Volt and tire wear

[ECR1014]

Prius drivers report fast tire wear. I am wondering if the Volt being all electric would have the same issue

[hermperez]

Its an issue of the Prius, nothing to do with electrics.. suspension, low inflation pressure, alignment and tire quality is what is causing the reported short life of the Prius tires.

That said, any FWD car abuses the front tires, frequent rotations are a must.

[Andy0x1]

how exactly does tire rotation reduce the rate of tread wear again?

Maybe they can apply that concept to fuel tanks.

Alternate between two tanks to get better MPG?

[barry252]

I have a question on Rotation.....

The Volt manual, on page 10-54, says to rotate the tires in the classic "X" pattern. The Fronts move the the back(Same Side), but the Rear Tires cross and move the the Front. LR to RF, RR to LF. My experience with Radial Tires has led me to keep Lefts on the Left and Rights on the Right, just switching the same sides front to back.

Does everyone agree that it's ok to switch sides as per the manual?

[scottf200]

how exactly does tire rotation reduce the rate of tread wear again?<snip>

This matches my off the top of my head common sense thoughts as well:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tire_rotation

By design, the weight on the front and rear axles differs which causes uneven wear. With the majority of cars being front-engine cars, the front axle typically bears more of the weight. For rear wheel drive vehicles, the weight distribution between front and back approaches 50:50. Front wheel drive vehicles also have the differential in front, adding to the weight, with a typical weight distribution of no better than 60:40. This means, all else being equal, the front tires wear out at almost twice the rate of the rear wheels, especially when factoring the additional stress that braking puts on the front tires. Thus, tire rotation needs to occur more frequently for front-wheel drive vehicle.

[bitguru]

Its an issue of the Prius, nothing to do with electrics.. suspension, low inflation pressure, alignment and tire quality is what is causing the reported short life of the Prius tires.

I'm not sure I can agree. I'm not a tire expert, but even with normal-to-semi-hi inflation pressure and decent-quality tires both my Prii (a 2001 and a 2004, though as of yesterday the 2004 is gone) wear them down quickly. I can't comment on suspension and alignment—it could very well be those.

[Marty]

how exactly does tire rotation reduce the rate of tread wear again?

Overall, as a sum of all areas of all tires, rotation doesn't reduce it. You'll leave the same number of ounces of rubber on the road per thousand miles whether you rotate or not.

Rotation causes the wear to be distributed more evenly over all tires over time. Front tires wear differently than rear tires due to weight distribution, braking, and turning. Imperfections in alignment cause uneven tire wear. By rotating tires, the wear is averaged and all of the tires will need replacing at about the same time.

Without rotation, you might have one or two tires that need replacement while the others still have plenty of tread. This means either replacing all tires as a group sooner, or replacing just the worn tire(s) resulting in different characteristics if the exact replacement tire isn't available.

It is interesting that the Volt manual recommends swapping in the old-style X pattern. Radial tires usually shouldn't be swapped side-to-side changing the direction of spin. Some tread patterns are unidirectional and have a "rotation" arrow on the sidewall to ensure that they are on the proper side of the car for best traction. X-pattern tire rotation is something that I thought went away with bias-ply tires. I wonder if other GM cars also recommend this.

[TSquare]

It is interesting that the Volt manual recommends swapping in the old-style X pattern. Radial tires usually shouldn't be swapped side-to-side changing the direction of spin. Some tread patterns are unidirectional and have a "rotation" arrow on the sidewall to ensure that they are on the proper side of the car for best traction. X-pattern tire rotation is something that I thought went away with bias-ply tires. I wonder if other GM cars also recommend this.

My 2006 Pontiac (front wheel drive) has the same X-pattern, however my 2000 Oldsmobile (rear wheel drive) has the opposite X-pattern. Looks like the drive wheels should stay on the same side when moved and the un-driven wheels cross over when they move. Never noticed that the pattern was different between the two cars.

[barry252]

The Tires on My Volt are Goodyear Assurance Fuel Max Radials, Size P215/55R17 93H. They're stamped M+S for all weather driving, standard load. The tires have 1 Ply Polyester, 2 Plies Steel, and 1 Ply Nylon, Made in Canada. (Shout-out to the Canooks!) There is no directional arrow stamped, so I have to assume that the Volt owners manual is correct.

After Rotation, the Tire TPMS must be reset. Anybody know how much TPMS Reset Tool costs?

[MVRacing]

Most radials these days can be X rotated... they have improved on the tire construction techniques. Check with the manufacturer.