[Maidenlocks]

I purchased a 2013 Volt last week with 49.5K miles. The rear tires are Goodyear Assurance Fuelmax which i believe were the OEM tires and they seem to have decent tread left. The front tires are very new BF Goodrich Advantage Sport.

Should I ride with what I have for awhile or be proactive and get a set of LRR tires?

 

[firehawk72]

I purchased a 2013 Volt last week with 49.5K miles. The rear tires are Goodyear Assurance Fuelmax which i believe were the OEM tires and they seem to have decent tread left. The front tires are very new BF Goodrich Advantage Sport.

Should I ride with what I have for awhile or be proactive and get a set of LRR tires?

Everyone will have a different opinion on this. Personally, I can't stand mix matched tires as they change the handling dynamics of a car. I would suggest swapping these out for a completely new set of tires.

At the very least, put the better tread on the rear until you can get a matching set.

 

[silverone]

If your normal commute is easy to make all electric or always uses gas no matter what, there's no huge benefit to getting new LRR tires. You're likely going to have no more than 20% EV range loss.

It can make a slight difference if your commute is borderline. Probably not enough over the tires' life to justify the cost.

 

[Maidenlocks]

i was taught the better tread tires should go on the front on a FWD car. is the Volt different in that regard?

 

[Maidenlocks]

my commute is round trip about 20 miles on town to town non-highway roads.

 

[firehawk72]

i was told the better tread tires should go on the front on a FWD car. is the the Volt different in that regard?

Whoever told you this was simply misinformed. You are FAR more likely to hydroplane and skid out of control with the better tread on the front. Having the better tread on the back seems counter intuitive, but tests (tirerack.com) have proven this over and over. Having better tread on the front is simply a myth, and is not the best practice. This is for any car, not just the Volt.


http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tiretech/techpage.jsp?techid=52

 

[Mister Dave]

i was taught the better tread tires should go on the front on a FWD car. is the Volt different in that regard?

Confirmed that you were taught the wrong thing: "When tires are replaced in pairs...the new tires should always be installed on the rear axle and the partially worn tires moved to the front."

http://www.tirerack.com/winter/tech/techpage.jsp?techid=52

I replace tires in sets of 4. Some time soon I plan to get these: http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires.jsp?tireMake=Continental&tireModel=TrueContact&partnum=155TR7TRUEC&GCID=C13674x012-tire&KEYWORD=tires.jsp_Continental_TrueContact_Tire&code=yes&szredirectid=14726862037651631410210070301008005

 

[firehawk72]

Confirmed that you were taught the wrong thing: "When tires are replaced in pairs...the new tires should always be installed on the rear axle and the partially worn tires moved to the front."

http://www.tirerack.com/winter/tech/techpage.jsp?techid=52

I replace tires in sets of 4. Some time soon I plan to get these: http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires.jsp?tireMake=Continental&tireModel=TrueContact&partnum=155TR7TRUEC&GCID=C13674x012-tire&KEYWORD=tires.jsp_Continental_TrueContact_Tire&code=yes&szredirectid=14726862037651631410210070301008005

I can confirm that tire is QUIET...

 

[Maidenlocks]

maybe i should split the difference and buy something like the Continentals Trues replacing the older FuelMax tires. this forum has made me aware of the sidewall vulnerability of the OEM tires. is this also true of the Continental True Contacts?

 

[firehawk72]

maybe i should split the difference and buy something like the Continentals on the year replacing the older FuelMax tires. this forum has made me aware of the sidewall vulnerability of the OEM tires. is this also true of the Continental True Contacts?

Nope, the OEM were made lighter, thus thinner...some described them as thin as toilet paper

 

[Mister Dave]

maybe i should split the difference and.....

Depends on your budget. To mine, the Continentals are a bargain. Safety over cost, and the price is good either way.

What I haven't decided is if they will go on my current custom wheels, or if I will go with 18" wheels for the next set. The Volt is very sexy on 18" wheels.

 

[llninja]

Whoever told you this was simply misinformed. You are FAR more likely to hydroplane and skid out of control with the better tread on the front. Having the better tread on the back seems counter intuitive, but tests (tirerack.com) have proven this over and over. Having better tread on the front is simply a myth, and is not the best practice. This is for any car, not just the Volt.

Add to that the tests that Tirerack did on partially worn tires, the reduced stopping distances convinced me to change tires at the first sign of any wear, far in advance of the wear marks. My family's safety is well work $600 for a new set of tires rather than trying to squeeze $50-100 more worth of tread life by riding on slicks.

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tests/testDisplay.jsp?ttid=85

I even went so far as to get new wheels and switch to Yokohama Avid Ascends which have a much deeper tread than the OEM goodyears. Yes, I have lost some range, but I can now take corners like a slot car.

 

[llninja]

Depends on your budget. To mine, the Continentals are a bargain. Safety over cost, and the price is good either way.

What I haven't decided is if they will go on my current custom wheels, or if I will go with 18" wheels for the next set. The Volt is very sexy on 18" wheels.

Gotta go with 18's. Then put snow tires on your OEMs.

 

[caronjeff]

I switched over to Michelin Primacy MXV4 215/55/17 in 94V. Very pleased minimal range and gas mileage loss. These are expensive tires but I got a great price on slightly used from bestusedtires. Be careful on tread width. The OEM Goodyears are slightly less than 7" tread width. Other tires in the same size can be as wide as 8 1/4" which kills range and gas mileage.

 

[llninja]

I switched over to Michelin Primacy MXV4 215/55/17 in 94V. Very pleased minimal range and gas mileage loss. These are expensive tires but I got a great price on slightly used from bestusedtires. Be careful on tread width. The OEM Goodyears are slightly less than 7" tread width. Other tires in the same size can be as wide as 8 1/4" which kills range and gas mileage.

My volt came originally w it's 3 of the 7 inch goodyears and 1 of the 8" variety. In exchange for range, you get much longer tread life. After 36k miles the 3 tires were done, but that lone outcast could have gone too 60k miles. Alas, when I discovered the discrepancy (before the vehicle warranty expire, both the dealership Dan volt advisor told me to pound sand (actually the volt advisor was nicer about it, said it was to be handled by the dealership). The dealership tried to claim that since my car was in an accident, maybe the body shop changed the tire. Alas, why would a body shop change a tire for free and not charge me for it? Needless to say, I'm never setting foot in that dealership again, they've lost me as a customer for life. I now drive 20 miles away to get my volt serviced (their mechanics are much more talented anyway). So if I didnt' switch to 18" wheels where GM assurance didnt' have my size, I would have bought the 8" tread width tires because they would last much, much longer.

 

[caronjeff]

About a year ago I ended up with 2 of the 8" wide Goodyears on the rear. This due to my own lack of education on the subject. We headed out on a 4,000 mile road trip and I was shocked to have the fuel mileage hover around 34-35 mpg, when on similar road trips when the car was new and on the narrow GY's, it was getting 38-40.

 

[Barry]

Take a close look at the Goodyear tires. They may have good tread depth in the center, but how are the shoulder areas? These tires on this car often had accelerated shoulder tread wear, and if so, you may not have as much life left as you think.

If it were my car, I would seriously consider replacing the 2 Goodyear tires with something different. This will give you 4 tires that are all new or nearly new so they will wear out together as they should (if you rotate them). It will also make you safer from getting a blowout, which the OEM tires were too likely to have (along with some other possible issues like sidewall cracking). Ideally you would want all 4 to be the same model of tire, which you could do if you choose the matching ones. Or get whatever tire you prefer. I don't think I would lose any sleep over them being a different model as long as they are the same class of tire. I don't think it makes sense to throw away the new BFGoodrich tires.

The only thing good about the OEM tires is that they are very efficient. You can get tires that are more reliable, have better handling and traction, and are quieter if you are willing to give up a few miles of electric range.

 

[llninja]

Take a close look at the Goodyear tires. They may have good tread depth in the center, but how are the shoulder areas? These tires on this car often had accelerated shoulder tread wear, and if so, you may not have as much life left as you think.

If it were my car, I would seriously consider replacing the 2 Goodyear tires with something different. This will give you 4 tires that are all new or nearly new so they will wear out together as they should (if you rotate them). It will also make you safer from getting a blowout, which the OEM tires were too likely to have (along with some other possible issues like sidewall cracking). Ideally you would want all 4 to be the same model of tire, which you could do if you choose the matching ones. Or get whatever tire you prefer. I don't think I would lose any sleep over them being a different model as long as they are the same class of tire. I don't think it makes sense to throw away the new BFGoodrich tires.

The only thing good about the OEM tires is that they are very efficient. You can get tires that are more reliable, have better handling and traction, and are quieter if you are willing to give up a few miles of electric range.

My Yokohama Avid Ascends sucks some range out of the equation, but replaces it with much longer tires life, much better adverse weather traction, incredible dry pavement road holding ability (especially with high G turns accelerating the Pugh cloverleafs), and a quieter ride.

 

[Norton]

...Should I ride with what I have for awhile or be proactive and get a set of LRR tires?

I guess it depends. Are you trying to save money? Or something else?

 

[Prohidium]

I replaced the original tires due to higher shoulder wear and that they started to loose traction easily on wet pavement and they were showing lots of cracking along the bead line. They were also noisy. Replaced them after 25k miles for piece of mind.