Flat tire Nightmare

[rducharme]

For all my cars, I have a separate set of wheels/tires for winter. This way, if I have an issue with a wheel, I can temporarily swap to the other set whether it is summer/winter. Of course, in winter, I may swap just to get the replacement but do not drive the car. Since you are in Wisconsin, it may make sense to do the same.

 

[FLRifleman]

Large rims and skinny tires are not your friend. They are prone to having rim damage like this, blowouts, and do not absorb shock from the road well.

 

[Ash83]

Yeah the situation with Tesla SC is a mess.

Not sure why you would expect them to provide you with a loaner for a non-warranty issue? you will get the same from any other dealer. If you got a car accident, you insurance pays for your rental not the manufacturer.

 

[Russell]

I disagree. The loaners and Uber credits are part of taking the car into service. Whether you have a bill or not is where the warranty comes in. My car is way past warranty and transportation is still offered.

The next available appointment is in 10 days and he wanted a loaner or Uber credits now.

 

[meomyo]

This sounds crazy, no roadside assistance because you've had your tires replaced? Is Tesla going to replace your bent rim or repair it?

I carry a small spare from modernspare.com, and also have a full size backup wheel/tire at home because Tesla. Have you looked on Craigslist for backup wheel/tire? I'd let you borrow mine but I'm in TX.

yes had a flat and tesla wouldnt bring me a tire because i didnt get current tires from them..lol...sucks

 

[meomyo]

A friend of mine had a slow leak in his tire so he called Tesla and they sent someone out to do a loaner wheel swap.
He then was driving the car and the wheel fell off while driving 45mph. The wheel hit a cop car and spin on the belt parkway.
He got the car towed and the service center tells him to pay them for the missing lugs!!!
Are you kidding me?
This is probably the ultimate service nightmare.

wait didnt the tire coming off and the impact ruin the bolts at all or bend anything? wow

 

[nstauff]

Your frustration is not justified.

I don't think aftermarket tires was the reason Tesla did not help you out. It's because your car is 4yrs old with 60k miles on it. Roadside Assistance ends after 4 yrs or 50k miles.

You are not at the mercy of Tesla. Tesla is not forcing you to use them. You need to buy a replacement rim or take it to a shop that repairs rims.

You are correct. After I figured out a solution I realized this. Now if only my local service team told me this from the get go!

 

[Colorado Y]

Large rims and skinny tires are not your friend. They are prone to having rim damage like this, blowouts, and do not absorb shock from the road well.

...which was one reason why I didn't go with the MYP -- I wanted those fatter tires. I've been driving on skinny-ish tires for 20 years (Saab 9-5 Aero) and I knew how even skinnier tires would affect ride quality.

I'm a little confused about tire service. I had read that the reason Teslas don't include a spare is because you can't service it yourself anyway. Supposedly only Tesla has the proper lift to jack up your car, but obviously that's not true. From what y'all are saying, it sounds like any tire shop can do it? Sounds like I need to get a spare tire/wheel for the garage...

 

[ucmndd]

I'm a little confused about tire service. I had read that the reason Teslas don't include a spare is because you can't service it yourself anyway. Supposedly only Tesla has the proper lift to jack up your car, but obviously that's not true. From what y'all are saying, it sounds like any tire shop can do it? Sounds like I need to get a spare tire/wheel for the garage...

Anyone can lift a Tesla, including you in your driveway. It’s just a car, with four very well marked jack points. No sorcery required.

I imagine they don’t include a spare for the same reason most manufacturers don’t these days - weight, packaging, cost, etc.

 

[cbdream99]

...which was one reason why I didn't go with the MYP -- I wanted those fatter tires. I've been driving on skinny-ish tires for 20 years (Saab 9-5 Aero) and I knew how even skinnier tires would affect ride quality.

I'm a little confused about tire service. I had read that the reason Teslas don't include a spare is because you can't service it yourself anyway. Supposedly only Tesla has the proper lift to jack up your car, but obviously that's not true. From what y'all are saying, it sounds like any tire shop can do it? Sounds like I need to get a spare tire/wheel for the garage...

Tesla has specific jack point for lifting the vehicle, you can get an adapter on amazon, tire shop like discount tires use something like a hockey pug and floor jack. You can certainly do it yourself, just be careful not to jack on the battery. Lots of manufacturers do away with spare these days, save money, reduce weight, rarely used, people may not even know how to change for spare, safety etc ….

 

[Need]

OP, your local tire center told you that only Tesla could fix it, but they are probably wrong. You changed your wheels so you are not using standard size tires carry by Tesla service center. And I don't think Tesla could fix your bend rim either. You could make the appointment, but eventually they will come back and tell you that the only fix they could do is replace the entire wheel/tire with the OEM one. You might as well go look for a spare OEM wheel people are selling and put that on for now and fix your aftermarket wheel at a wheel repair shop.

 

[Colorado Y]

Thanks for the clarifications, guys. The modernspare.com solution is spendy ($500, ouch) but probably a good idea before I go on any major road trips.

Are there viable patching/etc solutions for a tire that isn't totally destroyed, so I don't have to carry a spare around for normal daily driving? Or should I just rely on Tesla roadside for local tire problems?

 

[ucmndd]

Are there viable patching/etc solutions for a tire that isn't totally destroyed, so I don't have to carry a spare around for normal daily driving? Or should I just rely on Tesla roadside for local tire problems?

Plug kit and 12v compressor in the frunk will get you out of a great majority of situations other than catastrophic tire failure. This is the way.

 

[Colorado Y]

This is the way.

Still need a strong scissor jack and jack-point adapters, yes? Any recommendations there? I wouldn't want to use a typical scissor jack like I used on my Saab -- it was damn hard work and the Saab weighed 1000 lbs less...

 

[Russell]

Plug kit and 12v compressor in the frunk will get you out of a great majority of situations other than catastrophic tire failure. This is the way.

Absolutely! I have been doing that for years and all of my plugs have lasted the life of the tire.

 

[cbdream99]

This is the way.

Still need a strong scissor jack and jack-point adapters, yes? Any recommendations there? I wouldn't want to use a typical scissor jack like I used on my Saab -- it was damn hard work and the Saab weighed 1000 lbs less...

modernspare.com sells a scissor jack that can lift 4000 lbs. They also sell a spare package. I have a floor jack at home.

 

[ucmndd]

This is the way.

Still need a strong scissor jack and jack-point adapters, yes? Any recommendations there? I wouldn't want to use a typical scissor jack like I used on my Saab -- it was damn hard work and the Saab weighed 1000 lbs less...

You can plug a tire still on the car with a little effort. Fronts are easy because you can angle the steering wheel for access. Rears need a little crawling around and upper body strength but it can be done.

 

[Z_Lynx]

I really like Modern Spare's scissors jack. It has a ratcheting mechanism and is so easy to use.

TruLift Scissor Jacks Archives

modernspare.com

 

[Kazkorp]

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