[Dutch]

The factory Goodyear tires on OHM-RIDE apparently had a pretty rough life.
I believe the previous lessee (who lived in Washington DC) did a lot of hard cornering, and kept the tires under inflated. I KNOW he/she loved to scrub the curbs given the rash on all four rims and one side of the air dam.

At 38k miles they were bald on the shoulders even though there was a decent amount of tread in the center and the wet traction was starting to drop. Those tires were the suck last winter and I had been planning on replacement before the snow flew this year.

Side note, when the pulled the tires, one had no patches, one had one patch, one had two patches and one had FIVE patches!

So after MUCH debate and research the car is now wearing a set of Continental TrueContacts w/EcoPlus
http://www.continentaltire.com/product/truecontact-21555r17-94t/?

Initial Impressions
Let me start by saying that I think these tires look good on the car, to my eyes they look like a "proper" fit.

A brief highway drive at 70mph was SMOOTH! I've been in some serious luxury cars that didn't run down the road this smoothly!

My sound meter logged an average interior volume of 74dBA, down from a tested average of 79dBA with the Goodyears. Subjectively, to my ears it seemed like a major noise drop. [edit: Sound meter app on a Samsung Galaxy S5 phone, not a dedicated sound meter]

Handling felt grippy, maybe even a little more than I anticipated. I imagine that this will impact mileage at least for a while until they break in.

That's it for now, I'll continue to report in as I put some mileage on the tires. Given their 90,000 mile tread wear warranty I suspect (and hope) that I'll have them for quite a while to come.

 

[Barry]

Love my TrueContacts. Expect to lose the normal 10% of range for a while. Best of all, you should not have to worry about the blowouts that were too common with the OEM tires.

 

[MasterFoo]

A 5dBA difference is supposedly clearly a noticeable difference

According to this chart, those tires would make a noticeable difference if they really decreased the sound level by 5dbA. I'll be looking into a set of those for my next ones gcaudio.com/resources/howtos/loudness.html

 

[NM Volt]

Just to be clear. Did you register the decrease in sound on the same road at the same speed?

 

[Dutch]

Just to be clear. Did you register the decrease in sound on the same road at the same speed?

Yes, same speed, same stretch of highway. Conditions replicated as closely as I could.

 

[turnbowm]

FWIW, the Continental TrueContacts w/EcoPlus tires have a T-speed rating which is considerably below the original (OEM) V-speed rating. Many tire shops won't even install tires with a lesser speed rating for liability reasons. For me, that's a deal-breaker.

 

[JeremyK]

Firstly, a "T" speed rating is more than adequate for the Volt as long as the load rating of the tire is correct.

I run these tires and they are a HUGE improvement over the stock tires, which I had to replace at less than 40K miles due to wear and a couple tires had sidewall bulges (F'in Michigan potholes).

Stock tires in the snow were absolutely scary. Conti's were much better, though we'll see how they do this winter (3rd winter on them). I drive pretty hard/fast and so far the Cont's seem to be wearing well.

 

[Dutch]

FWIW, the Continental TrueContacts w/EcoPlus tires have a T-speed rating which is considerably below the original (OEM) V-speed rating. Many tire shops won't even install tires with a lesser speed rating for liability reasons. For me, that's a deal-breaker.

I did notice that ...after my purchase.
What I also noticed was that several different online tire searches for the Volt showed a wide range of supposedly acceptable ratings Including T (118 mph) H (130 mph) and V (149 mph).

So I do wonder why GM thought it necessary to recommend 149mph rated tires (V) on a vehicle that is locked to an absolute maximum of 101mph. I'm not saying there isn't a reason, I'd just like to know what it is.

 

[alfon]

I'll stick with the factory Michelin Energy Saver AS tire on our 2016 Volt. I have Michelin Energy Saver AS tires on our 2010 Prius and averaged nearly 70,000 miles on two sets, and on my 3 rd set now. MPG's improved over 2-4 mpg over the Toyota factory equipped tires Yokohama Avid.

I don't believe there is a more efficient tire than the Michelin Energy Saver AS tire in the U.S.

 

[firehawk72]

I did notice that ...after my purchase.
What I also noticed was that several different online tire searches for the Volt showed a wide range of supposedly acceptable ratings Including T (118 mph) H (130 mph) and V (149 mph).

Though I do wonder why GM thought it necessary to recomend 149mph rated tires (V) on a vehicle that is locked to an absolute maximum of 101mph. I'm not saying there isn't a reason, I'd just like to know what it is.

I went through the same thing when I purchased mine. I noticed Tire Rack would sell them to me, but (I believe it was) Discount Tire would not. I called both of them. Discount Tire said, simply because it wasn't the same speed rating. Tire Rack said that they had a set of parameters and on the Volt it simply met all the parameters with no issues and that speed and load rating was perfectly acceptable. I like Tire Rack's explanation and ordered them. My local Chevy Dealer put them on with no issues or complaints.

 

[turnbowm]

So I do wonder why GM thought it necessary to recommend 149mph rated tires (V) on a vehicle that is locked to an absolute maximum of 101mph. I'm not saying there isn't a reason, I'd just like to know what it is.

The reason is probably safety-related. For example, a tire with a higher speed rating has more sidewall support and there will be less temperature build-up at highway speeds. This also translates to better control (especially handling) at all speeds.

 

[Barry]

Speed rating is just that, it needs to match or exceed the top speed of the vehicle. It is perfectly safe to run T rated tires on any car with a top speed of 118 mph or lower, so these on a Volt are fine. V rated tires would also be safe on those cars and some faster cars as well.

Just because the OEM tires were V does not mean that is the only speed rating that will work with the car. The OEM tires were selected primarily for low rolling resistance and maybe some other factors such as getting a good contracted price. They were not selected because a V rating was a criteria. In fact, the 2011 model year was sold with an H speed rated version of the tire.

 

[Dutch]

UPDATE - DAY ONE

39.3 miles in to work

We had a significant drop in temps overnight to 35 degrees so there was some heat and defogging involved as well as the usual colder weather battery range drops so I can't give any reasonable MPG or MPGe comparison today.

The drive was SMOOTH and quiet. I cross a couple of sets of railroad tracks and what used to be a "thump-thump" was more of a muted bump. Also I drive through one area of grooved pavement and the old tires used to HOWL on that section. The new ones were a much quieter rumble though they did seem to want to "pull" with the grooves a lot harder so I had to pay more attention to staying properly in my lane.

The tire shop also apparently did a first rate alignment

 

[jbakerjonathan]

Thanks for the update, Dutch. Although I've got a way to go before I need new tires (only 37,000 miles on them), I have my eye on the Continentals. I look forward to your continued observations.

 

[turnbowm]

...The drive was SMOOTH and quiet. I cross a couple of sets of railroad tracks and what used to be a "thump-thump" was more of a muted bump. Also I drive through one area of grooved pavement and the old tires used to HOWL on that section. The new ones were a much quieter rumble though they did seem to want to "pull" with the grooves a lot harder so I had to pay more attention to staying properly in my lane.

Your results are as expected. A tire with lower speed rating will provide a softer ride because there is less sidewall support. The downside is less control as evidenced by the noticeable "pull" on grooved surfaces.

 

[Dutch]

Your results are as expected. A tire with lower speed rating will provide a softer ride because there is less sidewall support. The downside is less control as evidenced by the noticeable "pull" on grooved surfaces.

that makes sense to me, then again cornering, control, etc.... are all relative to me. My other vehicle is an 18 year old Jeep Cherokee! The Volt feels like a nimble "running on rails" Porsche or Lotus sports car by comparison <grin>.

 

[FrankIII]

Thanks for your assessment on the Continentals Dutch. I had Continentals years ago on another model and I was very much impressed by them. I was looking at tires for my '12 Volt recently and was going through my options for Continentals as well on the Volt. I will be getting a set in the spring when winter is done.

 

[goaterguy]

At 38k miles they were bald on the shoulders even though there was a decent amount of tread in the center and the wet traction was starting to drop. Those tires were the suck last winter and I had been planning on replacement before the snow flew this year.

To be clear, although that is commonly a symptom of under inflated tires, it seems relatively normal in the Volt, I keep an constant eye on tire pressure and still got the bald shoulders. After some research here, the solution is to over inflate the tires right below the maximum allowed pressure.

 

[Dutch]

Update - Week One

I've been running these tires for a week now (400 miles if you care)
No report on mileage, the weather has been fluctuating too much to even pretend I can trust the numbers.
Basically no change, I'm extremely pleased with them so far. We're supposed to get some heavy rains tomorrow so I may be reporting back after that.

One sad note yesterday.
I pulled into the garage and heard a faint hissing sound, looked around and noted the rear tire looked low, and lower, and flat.

Jacked up the car and pulled the tire and I could see something was in it so I quick like the bunny I was off to the tire shop arriving JUST before they closed. THIS is what they pulled out of my tire.

If you can't tell, this chunk of glass is about the size of a silver dollar and a little more than 1/2" thick. The cut it made in the tire was surprisingly small and clean and right along the center line. The tire shop said that patching it was no problem but if it gave me any trouble after patching they'd order another tire for me.

 

[!arry4pyro]

Here's why these tires are so quiet and smooth.

http://www.continental-tires.com/car/technology/contisilent