dfwatt:
Thanks for an interesting post.
I have an SR 2019 model 3, I'm 80 years old, I am also a beta tester for FSD
I have been seriously considering moving up to a 2022 m3 Performance. Why? I drove one a couple days ago and it brings out the "boy" in me.
I don't need the range vs what I now have which is 200 miles I don't drive that many miles. My car has 14200 miles and a little over 2 years old.
But I love the feeling the Performance gives when taking off. It does make me feel like a boy again.
After a lot of reading about the Performance, this are my concerns and why I might change my mind:
1) All that I have been reading about rim cracks and tires going flat. This scares me and I don't want to spend more $$ buying a smaller set of tires and rims or having flat tires.
2) My 3 has 18" rims and when on rough road there can be a lot of road noise. I have read the 20" rims and the tires on the Performance create even more road noise.
The above 2 are my concern. If I'm a careful and not a fast driver: Are my concerns justified or not so much?
I will have to give up as a beta tester for FSD to go to the Performance which I'm willing to do, if my 2 concerns are just over blown in my mind and I go ahead and purchase the Performance.
What are your thoughts with the data presented?
Hi Jim - While I'm a couple decades from catching up to you, I can relate with how you feel. To me getting from point A to point B should also be a fun experience. The M3P makes every trip I make around town a recreational event, much to my wife's dismay. To her vehicles are just a tool to get from point A to point B. Luxury is okay for her, but she can't understand having fun driving.
Based on all the good feedback members have posted here, doing it all over again I would have driven from the service center after delivery of my car directly to the tire shop to swap out the 20"rims to 18". You get a more comfortable ride, you're much less likely to destroy tires form sidewall pinch damage, your 0-60 time decreases by close to 0.1 seconds, replacement tires are less expensive, and all that while getting better range. Unless you don't like the look of 18" rims, I can't see a reason to keep the 20" rims. Some will argue you get a bit better handling with the lower profile tires, but most people are not going to a track or racing around corners in the city for that to be a concern.
Tires can make a big difference in the noise level in the car. I had some BRIDGESTONE POTENZA RE-71R tires on a BMW and loved the traction. However, they were quite a bit louder than the PS4S I replaced them with. I literally could hear a velcro peeling sound driving over painted rod markings from the tires sticking more to the paint. Depending on the insulation level of a car, the tires can make a big difference in noise level. I've read that the Model 3 in general skimps on sound insulation compared to others. So the tire tire you pick can make more of a difference in the noise level in the M3. So I'd ask, are you driving so aggressively where you need a summer performance tire that may be louder than say a good quality longer lasting all season tire like maybe a CONTINENTAL EXTREMECONTACT DWS 06 PLUS?
If you check out the reviews at tirerack.com, you can see the the noise rating for tires under the "Comfort Performance" tab. I just looked up the PS4S noise rating and they get a 8.8 out of 10 score, Continental also 8.8. Pirelli Zero 7.9 and RE-71 a 6.6 on noise. I can attest to the 6.6 as my ears would be ringing after a 1/2 hour freeway drive on the RE-71 tires. So if you do some homework you can find good tires that have good noise ratings in any size. But in general, the thinner the sidewall, the more road noise you will get.
My concern that lead to this thread with the M3P rims is that I drive out to remote places, and by all the posts I've seen now, there is a good chance you can blow out 2 tires by simply going over a small pothole with the stock rims/tires on the M3P.
