What an exciting topic! 😉
I had to replace the tires on my Volt so I went to Costco to see what they recommended. They put me in a set of Michelin Premier tires. I know these are excellent tires, but they fail badly at one criteria that is very important to a Volt owner: Rolling Resistance.
I normally got around 40 miles of range on a full battery charge, on the old “OEM” tires. With the Michelin’s I was only getting about 32 miles, a 20% reduction in range! It was unacceptable, so I took them back, taking advantage of Costco’s 30-day return policy. They guy didn’t seem very happy about it, but he didn’t outright object, and it’s no money out of his pocket anyway. And I had told them when I bought them that I wanted low rolling resistance tires. I don’t think the guy really knew anything about that.
After some research, I replaced them with Bridgestone Ecopia Plus tires, especially designed with low rolling resistance for electric cars and hybrids.
Hooray! I hit 42 miles today, bettering even the original tires. It’s what Costco should have put me in to begin with.
They seem to handle just as well as the originals and the Michelins, and are maybe a little quieter. I’m happy!
I have to assume that tires have just as large an effect on gas mileage too. It’s surprising that rolling resistance isn’t a bigger factor in tire sales.