOAD rounded up to simplify math) equals 8000 pounds total (tire) load capacity. My Explorer weighs 4000 (3800 rounded up), or half the maximum capacity of all four tires combined. That roughly says half the pressure should yield ample load capacity.

As a result of both methods above, I run 26 PSI, night and day, seven days a week, and typically get 60,000 to 80,000 miles out of a set of BFG T/As, including sand runs at much lower pressure. I trust this information will add practicality to determining your street pressure and encourage you to accept overall lower tire pressure. "

Tue Jan 06, 2009 8:56 am

Im running 215/65/17 hydroedge on the 87 gl. Great in the rain.Great in the dry. Suck to the point of USELESS in the snow!!!!.

I also have a set on the rabbit truck. Same review. This is the second set on the truck, first set was well into the 90k tread life.

Side note: I looked into Nokians wr suv tires. 209.00 a pop!!!!

jcl

Tue Jan 06, 2009 9:14 am

You have overlooked something. Those tires are only rated at 1344 lbs when used on a Vanagon. 4 tires then equals 5376 lbs and only when fully inflated. Too low for fully loaded Vanagons, according to specs.

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tiretech/techpage.jsp?techid=70

Mark

Jon_slider wrote: Below is a link and excerpt to a site that discusses tire pressure.. Here is my take on it.. You could run the Hydroedge at 37lbs if your loaded van weighs no more than 5000 pounds.

Heres the math
Stated maximum load for the Michellin Hydro Ege is 1477 pounds per tire at 44 pounds maximum inflation.

So at 44lbs, the 4 tires can carry 5908lbs

If your Van, fully loaded only weighs 5000 pounds, you could run the tires at 37 pounds pressure. (5000/5908*44= 37)
..................

Tue Jan 06, 2009 9:59 am

Nope load rating for the 17 inch is 1638 or 98t. Low for a loaded westy or syncro, but tolerable for the gl. Would much rather have them at 103 like the Nokians but?!?$$.

jcl

Tue Jan 06, 2009 10:05 am

I'm running 215/70/15 Hydroedge, excellent tires, I've even done some offroading with extremely loaded westy, no problems. These are no snow tires, that is for sure.

Tue Jan 06, 2009 10:09 am

Yep. The topic heading is for 215/60-16. My post is in reference to this size as was the post I was replying to. You have a very different size.

Mark

a914622 wrote: Nope load rating for the 17 inch is 1638 or 98t. Low for a loaded westy or syncro, but tolerable for the gl. Would much rather have them at 103 like the Nokians but?!?$$.

jcl

Thu Dec 31, 2009 3:04 pm

just a quick update. I would like to modify my impressions of snow ability to "super suck".

Portland got about 2" of snow two days ago. The city came to a stand still. From a stop the tires spun and the rear would swing out. Also my home commute took me across the Burnside Bridge (heading east). It was very difficult to get the van underway with the modest 2% grade. Getting stuck in front of the Hippo Hardware was not fun. :evil:

Thu Dec 31, 2009 6:14 pm

crazyvwvanman wrote: You have overlooked something. Those tires are only rated at 1344 lbs when used on a Vanagon. 4 tires then equals 5376 lbs and only when fully inflated. Too low for fully loaded Vanagons, according to specs.

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tiretech/techpage.jsp?techid=70

Mark

Jon_slider wrote: Below is a link and excerpt to a site that discusses tire pressure.. Here is my take on it.. You could run the Hydroedge at 37lbs if your loaded van weighs no more than 5000 pounds.

Heres the math
Stated maximum load for the Michellin Hydro Ege is 1477 pounds per tire at 44 pounds maximum inflation.

So at 44lbs, the 4 tires can carry 5908lbs

If your Van, fully loaded only weighs 5000 pounds, you could run the tires at 37 pounds pressure. (5000/5908*44= 37)
..................

I opted for the 215/70/15 that are rated for 1653 per tire.

Fri Jan 01, 2010 1:13 pm

so what IS a good snow tire for a 17" wheel ?

Fri Jan 01, 2010 1:57 pm

Check out these:

http://www.nokiantires.com/product-group?group=2.01

I run Nokian Hakkapelitta SUV's 215/70R15 and they are great in all seasons.

The 17" Hakkapelitta 5 SUV and R SUV have a load rating of at least 103T.

Something to check out.

I live in Utah where we get plenty of snow and these are great.

Fri Jan 01, 2010 3:54 pm

Crankey wrote: so what IS a good snow tire for a 17" wheel ?

Im running the W60 blizzak studless. They are OK. I got a great deal on C/L. I was also looking at the Winterforce with studs. Very economical! My experiance is here in the north west wet snow.

Hydro-edge in snow SUPER SUCKS!!! I hear ya brother!!!!! :D

Fri Jan 01, 2010 5:58 pm

One more vote for awesome road/rain tire. And, yet another vote for 'beyond super suck' in the snow. I live in snow country and I keep a spare set of wheels/tires for when it snows. 4 years and 40k+ miles and there's still an aweful lot of life left in them. The ride quality is superb.