Best 18" tires for comfort

[Marianz77]

Hi,

I'm need recommendations for tires that maximize the ride comfort and minimize the road noise in my Tesla Model 2 LR RWD because these my main complaints about this car.

I'm not sure how to prioritize the other characteristics like performance and handling. I live in Southern California. So at this moment I want to maintain the performance in dry and wet at the same level as the original Primacy MXM4.

I also prefer a longer thread wear because this car is heavy and puts a lot of torque on rear wheels. The original tires will need to be replaced before 30K miles which is too early for me.

The choices for 18 inch wheel are limited because of the extra load requirement.

Based on the reviews from TireRack my list has only tire:

1. Michelin Primacy Tour A/S
This tire doesn't excel at anything. It is a good balance of comfort, handling and efficiency. So it doesn't excel at anything just like the original Primacy MXM4. Handing is a bit weak according to reviews. Speed rating is V, not W as OE.

The other tires I considered are:

2. Continental ExtremeContact DWS 06
This tire provides better traction and handling than original tires, but it will increase power consumption and road noise a bit. Normally I care for efficiency only in long road trips when I'm more concerned about range between charges.

3. Michelin CrossClimate+
This tire provides better traction and handling, especially in wet, but it will increase road noise and rides more firm than other ground touring tires. Also this thread pattern picks more stones and throws them back in traffic. I don't want to do this to other drivers since I got my windshield chipped this way.

4. Vredestein Quatrac Pro
This tire has stellar reviews from TireRack in terms of comfort and performance. However, I'll have to switch to larger size 245/45R18 and the clearance around the front suspension is very narrow. Also, the thread wear is low 400 and the energy efficiency is also lower than original tires.

Let me know which one would you pick or if you have other suggestions.

Thanks.

 

[DR61]

I cannot comment on how these would be on a Model 3. I have used Conti DWS06 on two other cars and have been impressed. On our Volvo the DWS 06 is giving about 5% better highway mileage than the OEM Pirellis. They have lower noise and better ride and handling compared to the Pirellis.

 

[linux-works]

I really like how the tread looks on the crossclimate. my current complaint with factory tires is that they follow the lines in the road too much and the pull from this effect is something I don't like. block linear tread does that with some roads. that sweeping V pattern will not easily 'line up' with ruts in the road. I may try them for my next change!

 

[Marianz77]

I got Cinturato P7 All Season Plus.

This tire has excellent ratings for comfort and noise. More important, it has a lot of reviews, and the ratings agree between TireRack raters, general customers and Tesla customers in this forum.

This tire it is not available in OE size 235/45R45. I took the next size up 245/45R45, which is a bit wider, taller and heavier than Michelin Primacy MXM4.

The results are a bit surprising:

1. Comfort - This tire is absorbing road imperfections better. I don’t have to brace for impact on potholes and cement joins so much. The ride is just a bit softer than Primacy, but the handling is still satisfying. Turning is a bit heavier, which is a good thing because Primacy was jittery at high speed for some reason.
   
   
2. Road noise - Cabin noise is a lower, but not as much as I hoped. The noise reduction is noticeable especially on concrete and rough tarmac. Now I hear better the wind noise (I like it) and the podcasts. I hope it will go lower after a thousand miles. If not, at least I know that I got the quietest tire with sufficient reviews.
   
   
3. Efficiency - Energy consumption in the first 100 miles seems to be better than Primacy. Before I had low energy consumption before ~ 200 Wh/mile on my daily commute. Now it is lower at ~ 196 Wh/mile and should get even better as the tire breaks in. This is surprising because the thread width increased from 7.8 to 8.3 inch, the tire weight increased from 25 to 26 pounds and the diameter increased with 1.5%. Both Primacy are Cinturato are high efficiency tires (LRR). Could be related to wheel alignment that was corrected after tire installation.

One thing that I was concerned about before installing, was the clearance between the front tires and control arm. The distance decreased from about 15 mm to 6 mm. I think this is OK. The tire should not rub against the suspension because it deform so much in this direction and the thread will wear down over time.

Cinturato has a thread wear of 700 compared with Primacy at 500. The Primacy could last 30K miles but I decided to replace 25K miles.

I didn’t test traction and braking. I’ve read wet traction could be weak. I’ll be careful when it rains. This should not happen often because here in Southern California it doesn’t rain often.

There is a new version of this tire use an updated tread compound and internal construction with a focus on enhancing wet braking and traction.

Anyway, I'm happy with these tires so far. As opposed to other users on this forum, I'm not looking for performance and traction. I'm looking for comfort in my daily commute. And these tires have improved the comfort a bit. I don't know if I can do better. I drive daily on canyon roads near the ocean. It is fun to take on tight corners, but I don't need best performance tires since the speed is mostly limited by both road signs and other cars.