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No, the Energy Saver A/S would be then in winner despite the higher initial price. Rebate specials also mess with the numbers because Goodyear didn't run rebates often whereas Michelin and Bridgestrone did. I see the $80 Goodyear rebate more often now. Still, the Energy Saver A/S is a better tire all around than the Fuel Max except regarding snow traction. The Defender ranks up there but it is much less efficient than the Energy Saver A/S so the savings come from longevity instead of fuel economy. If you don't care about using less fossil fuel then they are a great choice. You will also have to factor in the cost of mounting, balancing and taxes. Those fees also favor a long lived tire.

Agreed. My only experience with Atkinson engines is based on my 3 Prii and only one of them did I drag race and play around with filter configurations. Slow is slow no matter what kind of filter you use. lol

The only cautionary note here is that we know next to nothing about the airflow in or out of this vehicle. So I don't think we can say with any degree of confidence that you NEED to replace the exhaust system to benefit from a high flow filter or that a high flow filter will even help. Besides, would you really want your nice CMax to sound like a fart-can equipped ricer from 1999? lol I postulate that it will work like most other import cars in that it will make slightly more HP in a particular part of the curve but over a very short portion of usable RPM. This is compared to a clean OEM filter. Obviously a dirty filter is going to be worse. A simple drop in K&N probably wouldn't even make a detectable difference on a chassis dyno. The run variance would probably create too much "noise" in the data. That's based on my experience dynoing hundreds of LS1 equipped cars and trucks, more than a few Mustangs and selling import performance parts. Still, that doesn't mean I know anything about the CMax. :)

No. Kumho doesn't make a good LRR tire IMO. Go have a look at the tires I recommended in the post above yours. For the best mix of safety (handling and stopping distance in wet and dry), longevity and fuel efficiency the Michelin Premier A/S and Continental PureContact are tough to beat right now. They are less efficient than the Energy Saver A/S but better in all other regards.

Here is a new test from TireRack with a couple of the tires CMax owners would be interested in. http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tests/testDisplay.jsp?ttid=188&cid= Summary: June 6, 2014 Tires tested: Bridgestone Turanza Serenity Plus (Grand Touring All-Season, 215/60R16 95V) What We Liked: Reasonable road manners What We'd Improve: Wet weather performance Conclusion: A contender in the category that is beginning to feel a little outpaced by newer tires Continental PureContact w/EcoPlus Technology (Grand Touring All-Season, 215/60R16 95V) What We Liked: Great wet and dry traction and responsive handling What We'd Improve: Soften the ride a little Conclusion: A very good option for drivers who want traction and confident handling Michelin Premier A/S (Grand Touring All-Season, 215/60R16 95V) What We Liked: Excellent wet weather grip What We'd Improve: A small increase in ultimate dry traction Conclusion: A very good blend of comfort and traction Pirelli Cinturato P7 All Season Plus (Grand Touring All-Season, 215/60R16 95V) What We Liked: A very smooth and quiet ride What We'd Improve: Moderate increase in wet traction Conclusion: One of the best-riding Grand Touring All-Season tires

Well all I can say to your rebuttal is go buy the tires and test them yourself. I have and my experience with these tires closely resembles the information posted by TireRack during their testing. Furthermore, not every top shelf LRR comes in the same size as close rivals. This is especially true for low profile 17" tires which are usually in the Grand Touring or performance categories instead of passenger tire. E.g. the Prius comes equipped with 15" or 17" tires but the Energy Saver A/S is only available in a 15" size that is appropriate for this vehicle. So a customer searching for the most efficient 17" tire for the Prius is out of luck with regards to the Energy Saver A/S. In this instance does it matter that the ESAS is more efficient? Nope. http://priuschat.com/threads/bridgestone-ecopia-ep422-review-17-tire.118328/ http://priuschat.com/threads/michelin-primacy-mxm4-review.120027/ http://priuschat.com/threads/yokohama-avid-ascend-review.105546/ http://priuschat.com/threads/michelin-energy-saver-a-s-review.110038/ http://priuschat.com/threads/installed-lexus-ct200h-17-wheels-and-205-50-17-tires.115411/

The tests are actually fairly controlled in that the same cars are used in the single test and often across multiple tests. In this case it is usually a 3 series BMW. However, tire size differences can and will change some characteristics. For example, the Energy Saver A/S may be the most efficient tire in a 195/65/15 but it may not be the most efficient in a 225/55/17. Since we only have the TireRack data to go by it is difficult to make a truly informed decision. If we had EU LRR ratings standards to go by this would be a lot easier. I disagree with your assessment of the Contis. They are actually quite a bit better in terms of LRR than a lot of other regular tires and they compete well against other LRR tires. I would suggest choosing a tire based on your typical needs and safety and use LRR performance as a tie breaker. I.e If the Bridgestone Serenity Plus and the Continental PureContact look very appealing to you then you can use the lower rolling resistance of the PureContact as a tie breaker. My point is, max fuel economy is a great goal to aim for but make sure you take your safety and driving patterns (fast, wet, snow, slow etc..) into consideration.

You are likely seeing the difference between the OE version of the tire and the aftermarket version. The OE version is designed to specs required by Ford. The aftermarket version doesn't have to use those same exact specs so Michelin tweaks the design to fit their criteria which usually means a better performing tire and longer lasting but likely less efficient since they are not held accountable to CAFE standards. There are many other tires out there that exhibit this dual nature, the Goodyear Assurance Fuel Max and Bridgestone Ecopia EP422 are notable.

No problem. :) For low speed driving I just roll the windows down. For higher speed driving I use the flow through technique where you crack your driver side window about 4" or so and crack the rear passenger side window about 2-3". Keep in mind that if you are uncomfortable then your battery probably is too. In those cases it is better to just run the AC and promote longer battery life as well as your own. ;)

FWIW, we see similar effects in the Prius. AC current draw can be as high as 1,800 watts at startup when temps are much higher than your climate setting (100F ambient vs. 76F setting). Monitoring via Scanguage and Torque app has shown a 7-10mpg instant drop in FE when the AC is turned on and the load is high. This drop is sustained until the cabin finally cools down and the compressor winds down. This can take 10min or more in really hot temps. Now imagine making many short trips where the AC is working 100% during each trip because you don't drive long enough to cool the cabin down. That is a true mileage killer. :(

You crazy! :p Congrats!

As PWBarret mentioned above, the CMAX has more vertical stacking height whereas the Prius has more horizontal length. The Prius v is even larger still. It just goes to show you can't just look at total cubic feet! :)

Do it! :)

Good. Now I KNOW who you are. Watch it guys, he's trouble.... :p

Nah, they are usually put out by the manufacturer. The engineers come up with this stuff while desiging the engine. Then they test it on an engine dyno and output a map. In essence anyway. lol