For those driving EVs in colder climates: how do winter or all-season tires affect your energy consumption?
I usually go with all-season tires because in my area, the risk of ice in April/May and October is just too high for summer tires. My PHEV (Renault Captur) sees a big bump in energy use during winter, and I tend to drive in hybrid mode then, switching to electric for summer commuting.
I recently got a second car, a used Mini Cooper SE, which came with summer tires. Now I’m debating whether to switch them to all-season or go with a separate set of winter tires. Leaning towards all-season but still unsure.
For context, I’ll mainly use the Mini for city commuting, around 10-12,000 km/year. Anyone have advice or personal experience?
Honestly, you might be overthinking this! If you want the convenience of not having to change tires twice a year, go with all-season. The difference in energy consumption between the types is so minimal, you probably won’t even notice it in real-world driving.
@zendaya
I have to disagree—I did notice an increase in consumption on both my 2022 Leaf and 2020 Model 3. All-weather tires designed for snow and ice tend to have higher rolling resistance, which means more energy use. I guess it depends on the specific tires.
@Nathan
Are you talking about all-season tires (which some EVs come with as default) or all-weather tires (like Michelin CrossClimate 2)? All-weather is relatively new here in the US.
Amelia said: @Nathan
Are you talking about all-season tires (which some EVs come with as default) or all-weather tires (like Michelin CrossClimate 2)? All-weather is relatively new here in the US.
In Europe, what we call all-seasons here in the US wouldn’t be suitable for harsh winter climates. Their ‘all-season’ tires are closer to what we’d call all-weather.
I drive a Volvo with all-season tires—they work well in summer, but I switch to winter tires when the average temp drops below 7°C. I drive daily and wouldn’t trust all-seasons in snow.
I used to put Blizzaks on my BMW i3 in winter. I didn’t notice a huge difference in range, but I did feel more secure. After switching to all-season tires and keeping snow socks in the frunk, I stopped changing tires altogether. EVs handle snow surprisingly well—I even took my rear-wheel drive i3 on ski trips without much trouble.
Look into EV-specific all-season tires. For example, the Hankook iON Evo AS has decent reviews. I switched to all-season recently, and yes, there’s a slight increase in consumption, but it’s worth it for year-round convenience.
My EV came with all-season tires, and I’m planning to stick with that type when it’s time for new ones. I might lose a bit of range, but not having to swap seasonally is worth it for me.
emma said:
My EV came with all-season tires, and I’m planning to stick with that type when it’s time for new ones. I might lose a bit of range, but not having to swap seasonally is worth it for me.
I’m not using ‘EV tires’ either—just regular Goodyears. I consider consumption when choosing tires, but it’s not my top priority. Had a bad experience with ‘low-resistance’ tires years ago (Michelin Energy on a Ford Fiesta)—they were the worst!
emma said:
My EV came with all-season tires, and I’m planning to stick with that type when it’s time for new ones. I might lose a bit of range, but not having to swap seasonally is worth it for me.
You might want to double-check that non-EV tires will work with your car. Some EVs really benefit from specialty tires.