Wheels, Rims, and Tires

[tomrh]

Interesting that you have a better selection of studded 14 inch tires than 15's

Aren't there some old Toyota Corolla's still rolling on US roads? They use 175/65-14 and would still need tyres during winter.
I borrowed a tyre from a '97 Corolla this evening. The Corolla happens to have the same bolt pattern as the i-MiEV. I have to be 100% sure that the Dezent L rim will fit before I order a set from Germany, and the Corolla rim will probably reveal what I need.

 

[sandange]

Fount these locally, in Canadian funds & no shipping charges ,
Continental CONTI ECO CONTACT
Sizes : 145/65R15 - 72T
$ 85.75

Going to give them a try.

 

[PV1]

Found these locally, in Canadian funds & no shipping charges ,
Continental CONTI ECO CONTACT
Sizes : 145/65R15 - 72T
$ 85.75

Going to give them a try.

Please let us know what you think. I'm looking to replace my Dunlops while they still have some tread left (keeping them as spares/construction season tires).

 

[sandange]

Yes I'll report back once I get some miles on them


I also decided to try balancing them with dynabeads.
Like I did with my motorcycle & Honda fit. -I had good results with them.

 

[tomrh]

I tried with 14" rims on, there is no way they would fit in the front. Either they must be very narrow or have a very small offset. The reason is a bulge on the..what is the name of it..located below the suspension (I have a photo showing this but it doesn't seem this forum supports upload of photos?).

However, I found spiked tyres available for the original rims, so there is no need for me to go down to 14" anymore.
See http://www.yokohama-online.com/Tyre-Finder Yokohama IceGuard Stud IG35.

Tom

 

[Don]

Yes, a 5.5 or 6 inch wide 14" rim hits the McPherson strut in the front

If you have rims with the correct offset, either 14" or 15" they need to be either 4.5 or 5 inches wide to clear the struts on the front

Don

 

[carnut1100]

We have had to buy two more tyres.....
On the same road, about 500m away, she blew the sidewalls out of both passenger side tyres on the sharp asphalt edge where water erosion had washed the gravel away from the edge....
Two week wait for new ones....I was sick of driving the hilux every day!
She has the longer commute so she took my imiev...
Put almost 1,000km a week on it too!

 

[PV1]

Sandange, how are the Continental tires treating you? Any loss of range, handling, noise, etc.?

 

[sandange]

Haven't installed the tires yet but will report back once i get a few miles on them.

 

[PV1]

OK. Thanks.

 

[WyVern]

Just had my first service - 12 month/15,000kms (c.9,320 miles) only to find the front tyres are worn. FL is 1.5mm (legal limt here in QLD) FR is 1mm (below legal).
As ours is one of the smallest markets for these vehicles the Dunlop replacements are the only official option on the market at AU$200 per tyre.

The tyres were worn evenly so no over/under inflation suspected, I had checked pressures 3 months ago and while a little low I reinflated to the recommended pressure and rechecked a couple of weeks later and it was holding fine.

I've heard tell of a few running at 40PSI so I may try that and see how the wear goes over the next year. If its going to cost $400 per year in tyres this could blow out my economy savings for the Teapot big time.

 

[Don]

I would go online and see what you can find - $200 each for these tires is ridiculous. I would think you could buy them elsewhere and even with shipping charges to Australia, they should be cheaper than that

I hit a chunk of asphalt and which damaged the sidewall on one tire so I replaced my 2 front tires at about 13,000 miles. Think I paid about US $80 each - They were perhaps 25% worn at the time. My original rears are still on the car and after 2 years and 17,500 miles, I would guess they are about half worn. I would definitely have the alignment checked when you install new tires, especially since you wore them out in less than 10,000 miles. Something is not 'right'

Don

 

[WyVern]

I agree something's up. I'm suspicious of the pressures being low, considering the relatively even wear but I have had the alignment checked as well. Owing to the illegality of the tyre and the despair of my wife if I were to keep the car off the road even for a day I have stumped up AU$400 to keep her rolling.

My inlaws are off to the uk soon where the Dunlops retail for around £50. Given the small size I may sent them with an extra suitcase...

 

[jray3]

At least within the USA, it might be worthwhile for folks who are going to replace their tires "according to the book" to offer the used tires to our dry-land listers. JoeS could probably get another 10k from tires that are too worn for wet Seattle streets!
(But not my rollers- I've got a trailer with 4.5x15" wheels just waiting for a shot at used i-tires!)

 

[WyVern]

While searching UK sites for possible items that could be shipped to Oz I found a brand being sold for just £35.20 (AU$63.52/US$59.72). The tyre is the Nankang AS1, can't speak as to the quality but could be worth me importing a set if I can do so cheaply enough.

 

[JoeS]

At least within the USA, it might be worthwhile for folks who are going to replace their tires "according to the book" to offer the used tires to our dry-land listers. JoeS could probably get another 10k from tires that are too worn for wet Seattle streets!

Yeah, we haven't had any rain for months and probably won't have any until October, so driving on Enasave slicks would work for me. :roll: Recall that the car handled and stopped just fine on those worn Dunlop Enasaves.

Now that I have racked up over 5000 miles on the Yokohama AVID ENVigors, the best RR we've managed is in the low-70's, even in warm weather. Next long measured trip I'll try jacking up the tire pressure really high to see if it makes any difference, and I will also attempt to make a very careful set of readings comparing the GPS odo with the i-MiEV's odometer.

After mulling it over, I think BarryP had it right (http://myimiev.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=16468#p16468): the 18% increase in revs/mile of the Yokos compared with the Dunlops is the fundamental reason for the RR difference, as I still am able to do my 70+mile round-trip to SFO with just a little bit of care.

 

[FiddlerJohn]

... I think BarryP had it right (http://myimiev.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=16468#p16468): the 18% increase in revs/mile of the Yokos compared with the Dunlops is the fundamental reason for the RR difference, as I still am able to do my 70+mile round-trip to SFO with just a little bit of care.

But JoeS? This new smaller diameter tire would falsely indicate higher RR, and not a lower RR. I must be missing something.
http://myimiev.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=26&p=16470#p16470

One-month (exactly 1000 miles) update using the Yokohama AVID ENVigors.

Something has gone wrong with our mileage: easily a 20% drop in range!

... Since the front tires rev/mile just became bigger (783 to 926 or 18% increase) ... -Barry

Barry, thanks for posting. I like your thinking, but this smaller tire would falsely indicate longer distance and better range ...

 

[JoeS]

But JoeS? This new smaller diameter tire would falsely indicate higher RR, and not a lower RR. I must be missing something.

FiddlerJohn, ever since I posted that I've been mulling it over in my head - thuzzy finking lately on my part. I had run across BarryP's post and hadn't re-read the subsequent comments. I'm still bothered by the poor RR we're getting and grasped at that straw. Has anyone else installed the Yokohamas - and with what results?

 

[PV1]

As an attempt to clear this up, it would seem that a larger diameter tire will cause the speedometer to under-read your actual speed, making the car think you are using more energy to travel slower than if the speedometer were correct. Therefore, your range numbers will be low since you are using 55 mph energy to travel at what the car thinks is 52 mph (give or take, an example). I've noticed on mine that my speedometer used to be 2-3 mph lower than actual, but now it is spot-on now that my tires have worn down. My range numbers have gone up slightly compared to last year.

So, a larger diameter tire will reduce your RR reading, and a smaller tire will increase your RR. This will also have the same effect on the speedometer and odometer.

 

[DaveMiller]

So, a larger diameter tire will reduce your RR reading, and a smaller tire will increase your RR. This will also have the same effect on the speedometer and odometer.

And neither will change how far you a can actually go on a full charge. Am I correct on this?

Dave