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A review of my Roadster records shows that I get about 9K out of the rears (that's based on two tire replacement cycles) and 25K on the fronts (have only replaced them once). I bought my car in late 2014 with 12K on the odometer and now it shows almost 33K.
This week I am having AD08's installed at the rear for the first time. It will be interesting to see if they last significantly longer than 9K. I hope they do because they are more expensive. If they don't last at least 3K longer I'll go back to AD07's next time.
Doug, I know you wrote that post back in March 2014, I just want to note that currently the AD08's are about $50 more than the AD07's at TireRack.com. No doubt this has been pointed out elsewhere in this very long thread.
I just had AD08 R's installed at the rear on my Roadster (have AD07's on the front). Prior to this I have always run the AD07's all around. Hoping the AD08 R's last a lot longer than the 9K miles I have been getting from AD07's on the rear.
Come on Tesla, tell us what the new lower rolling resistance "version 3.0" Roadster tires are! I'm beginning to think that a few years ago Tesla thought they had identified a new tire model for the Roadster but for some reason it didn't work out (maybe the tire manufacturer decided not to make them in Roadster sizes) and that is why there has been no announcement.
I got 11.9K on my original rear AD07s where the wear was accentuated on the inner edge. I replaced them with AD08's (this was before AD08 R) and had the alignment adjusted. Those went 14.3K. At that point I put new AD07s on the front and another pair of AD08s (still cheaper at that point) on the rear. I stretched those to 17.1K -- not bald, but low enough that I avoided driving if the roads were wet. After those I went back to AD07s because TireRack had them at a lower price (on special, I think) such that I calculated the difference was worth it even considering the mounting cost. And that made the four tires all the be same so nobody might complain.
wiztecy
Active Member
Carl W
2008, #311 thunder gray 1.5
To make sure I understand, do AD08R tires fit my 1.5 roadster? Or do I need to stick with AD07?
dhrivnak
Active Member
I use the Michelin Pilot Super Sport on the rear and I am approaching 20k on them. They have worked well with no traction control issues. 225/45 ZR 17
Sparrow
S105/ Roadster 189
dhrivnak do you do anything special to get that kind of life out of those tires? That seems to be about double what the stock AD07s tires get for me. Also, mine usually start making a lot of noise long before the tread is used up.
supersnoop
Tesla Roadster #334
The AD08's are made in a size that fits the rear. I've been running them on my 1.5 for a while now with no issues.
Agreed. I've had AD08's on the rear for about 800 miles, first time using them, no issues. Hoping they will last longer than the AD07's to justify the increased cost.
dhrivnak
Active Member
I did have an alignment and have the camber reduced to just out of spec so the tires wear more evenly across. I likely lost something on the track but I very rarely track the car. So while they are still wearing on the inside it is not as bad. Then I likely have far fewer launches as after 40k miles I have matured a bit.
supersnoop
Tesla Roadster #334
I don't think my first set lasted any longer. But they were less expensive that the AD07's for me.
Carl W
2008, #311 thunder gray 1.5
dhrivnak, do you have a 1.5 roadster?
So sounds like the AD07 and AD08 work for my 1.5, and possibly also the michelin pilot super sports. I'll investigate further my options. I don't need tires quite yet but my rears are getting close on the inner edges. I've never bought from Tire Rack before but they seem to offer a mobile mounting service, which is a bit odd. Anyone use them before?
So sounds like the AD07 and AD08 work for my 1.5, and possibly also the michelin pilot super sports. I'll investigate further my options. I don't need tires quite yet but my rears are getting close on the inner edges. I've never bought from Tire Rack before but they seem to offer a mobile mounting service, which is a bit odd. Anyone use them before?
Carl I buy my Roadster tires from tire rack.com and have them shipped directly to a local tire shop, which is happy to mount and balance them.
Carl W
2008, #311 thunder gray 1.5
Thanks, Ecarfan. Sounds like the way to do it. Do you know if aligning the Roadster is something any typical tire place can do or is it specialty? Also, it is tempting to adjust the camber as dhrivnak apparently did, but I'd only want to do that if it didn't screw up my handling. For sure I get noticeably more wear on the inner edges, but perhaps that's just how the car is designed. thoughts? I don't track the car but I like good handling.
Keep the rear camber within spec unless you like doing doughnuts. The car is set up to understeer to make it safe to drive on the street. If you reduce the rear camber to a point where the car oversteers, it becomes very tail happy at the limit due to all the weight in the back. Most people will back off the accelerator when the rear starts to slide, causing weight transfer to the front which reduces rear traction even further, resulting in an immediate spin. That situation is even worse if you have the bigger 195 size tires on the front.
dhrivnak
Active Member
I adjusted the camber just outside of spec. The car still handles great and I still have understeer when pushed to the limit. But it appears aggressive camber should help cornering so if you track the car. The spec on the rear camber is -1.6 to -2.0 and I have mine set at - 1.5. So as I say just outside of spec.
Carl W
2008, #311 thunder gray 1.5
I want to run an idea past you guys. Being that the AD07 appears to be symmetric, would it make sense to (after around 5000 miles) unmount the rear tires and swap them left and right? In that way, they still roll in the same direction and it seems like the tires would last about 1/3 longer while only costing maybe 1/6th for the reinstallation and balance of the tires. Is that crazy talk?
supersnoop
Tesla Roadster #334
Considering I only get about 8,000 miles out of the rear AD07's, and that's with even wear, for don't see much point in rotating side-to-side.
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