Electric company car tyres bigger and more expensive than ICE

Electric company car tyres are on average both bigger and more expensive than petrol or diesel equivalents, according to new real world data from epyx.

The company says that the average replacement tyre fitted to an electric vehicle (EV) is 18.59 inches and costs £207 while, for internal combustion engine (ICE) cars, the corresponding figures are 17.40 inches and £130.

This data is taken from the company’s 1link Service Network, which is used to manage service, maintenance and repair (SMR) for more than four million company vehicles.

Charlie Brooks, growth director at epyx, said: “These figures need to be approached with some caution because of the samples involved. Most EVs operated by fleets tend to be at least the size of a family hatchback with comparatively few smaller vehicles yet available, so the electric cars on our platform tend to skew towards larger models. 

“However, even bearing that in mind, the data does suggest that EV tyres are currently more expensive than ICE tyres in operational terms both because of their bigger size and the fact that many specialist electric car tyres simply have higher price tags. The price differential indicated is relatively wide.”

He added that epyx had limited data so far on EV tyre wear and replacement but hoped to create meaningful comparisons with ICE vehicles soon.

“Compared to petrol and diesel cars, there are relatively few EVs that have been on fleets for a complete 3-4 year cycle, so we don’t have a comprehensive picture of tyre replacement. This is quite a complex area, with specialist EV tyres often having characteristics such as different compounds, reduced tread depth and reinforced sidewalls, all of which could ultimately have an impact on wear rates and damage.

“As the picture becomes clearer over time, we plan to release more information. Building a complete picture of how EV and ICE running costs compare is very much an ongoing process for us at this moment in time.”