Oddly contradictory
TL;DR
OEM Bolt and Tesla tires suck at everything other than low rolling resistance, and true A/B rolling resistance tests are hard to come by.
tuna55 said:volvoclearinghouse said:I've been researching tires for my 2018 Mazda3, now with almost 40k miles on it (and a lifetime average of 36.8 mpg, or about 6.7 cents per mile; yes, I do like fuelly.com) and am leaning towards the Michelin CrossClimate2's. They're spendy, but they seem like the best tire in that category, plus they're made in America (by a French company, but still...) and we have a mutual friend who's an employee of said company. I try to support companies that employ friends/ family. Granted, the snow rating of the CC2's is more of a factor for me where I live than you, so there is that.
Holy carp. When I checked these a month ago they were $15 cheaper per tire!
And that mutual friend is one of the best humans I've met, even if he's slower than me around a racetrack :)
New issue regarding tires, apparently the CC2 has a pretty big range hit which I don't understand. No real data other than forum posts. I don't have real information from new/new/new instrumented tests though.
Is the mutual friend someone on here?? My wife and I both spent time working there during college, it's actually how we met!
OE tires are designed/developed from a baseline tire to meet specific needs for the OE. So the original tire can/will have slightly different specs or compounds to meet targets, and you can bet that GMs target for Bolt tires would be as much range as possible, ie a rolling resistance spec.
Yeah he's on here. I won't out him though, not everyone wants to admit to being my friend 
tuna55 said:TL;DR
OEM Bolt and Tesla tires suck at everything other than low rolling resistance, and true A/B rolling resistance tests are hard to come by.
Look into the Pirelli Cinturato P7 Plus II. They are better than the stock goodyears on my Model S, quiet, and near as I can tell no range reduction in the last 30k miles of use. They still have 6/32 of tread left as well.
mattm said:tuna55 said:TL;DR
OEM Bolt and Tesla tires suck at everything other than low rolling resistance, and true A/B rolling resistance tests are hard to come by.
Look into the Pirelli Cinturato P7 Plus II. They are better than the stock goodyears on my Model S, quiet, and near as I can tell no range reduction in the last 30k miles of use. They still have 6/32 of tread left as well.
Thanks, they look promising, and quite inexpensive!
I wonder if any of my EV brethren have seen efficiency gains as tires wear. My efficiency is startlingly good, 4.7 mi/kWh now.
I am heading on that errand Friday to bring a friend to Charlotte -after- the round trip to work and back. I may use a public charger just for fun, as I don't think I'll need it.
Just an update with a milestone, 44,444 mi. I did buy the continental tires, and they seem fine so far. The weather is so variable that it's difficult to make a direct comparison, it will be easier in the spring. Nothing else to report other than there is a looming battery replacement when parts come in. It might be as early as December.
I have seen pictures of pallets of Bolteries at dealerships, so hopefully you get yours soon.
Keith Tanner said:I have seen pictures of pallets of Bolteries at dealerships, so hopefully you get yours soon.
I am actually of two minds. This recall could go really well. I end up with a battery with higher capacity, and also I get a brand new warranty. In that case, I want the battery replacement to be as late as possible.
No surprise, the recall appointment was postponed due to lack of parts.
Eh. No worries. Again I am not really fearful of a fire, and the longer the recall takes, the longer my new warranty is good for.
For anyone left thinking that the Bolt is too small:
there
There is a Mazda CX-5 behind that. Can you see it?
The CX-5 is basically a Mazda3 with a bit more ground clearance. IIRC interior volume is close to the same. So this doesn't surprise me.
EDIT: According to C/D, the volumes are:
2018 CX-5: Total interior: 103.6, cargo behind rear seats: 38
2018 3: Total interior: 96.4, cargo behind rear seats: 20.2 (so it is smaller than a CX-5)
2019 Bolt: Total interior: 94.4, behind the rear seats is 16.9 cubic feet. I recall comparing my 3 to a coworker's Bolt, and the Bolt was noticeably smaller in the back.
I pulled the trigger on new tires for my ride as well. I ended up going with Sumitomo HTR-A/S-P03, in 205/60R15. They were about $100 each, plus m&b and new tire pressure sensors.
Everything about them is superior to the Bridgestone Ecopias (aka "Road Stones") that Mazda shod the 3 with, except for, of course, fuel efficiency. I've only done 1 tank with the new tires so far, and saw about 7% under my long term average. But, they are quieter, gripper in the whoa, go, and turning departments, and the tread looks like it should give better snow and rain traction, too. For the added safety and performance, the mileage trade-off was more than a fair compromise.
The parts are in, and the battery recall starts December 7th and they are now asking for three days. Stay tuned, race fans.
The Bolt is one of those designs that keeps everything in the same proportion as a smaller car, so you don't realize how large it actually is. The stylists wanted it to look small, I suspect.
Good luck with the replacement!
Keith Tanner said:The Bolt is one of those designs that keeps everything in the same proportion as a smaller car, so you don't realize how large it actually is. The stylists wanted it to look small, I suspect.
Good luck with the replacement!
yeah I really don't understand design very well. I have a bother-in-law who said (about his cars) "blah blah blah upgrade to an SUV blah blah blah" and I just about fell down, as if it was common knowledge that any SUV was an upgrade over any sedan or coupe.
Anyway, I have tons of room in the Bolt, and my kids would rather sit in the Bolt than in the back of the minivan, and the cargo space has been more than I needed for hauling lots of random stuff.
BTW, regarding the Pirelli's mentioned earlier: Pirelli is now owned by a Chinese company, which puts them back at the bottom of my tire choice ladder.
Hope the battery swap goes well.
In reply to tuna55 :
I've been reading along with this thread since you started it. I'm hopeful that GM will do well by everyone with the battery replacement, from the real life experiences you've posted this could be a great commuter car for me. Heck, my main account just installed a bunch of charging stations in the garage. Good luck with the work, hope it goes smoothly.
I have a Kia problem.
I dropped off the Bolt yesterday morning. The dealership guy was nice enough. He was curious, and asked a few questions. Then I get sent to rental car abyss. The shuttle driver takes me over to the Enterprise lot and I started looking around. I know that GM would reimburse me if I got my own rental, but I didn't do that. I am not sure why. Anyway I am driving a Hyundai Accent with two bald tires, and wow oh wow. This is not a good car. I drive it like I want to punish it for existing. I cannot spin the tires or even engage the traction control (if it has that) in the rain. It is one of the worst cars I have driven.
This is one area where Tesla has a leg up.
The Bolt is back!
The dealership said that they washed it and cleaned it. They did not. I hope the battery replacement was done more thoroughly. It seems fine so far! Only two days impressed me.
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