You've probably heard people say electric cars just eat through tyres. Up to now I've thought that, whilst its partly due to heavy weight of the vehicle and higher torque, its also how its driven that makes the difference. Just like new sports car owners also see an increase in the number of tyres they go through because of the way they are driven (fast acceleration, fast cornering) I thought the same with some new EV drivers.
That was until after a recent service I was told my rear tyres needed changing soon. I was expecting the original front tyres to need replacing soon rather than the rear tyres as they had been replaced only 12 months earlier.
I'd only done 21,691 miles on the second set of rear tyres. Compared to the original factory rear tyres that had done 38,109 miles before they were changed in March 2025. Thats quite a difference!
The only common denominator that I could see was that the tyre type had changed from Michelin Pilot Sport EV tyres to Michelin Pilot Sport 4 SUV. I should mention that the vehicle in question is a company car so I don't get a say in what tyres are used.
Whilst its obvious that the more miles a tyre completes before it needs changing is better there is a cost difference between the tyre types too.
In April 2026 the Pilot Sport EV tyres cost £318 per tyre whilst the Pilot Sport 4 SUV tyres cost £265 per tyre (these prices include fitting). If both tyre types were to complete 100,000 miles it would take 2.6 sets of Pilot Sport EV tyres compared to 4.6 sets of Michelin Pilot Sport 4 SUV tyres to complete that distance.
Whilst many may think they could save by buying slightly cheaper tyres the long term cost difference is quite startling. In this case the more expensive EV tyres would cost just two thirds of the cheaper tyres because you will need two more sets over the 100,000 miles. Thats a saving of £790!
I should also mention that the front tyres are still the original set of the Michelin Pilot Sport EV tyres. Even after 66,000 miles they still have 3mm tread depth left so wont be changed yet as they haven't reached the company's replacement 2mm tread limit. Even though I keep checking they seem to be like a Duracell battery and are going on and on!
The type of tyres used seems to make more difference than I initially thought. This experience has made me think twice about what type of tyres I'd put on my own car. The more expensive EV focused tyres seem to be a better choice for EV's and are possibly worth the extra ticket purchase price.
From this experience the Michelin Pilot Sport EV tyres seem to give some impressive longevity and a tyre I'd consider in the future.
