Electric vehicle tires produce up to 20 percent more pollution than their gas-powered counterparts, experts have revealed.
For decades, the impact of exhaust emissions from gas-powered cars has been the main draw of battery-powered vehicles.
But experts warn that tires, often overlooked as a source of pollution, are releasing chemicals and microplastics into the environment. While switching to an electric car undoubtedly helps to reduce CO2 emissions, it actually exacerbates the problem of tire emissions.
EVs typically weigh a lot more and accelerate faster than their gas-powered counterparts, so small particles are thrown into the air as the tire wears out.
According to road tests according to research agency Emissions Analytics, a petrol car loses about 73 milligrams per kilometer from four new tires under normal driving conditions. However, a comparable electric vehicle saves another 15 milligrams per kilometre, about 20 percent more.
Experts warn that tires, often overlooked as a source of pollution, are releasing chemicals and microplastics into the environment
EVs typically weigh a lot more and accelerate faster than their gas-powered counterparts, so small particles are thrown into the air as the tire wears out
“It’s a combination of the weight and torque – that’s essentially how aggressively the car can accelerate,” Nick Molden, founder and CEO of Emissions Analytics told DailyMail.com.
“The thing about electric motors is that they can accelerate very quickly. If you add that up and how heavy the vehicle is, it causes extra wear on the tyre.’
The typical electric car weighs about 1,000 pounds more than gasoline models, according to Molden.
In a study conducted by Emissions Analytics in March this year, comparing the Tesla Model Y – the most popular EV in the US – and the similarly sized hybrid Kia Niro, the company found that the Tesla produced 26 percent more tire emissions.
“The hybrid Kia Niro delivers around 30 percent CO2 reduction, while the Tesla is probably somewhere around 50 percent,” said Molden.
“The Tesla is better in terms of CO2, but not that much. Then you weigh up some extra CO2 reduction, but worse tire emissions.’
According to a Study from 2017, the average American produces about 10 pounds of tire emissions annually. The global average per person is under 2 pounds of tire emissions per year.
Tires are the second leading source of microplastic pollution in the oceans after textiles, according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature.
“People are spending a lot of money on these big monsters when we really should be going for small, light, fuel efficient vehicles,” Molden added.
It comes as the US faces an electric car revolution – led by a surge in Tesla sales.
Last week, the company co-founded by billionaire Elon Musk announced a record increase in sales in the second quarter of the year – it delivered 446,140 cars worldwide in the three months leading up to June, beating its own forecast of 445,000.
Nick Molden, founder and CEO of Emissions Analytics, warns that EV tires produce more emissions due to the weight and torque of the vehicles
Emissions Analytics compared the similarly sized Tesla Model Y and the Kia Niro and found that the Tesla produced 26 percent more tire emissions
Business in the US is being boosted by federal tax credits for electric vehicles, though experts have warned that it could take up to a decade to pay off the premium customers pay for an electric car.
While green engines are usually cheaper to run, the average electric car only costs $20,000 more to pre-purchase than a gas-powered car.
Despite the surge of interest in electric cars, leading automakers said this week that President Joe Biden’s push for electric cars is doomed because it “underestimates” key challenges — including the cost to consumers.
The White House has set a goal that two-thirds of new car sales should be electric by 2032.
But in comments submitted to the federal government, Toyota and Stellantis – owner of Vauxhall – called the plan “overly optimistic” due to inadequate charging infrastructure and high prices. Stellantis said the target “significantly underestimates” the complexities of building a viable EV market.
Meanwhile, tire emissions aren’t the only environmental issue raised around EVs.
Experts have debated the environmental impact of the lithium-ion batteries used to power electric vehicles, which require rare metals and vast amounts of energy to produce.
For Molden, it is a no-brainer that the world should evolve towards hybrid vehicles.
“They are hardly heavier than normal vehicles and they provide a major CO2 reduction,” he said. “If you really want to tackle the environmental problem, the intuitive way to do it is to make smaller, lighter vehicles. No bigger and heavier monsters.’