18 inch aeros on P3D

[HenryFi]

So I have spent hours trying to find an answer, but I have come up with no answer.

I know that for example T-sportline 18 inch wheels will fit with a 3mm spacer which is needed because of the weird center hub on the performance brakes.

But no-one has tried to put Aero wheels on a Performance model 3? (I found a video where they had a performance model but without the PUP, so that was of no help)

Can anyone confirm that they will/won't fit? I called the Tesla shop in my country but they didn't have an answer for me.

 

[Zoomit]

Pinging: @Eno Deb @TexasTeslaRacing

M3 issue in the Colorado Mountains
Will 18 inch Aero wheels fit my P3D+?

 

[TheLocNar]

If you need 18s, the TSportline TST wheels are a great option. I have them for my winter setup and no issues at all.

 

[HenryFi]

View attachment 404516 If you need 18s, the TSportline TST wheels are a great option. I have them for my winter setup and no issues at all.

They do look great, but as I am in Finland, the shipping and import taxes make the price unreasonable :/

 

[TheLocNar]

They do look great, but as I am in Finland, the shipping and import taxes make the price unreasonable :/

Ouch.

 

[SammichLover]

But no-one has tried to put Aero wheels on a Performance model 3? (I found a video where they had a performance model but without the PUP, so that was of no help)

Can anyone confirm that they will/won't fit? I called the Tesla shop in my country but they didn't have an answer for me.

They don't fit raw. There has been some speculation that with spacers you could get the barrel out far enough to clear the rear calipers (which are what the issue is) but, on top of having never seen anyone confirm this, that's counterproductive to the normal reason why you'd mount Aeros as your tires stick farther out meaning higher drag.

I thought the reason the T-Sportline ones have it does to do with the the hub lip, because the P rotor hat is thinner than the other Model 3 the hub create as small lip higher than the rotors hats. The stock 20" rims have a channel milled out for this to clear over that lip.

There are other 18" rims that will fit. I don't know which would be available in Finland, though.

 

[MasterC17]

There is no way that stock 18" Aero wheels will clear the rear brake calipers. There are some aftermarket 18" wheels that will. I had to shave my rear calipers down ever so slightly to get mine to fit. Tire Rack will show you which ones do and do not fit.

 

[AlanSubie4Life]

Just for public information, here is a picture of the stock 18" wheel on the Performance FRONT brake caliper. I have not seen this elsewhere here.

Personally, I would say this is NOT a fit, even for the fronts. The rears don't fit at all, of course.

To be clear, if you did decide to run this, you'd need a 3-5mm spacer with about 70.x mm bore, to get rid of the lip.

 

[HenryFi]

Personally, I would say this is NOT a fit, even for the fronts.

Thank you for posting the photos!

Based on them I would agree that they don’t fit

Might have to get some wheels off of a Toyota for the winter

 

[AlanSubie4Life]

I'll post follow up pictures of my 18" range wheels whenever I happen to get them. Still a work in progress.

I'm sure you could run these stock 18" wheels on the front, in a real pinch. (You'd need the 3-5mm spacer with appropriate bore as well of course.) Just wouldn't be my choice. I guess you could loosen the caliper bolts and try to push it in a little bit and then re-tighten, get yourself that extra quarter mm.

 

[BriansBucketList]

Long story short, I did not get the PUP upgrade because I wanted Aero as one set of wheels for winter tires, pothole protection, etc., and the consensus when the P3D+ came out was that the Aeros wouldn't clear the rear calipers. In the process, I ended up with one of the "stealth" Performance 3's that were sort of similar to an AWD with tweaked motors and possibly inverters. I currently run Aeros.

 

[MarcG]

From this thread, it looks like the aftermarket rotors from Racing Brake create enough offset and get rid of the weird lip requirement:

Aftermarket Racing Performance brake rotors - weight loss w/better heat dissipation at a steep price

Question is, does the 18" aero wheel diameter clear the front & rear brake calipers that come with the performance 3 (with the performance upgrade package)?

 

[AlanSubie4Life]

Question is, does the 18" aero wheel diameter clear the front & rear brake calipers that come with the performance 3 (with the performance upgrade package)?

Definitively, no. It has less than 1mm clearance in front (which is not ok) and in the rear it does not clear. So, the 18-inch aero wheels do not work with the Performance upgrade package with red brake calipers.

See post above.

18 inch aero on P3D front wheel

 

[MarcG]

Definitively, no. It has less than 1mm clearance in front (which is not ok) and in the rear it does not clear. So, the 18-inch aero wheels do not work with the Performance upgrade package with red brake calipers.

See post above.

18 inch aero on P3D front wheel

Interesting, thanks for the info. But I'm confused, if it's a diameter issue (versus offset), how are some aftermarker 18" wheels able to fit?

 

[AlanSubie4Life]

Interesting, thanks for the info. But I'm confused, if it's a diameter issue (versus offset), how are some aftermarker 18" wheels able to fit?

It's a question of the inner diameter of the barrel. I don't know why Tesla's design was chosen to be a little smaller, but it is (it is perhaps 6-8mm diameter difference). The key term here is "some" aftermarket wheels. You need to test fit any aftermarket wheel to be sure there is plenty of clearance (at least 4mm is ideal).

It's unfortunate, since it would be nice to be able to run the aero covers without modification. I think even the 19" & 20" non-aero wheels may have some aero advantages over some aftermarket wheels, all else being equal. (It's hard to tell.)

 

[mcbarnet007]

If you're scared the front is going to rub, you can loosen the caliper bolt and push in the front caliper as much as you can and re torque it to spec. You will get another 1mm or so of clearance. I've been running aero wheel in the front with a 5mm spacer in sunny California for the past 3 month without issue.

 

[AlanSubie4Life]

you can loosen the caliper bolt and push in the front caliper as much as you can and re torque it to spec.

Did you actually do this? Before or after first running them? I did mention that was a possibility above, but wasn't sure how much there was to gain. It certainly is very very tight.

 

[mcbarnet007]

Did you actually do this? Before or after first running them? I did mention that was a possibility above, but wasn't sure how much there was to gain. It certainly is very very tight.

Yes I did do the adjustment.

 

[destructure00]

Interesting, thanks for the info. But I'm confused, if it's a diameter issue (versus offset), how are some aftermarker 18" wheels able to fit?

Some of the flow formed or forged wheels have wider barrels that clear, presumably due to the metal in the barrel being thinner as a result of the flow forming process rather than the normal casting process. Here's a pic of rear caliper clearance on my Konig Hypergram 18s.

 

[22522]

Could not the inner barrel diameter be bigger with the wall thickness held the same?