I am using Continental TrueContact, their low rolling resistance offering in years past. Very quiet, excellent wet traction, bit heavier than OE Goodyear Assurance, but much nicer ride. Continental has a new line of EV specific tires called EcoContact 6.:

https://www.continental-tires.com/car/tire-knowledge/tire-basics/electric-vehicle-tires

 

EcoContact 6.:

Thanks, but according to Continental's website, they don't make EcoContact 6 in 215/50 R17 (for Gen 2 Volts).

 

I've happily used Bridgestone Ecopia 422+ (must be the + version), and Perelli Centurato P7s in the past. Currently riding on Goodyear ElectricDrives and they're excellent in wet and icy conditions.

 

I left EP422+ for Crossclimate 2's on my Gen 1 before this winter started. I haven't had the CC's in much wet conditions, as it's gone straight from snowing buckets to bone dry and back again here. The tread pattern is deep and aggressive, looks like it should do a good job of pushing water from the center to the outside of the tire, though I remember it's ratings on tire sites not being perfect on that. Snow handling has been very good, as it is a winter biased all season. Very composed going onto and off of smooth ice, frosted tarmac, etc. Firmer ride than EP422, definitely feel more of the pavement, but crisper handling as a positive side effect of that. Noise has been just fine, not that much louder. Efficiency has been good, too close to call any difference from the previous LRRs.

 

Pure Contact LS are great tires, especially in the wet. A large portion of my commute is mountain road driving, and nothing is worse than tires that don't grip in the wet. It's wet nearly year round, rain in the winter(a long winter at that), and fog in the mornings, so at the very least, morning drives are always wet.

Those tires are very predictable, last a long time, and I don't have to drop my speed in the wet at all, as they grip that good. Wet vs dry grip difference is negligible, unless driving very hard and at the limit the whole time, ie something 99.9% of drivers will never do. They also ride nice, and are amazingly quiet, even when nearly worn out.

 

I know you don’t get likely as much snow in Seattle as Green Bay but I’ll throw this out there. I’m running Nokian Encompass AW01 on my wife’s gen 1 and they have been absolutely fantastic in wet or ice or deep snow. They also have a 60k mileage rating I believe.

They are a less hardcore version of WR G4, and I believe they may be a Tire Rack and Discount Tire Direct exclusive.

 

Nokian Encompass AW01

Thanks, but they don't make them in the Gen 2 Volt's size, 215/50R17.

 

GregL65,

The OEM tires on a second gen Volt are Michelin Energy Saver MFR part # 11674 91H 21 lbs. I replaced mine with Michelin Energy Saver MFR part # 16798 91H 20 lbs Different Thread Formula. I live in San Diego with very little rain and no snow in the 20 years I've lived here. They are loud, don't handle that great and suck in precipitation of any kind. They are the best LLR tire for a Chevy Volt based on research and my experience. I do not recommend them for use in any area that sees regular rain or god forbid snow! I'm glad other Volt owners have chimed in with what they have experienced in their climates. For me EV range/mileage is king but that should not be your first concern where you live. What good is great EV range when you are upside down in a ditch? For your situation IMO priority list in this order should be 1)Traction in precipitation, 2)comfort, 3)noise, 4)LLR then 5) treadwear. Light weight of tires/rims seems to be a major factor in mileage and or EV range.

Stephen

 

Can you explain to me what "LLR" stands for? I haven't a clue.

Tom

 

I've stuck with the Michelin Energy Savers, and I live in FL with very significant rain. I just replaced mine, and I got a bit over 70k miles out of the last set.

 

I have these tires still on our 2018 Volt and they are doing fine in Seattle rains. I also have them on our Dodge Van. A lot of people knock them, but I don't have a complaint.

On our 2013 Volt I switched to the first gen Continental Pure Contacts from the stock Goodyears. This was a nice improvement, especially for road noise. They were replaced at 37K with the second gen Pure Contacts which were a nice improvement.

 

Hankook Kinergy ST H735
215 /50 R17 91H SL BSW

They're relatively inexpensive tires I got at America's Tire in CA. They work as well as any others I've had.

 

Very happy with: CON CONTINENTAL PURE CONTACT LS 215 /50 R17 95V XL BSW.
Quiet and have had no problem with Chicago snow.

 

2013 125k Been using Cross Climate 2s for a while. New ones on front axle and old ones moved back to back axle. Michelins -- a real tire company. No complaints.

 

Cross Climate 2s. No complaints.

How is the road noise? I had CrossClimate2s on my 2007 Accord and I though they were pretty loud.

 

I always have the radio or CD on so I wouldnt notice. They wear down a lot slower than Goodyears.

 

+1 for the Michelin Cross Climate 2 - I recently changed them and the grip in the intense rain downpours we had last week was superb. Of note however, if I was in a dry region, I would have probably been able to get 65-70k from the OEM tires as reported above by OO, as the tires had 5-6/32 left on them, but had become death defyingly slippery in the least amount of snow we got this past winter.

 

I have a 2017 Volt and recently purchased the Coopers (about 2K miles on them) and could instantly notice the performance improvement over the Michelins! The Coopers handle better and my wife noticed how much quieter they were.

 

I started with Michelin Energy Savers from the factory. Not very impressed - almost no traction. I like Michelin, so I switched to Premier. I liked the ride much better than the Energy Savers, and they lasted a lot of miles. Recently I needed to replace them again, and the Premier wasn't available in the right size. The tire guy recommended BF Goodrich Advantage Control. BF Goodrich is owned by Michelin, so I figured I'd give them a try. I can't believe how much better the Advantage Control is than the Premier! The ride is so much smoother, and quiet.

That said, I don't have a great feel for how well they perform in heavy rain. We did have some serious rain here in California this year, and traction seemed at least as good, if not better, than the Premier. Based on my experience so far, I give the Advantage Control a thumbs up.

 

I replaced my OEM tires at 50,000 with Goodyear Weatherready Assurance tires. Far better in rain and snow than the originals. Just turned over 90,000 and the tread depth is still very good, expecting to get at least 60,000 out of the set. There may be a slight hit in range but I'll take it for the better grip.

 

FYI for comparison:

"Tesla has just switched stock 18″ tires for the Model 3 from Michelin Primacy MXM4 to the new Hankook Kinergy GT H436 ones." Tesla Model 3 now comes with Hankook Kinergy GT tires instead of the Michelin Primacy MXM4 - Tesla Oracle

 

I currently have a set of Nokian One tires on my Gen 1 Volt. It seems to be Nokian’s OEM budget offering for the US market. There’s much to like, it’s a fairly quiet tire, and has even improved the ride of the already soft Gen 1. It maintains good traction in rainy weather, and mild winter conditions. I have Nokian snow tires for deep winter snow. Blogger Out of Spec Kyle has had positive comments about these tires, but also mentioned that Ones have a more aggressive tread than most touring tires. Nokian’s spec sheet says it’s a LRR tire good for 80,000 miles. It’s a noticeably heavier tire than the OEM Goodyears, and I have noticed at least a 15% range penalty. This actually surprised me at first, because my Nokian snow tires have almost no range penalty. Considering the increased weight and more aggressive tread, maybe it makes sense. I’m guessing the Nokian One should be able to handle Seattle weather, and Nokian quality is among the best.

 

I can highly recommend Michelin Energy Savers . Probably the best tires i ever had in my life. Got them after recommendation of tire agent (here you can read about them https://tire-agent.pissedcоnsumer.com/review.html) and definitely wasn't disappointed. Michelin is a leading tire brand for many years now as the quality of their products is very high.

 

Did you buy the the Continental PureContact LS tires? If so, what do you think. Since my commute is almost as long as my range with the OEM tires, I don't want to lose any range. Can you give me your range and conditions (avg. speed, cty/hwy) for your new tires on the battery alone?

 

I went for the Yokohama Avids. I had PureContacts for years on my '16, and I was reasonably happy with them. Good range and decent grip. But they seem kind of fragile - there was always a slow air leak, and more frequent punctures than I'm used to. I've only had the Yokohamas for a few months on my '17, but so far I like them. No drop in range, maybe a little better road grip than the Continentals, and I don't notice them to be any louder than I'm used to. Too early to know how they do with treadwear, snow/ice, and road hazards.

 

I got Continental TrueContact Tour 54 tires and I have noticed reduced range. I couldn't find information about rolling resistance in order to do comparisons. I may have slipped up and gotten the TrueContact instead of the PureContact (which I was targeting mainly because of this forum) although, even now, I can't find any objective measure to compare mileage.
Anyway, now the range indicator for battery starts at about 47 but as soon as I'm out of the driveway it's down to 43 or so. I'm pretty disappointed! The tires drive nicely but if I had it to do over again I'd be more careful - maybe even I'd go with original Michelin's. Yes, they may not be the grippiest tires, but I'm a conservative driver anyway.

 

Good to know. The importance of tire performance (excluding range) is important to me based on the driving I do, and the way I drive.
I want a quiet tire on the freeway and stiff sidewalls for the country roads I travel.
Range isn't that important. The Coopers do all this well.