20 inch Rim/Tire Replacement Strategy

[KillerFrog95]

So after owning a Model X for only 2 weeks, we somehow picked up a large 1/4" or 5/8" Lag bolt in the front right tire. I live around 110 miles from the nearest service center. None of the local tire companies have the Continental LX Cross Contacts in stock. Tesla would send the tow company with loaner wheel to us for $450 dollars service charge. Decided to simply have a local tire company order the Continental and will have it replaced I guess. Means the vehicle is out of service until they get it in - 2-3 business days.

After reading up on these tires, it seems there are some issues with them. Can't patch them, low mileage, etc. We are not conveniently located to a service center and obviously road hazards are not predictable. Right now, I'm not sure I would ever feel comfortable taking this vehicle on a long road trip with the current tire arrangement. Tesla doesn't seem to pick standard tires as stock OEM for their equipment. (After talking to several tire stores, they kept asking why I had those size tires - seemed to think they were very rare.)

So the only workable solution might be to replace the tires and rims with something else that is more standard and easily repairable if out on the road, or in situations like my own, where you are not conveniently located near a service center. Questions:

1) Has anyone done this already?
2) Does it void the warranty to remove OEM wheels?
3) Can they be replaced by a more standard tire / rim combination that is the same for all 4 wheels for normal rotation, repairs, replacement, etc. assuming appropriate speed and load ratings?

Appreciative of any advice on this subject.

 

[vandacca]

The Model-X is a very heavy SUV (at around 6000lbs) and there are not a lot of wheels available that meet it's requirements. The existing tires are repairable, but some shops see the foam inner liner (to reduce road noise) and won't touch it. If you run into that issue, then send them these instructions.

You can have non-OEM wheels, it doesn't void the warranty. However, if the wheels fail due to being over-loaded, you can sure bet Tesla won't be covering the damage.

I'll leave your remaining questions for others on this forum with more experience.

 

[MarkDFW]

@KillerFrog95 You are asking a valuable question. I have searched every forum for hours trying to answer the same questions and I have not been able to figure it out. No one seems to have posted about their experience doing any of these things. To spare you the hours and hours of googling I have performed, let me summarize for you the conclusions I have come to. I hope these are helpful:

-- The Continental LX tires a lot of owners refer to as "ContiSilent" since they include foam inside for noise restriction. Some tire repair guys won't fix these cause they say a patch won't hold. Tesla used to not do it either, but increasingly (myself included) they will patch it if you can get yourself to the service center. Costs $50. There is a PDF out there that documents how to patch them for independent tire places but for the life of me I can not find the link (seems to have moved).

-- If you do go to a independent tire place don't trust them to lift your Tesla and they will likely either scratch/dent the battery casing or mess up the jack points. You have to give them minimally a hockey puck to put on the top of their lift to create some distance between their equipment and the Tesla lift point so it does not scratch things up. There is a post around where someone built their own wooden 'buffer' that plugs into the lift points properly but a lot of folks say "I'm just using the hockey puck". If you do this most people say you ahem to be annoying with the tire shop and sit there and watch them do it. Awkward for sure.

-- Early in ModelX ownership some owners commented that you could swap out the 20" ContiSilent for the 20" Michelin tires that are also OEM supported and that these had better tread life. Some people asked if they were as quiet since they did not have the foam. I have only seen 1 person complain about the noise of the Michelin while a few said they did not notice a difference. For me however the Michelin's are just as expensive as the ContiSilent so I'm looking at another option.

-- There is NO ONE I can find that has tried to go down to a 19" tire size on Model X other than the winter tires. The 19" winter tires for sale on testa's website are all the same size and therefore can be rotated. However they are winter tires. Despite them being smaller they are less efficient than the 20" continentals since they are winter tires. Logic (not proven fact) would tell us the tires can all be the same size since they are smaller and would fit both the back and front at the same time whereas a rear 20" OEM rim/tire is too large to fit on the front. Logic would also tell us if there is a 19" winter tire out there that works there should be a 19" all season tire that works. But I have not found one nor found any owner that has tried this successfully.

-- Moving up to 22" tires costs 10-15% efficiency and is more expensive. This option is out for me. I don't care how much better they "look"

-- The biggest argument to use the OEM tires is that they have the correct speed and load rating needed for the super fast yet super heavy Model X. Any tires you consider need to match the speed and load rating of the Michelin or ContiSilent

-- Biggest harm to tread life is driving in "very low" suspension mode. Make sure you set the auto-lower setting to "never" to maximize tread life. Easy to do.

-- All this to say I have found a few owners who have tried out the 20" Yokohama Parada Spec-X with no issue. It is much less expensive than the Continental. I have seen owners state the tread life is much improved and no discernible impact to range. I've also checked out the specs and it seems they have the same load and speed rating as the Continental. All of this and the tire comes with 1 more mm of tread at purchase than the OEMs. For me this will be the replacement tire I try out in a couple of months. I'll let everyone know how it goes.

-- Final comment: I plan on buying a 20" rim on tire rack or eBay and having the tire place I select go ahead and take one of my old "front Continentals" and mount them onto the 20" rim. I think this would make for a nice spare to keep in the garage. I can't find anyone who has ever taken a front rim/tire and mounted on the rear of the car consciously - but from what I understand it should work. But you don't want to do this long term. So for me this will be my fallback spare tire solution.

Please please please if anyone has more to add or if I have anything you disagree with please reply. Knowledge on this topic is all spread out and all over the place. Would be nice to get a good 'definitive' thread going on MX tire replacement.

 

[KillerFrog95]

@MarkDFW

Thanks for the synopsis. I have found similar information today as I researched this issue further. My solution (I think) will be:
1) Replace current Continental with matching LX Super Sport. Discount Tire has ordered one, I just hope it is the correct tire. With less than 1000 miles on the other front, tread difference should not be an issue.
2) At some point, I will discuss buying 2 more 20 inch front rims from Tesla. I think I saw this mentioned on the Tesla forum website, and I don't know why they wouldn't be willing to sell an owner 2 rims. Other option, would be to buy the 19s, but try and get them without the tires.
3) When the Continentals need replacing, I will change them out to Pirelli Scorpion Zero All Season Plus tires, but mix in the additional 20in x 9 Rims and hold the rear 10s in the garage. The Pirellis are appropriately sized and may be similar to OEM option on 22in rims. They come with a 50k mile warranty (as long as they are rotated). It sounds like some on the forums have mentioned these as good alternatives to the Conti's. (I read reviews that Michelin's were too soft for the weight of the car and actually wear faster than the Continentals.)

From what I can gather, I don't think this will lead to Tesla Service refusing to take care of tire issues in the future. If you go with after-market rims, apparently they won't touch them or tire problems. I have a 100D, so don't need the Performance specification 10 inch rims on the rears. It's like you said, if the winter tires are all 9 inch, then there shouldn't be any problem with going 9's all around with all-season tires for regular around-town driving.

Then, I will talk to my tire shop down the street from me that sells Pirellis and make sure he always has 1-2 of the 265/45R20s in stock for me. One can hope! I think if I promise them our business, instruct them on proper lift points, and promote some other Tesla owners in the area to use them when they're in trouble, it might work out.

@vandacca - If it had been a regular nail, I might have had the patch or even plug option, but this bolt/lag screw is large. 9/16 inch socket, so probably a 1/4 inch or 3/8 inch shaft.

This does bring up some additional questions though:
1) If 20 inch rims are more efficient than 22 inch rims (stiffer, less forgiving tire), would a 19 inch rim with all season tires offer better efficiency than the 20's?
2) I've seen some mention the ride height setting and how that might affect tire wear. How does adjusting the ride height affect the camber of the tires and wear? Doesn't the suspension just raise the vehicle similar to an air shock?

 

[Chickenlittle]

Punctures are repairable but if plugged tesla service informs not safe to exceed 80 mph on them. In our case the repair failed with a slow leak. I would not recommend taking a repair but rather replace

 

[FarmerDave]

2) I've seen some mention the ride height setting and how that might affect tire wear. How does adjusting the ride height affect the camber of the tires and wear? Doesn't the suspension just raise the vehicle similar to an air shock?

Model X has a multi-link suspension which has known issues when using other than standard ride height. The factory (RTFM) recommends driving at standard height with auto-lowering set to low at speeds over 55 mph.

Driving in low or very low all the time changes the camber and causes premature tire wear.

Hard acceleration in high or very high causes the car to shudder (don't know about tire wear since nobody leaves the car at that setting for long).

 

[SilverUnicorn]

3) When the Continentals need replacing, I will change them out to Pirelli Scorpion Zero All Season Plus tires, but mix in the additional 20in x 9 Rims and hold the rear 10s in the garage. The Pirellis are appropriately sized and may be similar to OEM option on 22in rims. They come with a 50k mile warranty (as long as they are rotated). It sounds like some on the forums have mentioned these as good alternatives to the Conti's. (I read reviews that Michelin's were too soft for the weight of the car and actually wear faster than the Continentals.)

@KillerFrog95
I have a Model X 90D w/20" wheels and wanted to know if you bought the Pirelli's noted above since I too was considering this since I have 2 issues:
1) ContiSilent keep getting flats (3rd one in about 18 months)
2) ContiSilient are noisy to me, so as I'm looking for a quieter tire.

Thanks

 

[KillerFrog95]

@SilverUnicorn,
I have not done the above because we have only owned the car for 3 weeks! However, with what I have read on these tires (Continentals LX Sport), I will be making a change to the Pirelli's once the tread (or sufficient flats) dictate a change.

I was able to have the tire patched and plugged. The guys at Discount Tire were very thorough and took good care of the vehicle. We have the UltraWhite interior and they did not want to get it dirty, so allowed me to drive the MX into the service bay. The mechanic was very careful to make sure the jack was in proper position at the jack point and not touching the battery. Not to mention, Discount Tire offers free flat repair, which I found amazing considering what they had to do to patch it (cut foam, grind it, apply plug, patch and sealant) and test it. Picture is of final repair. They will also keep the tire I ordered on hand for awhile in case we have any problems. Couldn't be happier!

 

[echin]

is it true that all four tires should be replaced if one goes bad? i got a small side puncture that can't be repaired (per the tire shops)... was planning to switch from continental to pirelli scorpions... ~$1036 for four times with warranty. thanks all.

 

[Krazaak]

is it true that all four tires should be replaced if one goes bad? i got a small side puncture that can't be repaired (per the tire shops)... was planning to switch from continental to pirelli scorpions... ~$1036 for four times with warranty. thanks all.

It depends on the treadwear. You don’t want there to be a significant difference in diameter between different wheels on the same axle because it confuses traction control and can cause differential issues. On an AWD vehicle driven by a center diff, you need to maintain the diameter on all 4 tires.

Since we don’t have a center diff, you could replace just a pair if the difference was too much to replace one, but enough life left on the other pair.

If you’re changing brands though, you might experience some odd handling with different tires front and back.

 

[beths11]

Just saw a Tesloop vehicle at the SC. They put lots of miles on their cars and were looking for a more cost effective solution than the OEM tires. They are using Nexem N'Fera RU5 XL. 275/45R20 and 265/45R20. Can buy a set of four for what about one Conti silent costs. 65,000 mile warranty. Any one else tried them?

 

[gjunky]

Just saw a Tesloop vehicle at the SC. They put lots of miles on their cars and were looking for a more cost effective solution than the OEM tires. They are using Nexem N'Fera RU5 XL. 275/45R20 and 265/45R20. Can buy a set of four for what about one Conti silent costs. 65,000 mile warranty. Any one else tried them?

Currious to see how loud these are compared to the continentals. I assume Tesloop cares less about this than wear.

 

[beths11]

Currious to see how loud these are compared to the continentals. I assume Tesloop cares less about this than wear.

Their business is built on customer satisfaction with the ride. They provide snacks and pillows for sleeping. I would imagine excessive noise would be an issue and passengers would complain.

 

[Krazaak]

Their business is built on customer satisfaction with the ride. They provide snacks and pillows for sleeping. I would imagine excessive noise would be an issue and passengers would complain.

Honestly, I think a bigger issues is that a for-hire transport service in fair-weather regions is going to have different requirements and expectations from their tires than the average driver.

It's hard to find reviews for those tires, but the ones I've found indicate non-existent snow performance and poor wet performance. They also tend to be mostly pickups, which handle and accelerate differently than a sub 6000lb SUV with a low center of gravity.

I'm a spirited driver and I've tried budget tires on my high performance vehicles before. The key is buying them somewhere that offers a satisfaction guarantee. That way if you find they're unbearable, you can return them and apply the cost to a better performing tire.

I'm very happy with the Conti ExtremeContact DWS 06 (and previously the DWS). They're in between the Conti Silents and the Nexems in price and in treadwear, but the they're rated extremely high in dry, wet and snow performance compared to either.

 

[hobby5253]

Following this thread, as I will be in market for a new set of tirrs.

 

[Plugsuvohio]

Been reading the thread because my X90D fronts show a lot of wear and worse on outside edges. Yes, I use factory height standard, and just had the 1/2 axles replaced at 20K miles. All my 4 are Conti OEM originals but the rear look very good. Does anyone know whether there is a problem mixing a different manufacturer (ie Pirelli Scorpion) on front vs read, as long as they are matching sizes to what came with the car? I have 265 Front and 267 Rear. I can't keep my front as-is this winter, for fear of poor snow traction. I had SC 12K service what whatever they do with tire rotation. (side to side maybe?)

 

[DCGOO]

Been reading the thread because my X90D fronts show a lot of wear and worse on outside edges. Yes, I use factory height standard, and just had the 1/2 axles replaced at 20K miles. All my 4 are Conti OEM originals but the rear look very good. Does anyone know whether there is a problem mixing a different manufacturer (ie Pirelli Scorpion) on front vs read, as long as they are matching sizes to what came with the car? I have 265 Front and 267 Rear. I can't keep my front as-is this winter, for fear of poor snow traction. I had SC 12K service what whatever they do with tire rotation. (side to side maybe?)

Why don’t you switch to winter tires in a couple months, and replace your summer tires with new all around in the spring. I would think that winter tires would be quite important in Cleveland. Also sounds like you need an alignment, although that should have been in your 12k service (it only takes one whack to screw that up though)

 

[Yinn]

So after owning a Model X for only 2 weeks, we somehow picked up a large 1/4" or 5/8" Lag bolt in the front right tire. I live around 110 miles from the nearest service center. None of the local tire companies have the Continental LX Cross Contacts in stock. Tesla would send the tow company with loaner wheel to us for $450 dollars service charge. Decided to simply have a local tire company order the Continental and will have it replaced I guess. Means the vehicle is out of service until they get it in - 2-3 business days.

After reading up on these tires, it seems there are some issues with them. Can't patch them, low mileage, etc. We are not conveniently located to a service center and obviously road hazards are not predictable. Right now, I'm not sure I would ever feel comfortable taking this vehicle on a long road trip with the current tire arrangement. Tesla doesn't seem to pick standard tires as stock OEM for their equipment. (After talking to several tire stores, they kept asking why I had those size tires - seemed to think they were very rare.)

So the only workable solution might be to replace the tires and rims with something else that is more standard and easily repairable if out on the road, or in situations like my own, where you are not conveniently located near a service center. Questions:

1) Has anyone done this already?
2) Does it void the warranty to remove OEM wheels?
3) Can they be replaced by a more standard tire / rim combination that is the same for all 4 wheels for normal rotation, repairs, replacement, etc. assuming appropriate speed and load ratings?

Appreciative of any advice on this subject.

The tires can be patched and can be plugged. I’ve plugged at least 6 tires myself on my cars and friends. I’ve brought one tire to be patched by a local guy, they even put the foam back in.

Cost of patches were about $0.10/each and the latch was $35. Vs 6 tires * $300/ea = $1765 in savings.

If you take it to Tesla though, they never fix; always replace.

 

[SC626]

Anyone here changed or consider changing the rear wheels/tires to match the front? It’d be nice to be able to rotate tires on my X, but I was curious as to whether this could cause any issues.

 

[BBG523]

265/65 on rear
265 run-flat all around

Also check out these folks for spare wheels. Where I picked up my winter set of rims.

Tesla Model X Wheels Rims Wheel Rim Stock OEM Replacement