Long Road Trips. My Experience and Why Tesla's are Currently Unfit.

[Kilotango74]

Every ICE car I've owned prior to my Tesla had a spare.

I guess you have never owned a BMW made in the past 10 years or so. BMW loves runflats and hates spares.

 

[mbdionio]

was there such low visibility when you were backing up? sounds like a user error.

 

[N54TT]

My family went on a ski trip this week to Utah. This trip had been planned for months and I seriously considered renting an ICE car for it. Then I reconsidered. After all, Tesla's supercharging network means that I can take long road trips. I studied the superchargers map on Tesla's website and confirmed that there were more than enough superchargers along my 531 miles journey from Denver to SLC. I decided to try it and drive the Model 3 with my wife, two young children, and luggage. I got winter tires (Pirelli Sottozero's), packed the car, and hit the road on a full charge. After driving nonstop for 2 hours, my range had decreased more than anticipated so I decided to make an unplanned stop in Laramie, WY to supercharge. The supercharging station was in a hotel parking and snow covered. I backed into a spot and hit the curb. I knew right away it was bad. I got off the car and noticed a scratch on the rim (not the first time it happened!). More concerning however was that the hit had damaged the tire's side wall. Before venturing on I-80, I decided to have it checked. I drove to a nearby tire shop (the only one in town) and the technician confirmed what I feared: The impact had exposed the radial cords and the tire was an explosion hazard. Being in Truck Country, the tire shop didn't have that tire size, less so in the winter variation. I became anxious but I knew my Model's 3 lack of a spare meant Tesla's mobile roadside assistance would come to my rescue. Little did I know... Yes, they could come but it would take 5 hours, cost me $900, and they only had an all-season tire. I became very worried. It was Saturday 3 pm, the little town was shutting down, there was no car rental agency or airport nearby. My Tesla had stranded me and ruined my vacation, my wife was in tears and my kids in fear. I did what I never thought I would do, I abandoned my cherished Tesla in a parking lot of a small rural town. I found an alternative transportation to SLC and began a search for that tire the next Monday. Wal-Mart and Costco couldn't get it and the only place I found it was on tirerack.com. I ordered it and had it delivered to the tire shop. A week later, I made it back to Laramie, had the tire installed and made it back home. One thing changed though, I don't trust my Model 3 or Tesla anymore and I know that, as a Tesla owner, if anything goes wrong, I'm on my own. Tesla's are incredible cars and have revolutionize my world. However, and until Tesla gets serious about customer service, I will limit my trips to in-town commutes and errands. I will rent (or buy) an ICE car for long road trips.

That’s a crappy situation to be in and it sucks. BUT that has nothing to do with the Tesla. My BMW didn’t have a spare tire either and would have been in the same predicament. I would consider picking up at the very least a tire plug kit and air compressor...and for very long trips potential a modern space saver spare tire.

 

[Kilotango74]

I assure you I'm not making this stuff up (I couldn't). I've been reading the forum for a while but decided to sign-up today to share my experience.

Ok so its not made up, but its hardly Tesla’s fault. You own a car that doesn't have a spare, knowing this what provisions have you made in advance to mitigate issues such as this? None.....therefore you were unprepared. Not Tesla’s fault. Also at what speed were you backing up that you damaged the sidewall to such an extent that it was damage beyond safe usage? Is that then the fault of the tire company, perhaps whoever poured the concrete for the curb you hit.....

 

[israndy]

Every ICE car I've owned prior to my Tesla had a spare.

Welcome to the Modern Age.

I was surprised when I got my 2013 Volvo, it didn't come with a spare, not even a space for it. Had a kit to pump up your tire, this didn't help when I hit a pothole and the tire blew. That story was the reason I got the 18" tires on the Model 3. Sport tires are too expensive and too easy to blow.

The Tesla, however, has been a dream road trip vehicle. Put 42K on it and it's not two years old yet. Driven thru 16" deep water twice, covered the car with snow driving thru Oregon mountains so bad the autopilot sensors were knocked out, thru the blistering heat of The Valley of Fire in the summer, taken trips at the spur of the moment driving across multiple states. It's a wonderful car.

Would I be upset if I forgot to fill the windshield washer, sure, but would I blame Tesla?

 

[Big Dog]

sorry this happened and ruined your vacation. That being said, consider it part of the experience of a Road Trip. (yeah, I get da' wife won't see it that way.)

One thing it has taken me a long time to get used to is backing up by video screen. (On all my former ICE cars, I had excellent visibility all around, including rear, so I could back up easily, even long distances.) Thus, it has taken many tries to learn how to back up cleanly into a SC stall.

 

[mduflos]

That’s a crappy situation to be in and it sucks. BUT that has nothing to do with the Tesla. My BMW didn’t have a spare tire either and would have been in the same predicament. I would consider picking up at the very least a tire plug kit and air compressor...and for very long trips potential a modern space saver spare tire.

Yes I agree about getting a tire repair kit but sidewall damage cannot be repaired and I've never had such a hard time finding a tire for my car.

 

[run-the-joules]

Did 5,000 miles worth of road trips throughout the Rockies and Midwest over the last 5 weeks or so. No issues of note attributable to the choice of vehicle.

Spent one night sleeping in the car in a parking lot in Cheyenne after a winter storm closed I-80 and I couldn’t get to my hotel (ironically enough in Laramie). Had I been driving an ICE I would have needed to book another hotel for me and the dog on short notice, which wouldn’t have been cheap. But since I was in the Tesla I plugged in at an empty supercharger station, inflated my air mattress, and had a comfortable enough night.

Granted, I am not crazy enough to road trip with children so my chances of a successful trip are higher by default

 

[gaswalla]

Bad carpenters often blame their tools

 

[mduflos]

I guess you have never owned a BMW made in the past 10 years or so. BMW loves runflats and hates spares.

I've owned an Audi A4 Quattro, it had a full spare tire, and any tire shop I visited carried its size.

 

[jkoya]

The last few new cars we have purchased did not come with a spare (2016 Chevy Volt, Nissan Leaf, Honda Fit EV, Honda Fit and Honda CR-Z). Of the 3 cars we currently have, only our 1997 Acura NSX has a spare. I'm planning on either ordering a Modern Spare or buying an extra Titan7 T-S5 wheel/tire combo as a spare...

 

[VT_EE]

My family went on a ski trip this week to Utah. This trip had been planned for months and I seriously considered renting an ICE car for it. Then I reconsidered. After all, Tesla's supercharging network means that I can take long road trips. I studied the superchargers map on Tesla's website and confirmed that there were more than enough superchargers along my 531 miles journey from Denver to SLC. I decided to try it and drive the Model 3 with my wife, two young children, and luggage. I got winter tires (Pirelli Sottozero's), packed the car, and hit the road on a full charge. After driving nonstop for 2 hours, my range had decreased more than anticipated so I decided to make an unplanned stop in Laramie, WY to supercharge. The supercharging station was in a hotel parking and snow covered. I backed into a spot and hit the curb. I knew right away it was bad. I got off the car and noticed a scratch on the rim (not the first time it happened!). More concerning however was that the hit had damaged the tire's side wall. Before venturing on I-80, I decided to have it checked. I drove to a nearby tire shop (the only one in town) and the technician confirmed what I feared: The impact had exposed the radial cords and the tire was an explosion hazard. Being in Truck Country, the tire shop didn't have that tire size, less so in the winter variation. I became anxious but I knew my Model's 3 lack of a spare meant Tesla's mobile roadside assistance would come to my rescue. Little did I know... Yes, they could come but it would take 5 hours, cost me $900, and they only had an all-season tire. I became very worried. It was Saturday 3 pm, the little town was shutting down, there was no car rental agency or airport nearby. My Tesla had stranded me and ruined my vacation, my wife was in tears and my kids in fear. I did what I never thought I would do, I abandoned my cherished Tesla in a parking lot of a small rural town. I found an alternative transportation to SLC and began a search for that tire the next Monday. Wal-Mart and Costco couldn't get it and the only place I found it was on tirerack.com. I ordered it and had it delivered to the tire shop. A week later, I made it back to Laramie, had the tire installed and made it back home. One thing changed though, I don't trust my Model 3 or Tesla anymore and I know that, as a Tesla owner, if anything goes wrong, I'm on my own. Tesla's are incredible cars and have revolutionize my world. However, and until Tesla gets serious about customer service, I will limit my trips to in-town commutes and errands. I will rent (or buy) an ICE car for long road trips.

It would have been no different had you been in an AWD Sienna with runflats. You’d also be waiting for those tires to be ordered. I suggest you buy a spare tire kit from Modern Spare for long road trips. I’m sorry you had a bad experience, but this could have happened in a variety of cars and is not unique to Tesla.

 

[run-the-joules]

I've owned an Audi A4 Quattro, it had a full spare tire, and any tire shop I visited carried its size.

did the tire shop check for alternate sizes that would still fit, e.g., slightly wider or narrower with a slightly diff sidewall ratio? I’d be surprised if they didn’t have SOMETHING that fit even if not ideal.

 

[Kilotango74]

I've owned an Audi A4 Quattro, it had a full spare tire, and any tire shop I visited carried its size.

Well i guess you know which vehicle you should buy.

 

[ry-ballz]

How is this different than if you drove into a curb at a gas station?

 

[mduflos]

It would have been no different had you been in an AWD Sienna with runflats. You’d also be waiting for those tires to be ordered. I suggest you buy a spare tire kit from Modern Spare for long road trips. I’m sorry you had a bad experience, but this could have happened in a variety of cars and is not unique to Tesla.

Thanks for your tip about Modern Spare, I'll check it out!

 

[mduflos]

How is this different than if you drove into a curb at a gas station?

Tire size availability and quality of manufacturer's roadside assistance service.

 

[VT_EE]

Thanks for your tip about Modern Spare, I'll check it out!

It’s great. Comes with a compact spare, jack, and bag to put it all in. I bring it on any road trip longer than 2.5 hours from home.

 

[DavidS314]

anytime i see a non stop blur of words that should be 3 paragraphs, i know the OP probably has a bad point of view.

 

[tashtibet]

lives in Denver, Co -goes to ski in Utah