How much rubber does the electric car burn?

The Audi E-tron came to change a whole (tyre) world. Not because of the car's body shape, but because the car model came to set an example because an electric car is much heavier, which in turn required larger wheels. And by extension also a new type of tire.

The service weight of cars has increased significantly in recent years and the introduction of the electric car is part of this. If you look at four standard company car models, two electric powered and two with a combustion engine, we see the following differences:

• The two-wheel drive Audi Q4 40 e-tron Proline has a curb weight of 2,220 kg. Total weight 2,640 kg.

• Four-wheel drive VW ID.4 GTX has a curb weight of 2,340 kg. Total weight of 2,730 kg.

• VW Tiguan Allspace 4Motion 200 TDI. Operating weight 1,925 and total weight 2,480 kg.

• VW Passat Alltrack 190 TDI 4Motion. Operating weight 1,848, total weight 2,320 kg.

Time to talk about electric car tires as a new concept

The change has affected the tire manufacturers and which tires are on the market. Namely, the technical basis of the tires must be able to carry all the load that the total weight of a car entails - in other words, the tires must have a sufficiently high load index. The Audi E-tron thus became the start for car manufacturers to set new demands on tire manufacturers - to produce products to meet a new set of needs.

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This distinguishes electric car tires from "regular" tires

In what way do electric car tires differ from "regular" tires? Well, most electric cars have a limited top speed of 160-180 km/h. Roughly speaking, this means that the tires do not need to be approved for higher speeds than that. Furthermore, range is the single most important characteristic of tires. This puts forward features such as safety, comfort, longevity, grip or wet performance, which in other cases may be valued higher than fuel consumption.

The tires also often have different front and rear dimensions on electric cars. Why, one might wonder. The change places higher demands on both storage and the wallet, as access is easily limited due to manufacturing volume and you also cannot change the tires between the axles to increase their lifespan. The answer Linus Pröjtz received at Teknikens värld is clear: you choose to use tires with different dimensions to exclusively prime the car's longer range with the tires.

Heavier cars cause increased wear and tear

Does the electric car burn more rubber than a fossil-powered car? Yes, it seems so. Electric car tires are new on the market and heavier electric cars in combination with strong engines cause increased wear and tear and they have not yet succeeded in extending the life of electric car tires to the same extent as other tires. But it is also important to remember that no tire is good at everything, you have to choose which characteristics are most important. If you drive an electric car, it is possibly low rolling resistance, which gives improved range, which is most important to you. If you drive a lot of track, you want a lot of grip. And if you drive often and for a long time, your preference may be directional stability.

Regardless, we would like to conclude with a few words from Linus: The tire is the only direct contact you have with the road when you drive. Without the tires you would have driven on the rim and then you would have gone off the road. Therefore, choose not only which car you drive, but also which tires it rolls with.