Anchee · Electric vehicle
ANCHEE EP FOUNDER CE101
Built for electric cars: instant torque, regenerative braking, and a cabin quiet enough to hear the tyres.
- XL on every size
- 17 to 19 inch
- 5 year warranty
Anchee
235/45R18
98Y · EP FOUNDER CE101
PerformanceEVAsymmetric
TYRE ONLY$135
FITTED + BALANCED
FITTED
$180
VIEW TYRE
Anchee
215/50R17
95W · EP FOUNDER CE101
PerformanceEVAsymmetric
TYRE ONLY$125
FITTED + BALANCED
FITTED
$160
VIEW TYRE
Anchee
245/45R19
102Y · EP FOUNDER CE101
PerformanceEVAsymmetric
TYRE ONLY$160
FITTED + BALANCED
FITTED
$195
VIEW TYRE
Anchee
Anchee - 215/55R18 99W XL EV TYRE
99W · EP FOUNDER CE101
PerformanceEVAsymmetric
TYRE ONLY$160
FITTED + BALANCED
FITTED
$195
VIEW TYRE
Anchee
215/55R17
98W · EP FOUNDER CE101
PerformanceAsymmetric
TYRE ONLY$135
FITTED + BALANCED
FITTED
$170
VIEW TYRE
Anchee
245/50R18
104W · EP FOUNDER CE101
PerformanceEVAsymmetric
TYRE ONLY$180
FITTED + BALANCED
FITTED
$215
VIEW TYRE
The EP Founder CE101 is Anchee's tyre for electric cars, in sizes from 17 to 19 inch. Built for the three things an EV does to a tyre that a petrol car does not: full torque from a standstill, braking through the tyres every time you lift off, and a cabin quiet enough to hear them.
- Same load index as any car of the same weight. What is different is the compound and the tread, built for instant torque and regenerative braking.
- UTQG 480 A A on every graded size. The median low profile tyre we inspect in our workshop is graded 320.
- B for wet grip on the European label on every labelled size, and 72 decibels on every size.
- XL on every size, because an electric car weighs more than the petrol car it looks like.
- Five year manufacturer warranty, backed by us as the sole New Zealand importer.
- Not driving an EV? The AC818 is the same idea for petrol performance cars.
What the EP Founder CE101 is built to do
A tyre for electric cars, built around the way an electric car actually drives.
An electric car is not a petrol car with a different engine. It delivers its full torque the instant the pedal moves, it slows through its tyres instead of its brakes, it carries a battery in the floor, and it is quiet enough that the tyres are the loudest thing left. The CE101 is built for all four. An asymmetric tread with wide outer blocks puts the torque down and fine inner channels clear the water, a carbon silica compound is formulated for grip and low rolling resistance, a reinforced XL casing carries the weight, and the tread is laid out for quiet. It comes in sizes from 17 to 19 inch.
What actually makes an EV tyre different
Here is the question we get asked most: if the load rating is the same, why buy an EV tyre? It is a fair question, and the answer starts by agreeing with it. A load index is a load index. A 98 carries 750 kg under an electric car and 750 kg under a petrol one, and a 1,700 kg EV needs exactly the same index as a 1,700 kg petrol car. If weight were the only difference there would be no such thing as an EV tyre. Weight is the least of it. The differences are in how the car delivers its power, how it slows down, what its tyres cost it in range, and what you hear.
Torque from a standstill, every time
A petrol engine builds its pull as it revs, so the tyre is loaded up gradually. An electric motor delivers its full torque from zero, and it does it again at every set of lights, every gap in traffic and every overtake. Then regenerative braking does the same thing in reverse: every time you lift off, the driven tyres are dragged backwards against the road to slow the car, instead of the brakes doing it. The tread blocks are being twisted hard at both ends of every trip, and that is what wears an ordinary tyre out early on an EV. The CE101's compound and its wide outer shoulder blocks are built to take that twist and keep their shape.
Rolling resistance is range
Every tyre soaks up some energy as it flexes and gives it back as heat. In a petrol car you pay for that in fuel you never notice. In an electric car it comes straight off the range on the dash, and there is no bigger tank to make up for it. The CE101's carbon silica compound is formulated to flex with less loss, which is the part of range a tyre controls. The European label grades exactly this, and the labelled CE101 sizes score a C, the middle of the scale. The bigger lever is in your hands: keep the pressures up, because a soft tyre costs range every kilometre.
Quiet enough to hear the tyres
Take the engine out of a car and the tyres become the loudest thing in it. On coarse New Zealand chip seal that is the sound an EV owner lives with. The CE101's tread blocks are cut in a mix of lengths and set in a tuned order, so the sound they make is spread across many notes instead of building into one drone, and the groove geometry is set for a smooth, quiet ride. On the European label every size measures 72 decibels.
The same size, carrying more
This is where weight does come in. An electric car is heavier than the petrol car of the same shape, because of the battery, but it runs the same size tyre. So the same size has to carry more, and that is why every CE101 size is XL: a reinforced casing rated to carry more at a higher pressure. Across the range the load index runs from 95 to 104, which is 690 kg to 900 kg per tyre. Match or beat the number on your door placard, and you have the carrying side covered.
Anchee EP Founder CE101 at a glance
| Specification | Anchee EP Founder CE101 |
|---|---|
| Tyre type | Electric vehicle tyre for cars and crossovers |
| Tread pattern | Asymmetric, not directional, marked outside |
| UTQG grade | 480 A A on every graded size |
| Speed ratings | W (270 km/h) and Y (300 km/h) |
| Load index | 95 to 104, which is 690 kg to 900 kg per tyre. XL on every size |
| Rim sizes | 17 to 19 inch |
| Widths and profiles | 215 to 245 wide, 45 to 55 profile |
| European label | Fuel C and wet grip B on every labelled size, 72 decibels on every size |
| Warranty | Five year manufacturer warranty |
How the CE101 is graded
Every graded CE101 size carries the same UTQG grade: 480 for treadwear, A for traction and A for temperature. A is the highest temperature grade there is.
The treadwear number matters more on an electric car than on any other, because torque and regen are hard on tread. The median for the low profile tyres that come through our workshop is 320, and nearly half of them are graded 300 or below. At 480 the CE101 is graded half as high again. The full numbers are in our low profile tyre guide.
On speed, four are W rated (270 km/h) and two are Y rated (300 km/h). On load, the index runs from 95 to 104, which is 690 kg to 900 kg per tyre, and every size is XL.
Read the label for your size, not for the pattern
Every CE101 size with a European label grades C for fuel, B for wet grip and 72 decibels, and every size measures 72 decibels. The 215/55R18, 235/45R18 and 245/50R18 have no grades on file yet, so their pages show none rather than a number borrowed from a neighbour.
Identical tread pattern, different casing, different result. That is why every rating on our product pages sits against the size you are buying and never against the pattern name.
Where the CE101 fits and where it does not
Good for
- Electric cars and crossovers on 17 to 19 inch wheels
- Plug in hybrids, which put the same torque and regen through their tyres
- Wet roads, with a B for wet grip on every labelled size
- Drivers who want the quiet an electric car promises, at 72 decibels
- Simple rotation, because an asymmetric tyre can move to either side of the car
Which cars the CE101 fits
These are factory sizes for electric cars we see a lot of, matched to sizes we list in the CE101. It is a starting point, not a promise. Always read the size, the load index and the speed letter off your own sidewall or door placard before you order, because wheels get changed, and an electric car often carries a higher index than its petrol twin.
| Size | Factory fitment on |
|---|---|
| 215/50R17 | Nissan Leaf (2018 on), Chevrolet Bolt |
| 215/55R17 | Hyundai Kona Electric (2018 to 2023), Kia Niro EV, MG ZS EV, Kia Soul EV (2020 on) |
| 215/55R18 | Peugeot e-2008, VW ID.3 on 18 inch wheels |
| 235/45R18 | Tesla Model 3 on 18 inch Aero wheels, Toyota Camry Hybrid on 18 inch wheels |
| 245/45R19 | Tesla Model 3 on 19 inch Sport wheels, Polestar 2, Tesla Model S (2012 to 2020) on 19 inch wheels |
| 245/50R18 | A less common size. Check your door placard |
The rest of the Anchee range
Anchee AC818
The performance tyre for petrol cars on low profile sizes, 16 to 21 inch. Graded 480 A A.
If the load rating is the same, why buy an EV tyre at all?
Can I just fit normal tyres to my EV?
Is the Anchee EP Founder CE101 any good?
Why is every size XL?
What do the W and Y speed ratings mean?
Will it help my range?
Why is there no grade on some sizes?
Is it directional? Which way round does it go?
Can you fit them for me?
What warranty does it carry?
Who makes Anchee tyres?
- UTQG grades, European label grades, speed ratings, XL and load indices: our own listings for the 6 CE101 sizes, read 22 September 2026
- Median treadwear of 320 for low profile tyres, and the share graded 300 or below: our own workshop inspection records, published in the low profile tyre guide
- Tread design and compound: Anchee's EP Founder CE101 product sheet and catalogue, shown above
- How an electric motor delivers torque and how regenerative braking loads the tyres: the way every electric car works, stated without figures because we have not measured them
- Speed symbol values for W and Y: the standard speed symbol table
- Warranty terms, the manufacturer and our importer status: our Anchee tyres page
European labels apply to European market sizes. New Zealand has no tyre labelling scheme, so the grades above are context rather than a local standard.
Other ranges
Where this sits against everything else we stock.
All Tyres
The full range
Passenger Car
The everyday tyre
4WD
HT vs AT vs RT vs MT
All Terrain
Gravel, sand, light mud
Highway Terrain
Quiet, sealed roads
High Performance
Grip and speed rating
Keep reading
The guides behind buying a tyre, written in the workshop.