Winter Tires on Model 3

[markman69]

I see your TR's Type 71 wheel, and will raise you with my recently ordered Type 30 wheels.
Type 30's are Tesla 64.1mm hub-centric, lighter, and a little cheaper.
Looks are clearly subjective.
I ordered my set shod with 235/45R18 Michelin X-Ice Xi3.

YMMV,
a

Nice, but more of a call than a raise, lol. Like you said, subjective... prefer 19's over 18's and +35 offset sits a little more flush.

 

[kiNGng3]

Hi there, Canada calling.

Just bought a Model 3 Performance from Park Royal, Vancouver. Expected delivery is by the end of the month and I'm going to need to put some winter tires on immediately to use Highway 99 to reach my home in Whistler (it's the law between 1st October and March, not a surplus of pessimism).

Having trouble getting hold of a 19" wheel (don't want 20s and I'm still not sure 18" clearance will be good enough if we have some real snow here). McLaren Vancouver (their service department is kind of a local expert for wheel and tire weirdness) have recommended an R187 Replika as a perfect fit and easily available in Canada at a sensible price, but I wanted to check that they definitely fit on the unique Performance hub. I know it's a popular wheel on the other models of the Model 3 but some reasonably diligent searching hasn't shown any hits for the Performance.

Has anyone got any direct experience? Thanks for your time.

18's fit. He has the P3D as well:

 

[RobRain]

18's fit. He has the P3D as well

Thanks King. To be clear, I don’t doubt that 18s fit. I’m just concerned that deep snow plus zero clearance could lead to frustrating journeys. It’s normally a case of when there’s a dump rather than if around here.

 

[justsomeguy]

Thanks King. To be clear, I don’t doubt that 18s fit. I’m just concerned that deep snow plus zero clearance could lead to frustrating journeys. It’s normally a case of when there’s a dump rather than if around here.

What do you mean when you say clearance? Are you worried snow will get lodged between the caliper and wheel?

 

[Rehabman]

Do folks agree that one needs snow tires for the 3 in a snowy clime? I live in maine and have always used snow tires on my vehicles but wasn't sure about the mod 3 19Inchers. Also second question: do you have to buy a whole new wheel or just the tires?

thanks,
s

 

[RobRain]

What do you mean when you say clearance? Are you worried snow will get lodged between the caliper and wheel?

Yeah, hoofing great lumps of ice building up as layers of slushy snow on the road, then freezing solid when stationary, for example. I'm being super-pessimistic, but I don't want to be 100km from civilization pondering the wisdom of 18s whilst I manhandle the ice of the inside of the rim. Especially since I'm probably also 100km from a charge point and pondering the wisdom of taking an EV to North Nowhere, BC. Like I say, super-pessimistic, deeply unlikely to be an issue, but that's the way I'm wired. YMMV

 

[Thunderbird]

It will be my first winter with the Model 3 Standard plus ..I was deciding wether to get snow tires or not ..any suggestions

 

[alsetym]

Does the temperature regularly get below 5 degrees Celsius. Did you have winters on your last car?

The stock tires are low rolling resistance tires, they really start to lose traction in cold/wet conditions. They are more like a summer tire than a 3 season tire.

 

[chicagoM30402]

Has anyone purchased from Discount Tire Zone? Was looking to purchase a set of these

NOKIAN HAKKAPELIITTA R3 : 235/45R18 98T XL

 

[Kringle]

18's fit. He has the P3D as well:

This is great to know. I too have a Model3 Perf (P3D?) and am looking for a set of winter wheels and tires. I am looking at 18's as that gives more tire to bounce out of potholes as well as a slightly better ride on roads that have patchy stuck on ice.

I found this an interesting site that reviewed various winter tires. Living in Vancouver it's usually more wet than snow so wet grip is important but it seems wet grip is an opposite trait to snow grip for most tires. We head up to Whistler on most weekends so snow grip and dry grip in the spring matters too. The Continental Viking contact seems to do both pretty well and I may go with that.
Here's a link to the review site:
Continental VikingContact 7 test ans review of the Continental ContiVikingContact 7 | AllTyreTests.com

Very happy to know 18's will work!

 

[Kringle]

18's fit. He has the P3D as well:

As far as why Tesla chose a 20" wheel over an 18", or more correctly why they chose a low profile tire it is obviously differences in handling. It seems to me this guy has very little practical experience with vehicle handling. A taller side wall will deform more and the tire will roll over onto it's side wall far more easily than a low profile tire. This lifts more of the tread off the surface and loads up the remaining part in contact with the road. The result is that the shoulder of the tire will tear up very quickly especially on a heavy car like a Model 3. How do I know? I've auto-crossed for many years and run a few track events every year, as well a finishing a Skip Barber race school. There's good reason why every manufacturer uses low profile tires on high performance models. It's not just about looks. Sorry about the rant but I don't like mis-information particularly when it is in contrast with manufacturers and race teams that know a lot more about the subject.
In the winter it is a bit inverse, a narrower tire cuts through standing water better and puts more pressure on the tread blocks (smaller contact patch) to bite into the ice a bit better. See how narrow a tire the rally cars use on snow covered stages. In the snow there is not enough grip to worry about rolling over the sidewall so a taller tire is fine and a bit better protection for the rim as the Engineering Explained fellow stated. Therefor my choice of 18's for the winter. Ice buildup on the inside of the rim might be a good thing to consider, could be a problem in extreme cases. I've done similar swaps on other cars I've owned without issue so willing to chance it. Thanks for all the Canadian sites to check out guys!

 

[flyingowl]

First of all, love my model 3 so far. I received it 2 weeks ago and so far been happy with it.

Currently I'm in process of getting/looking for winter tires because here in upstate NY snow will be flying soon.

Here what I pick for my tires/rims: (Discount Tire)

TIRES :
NOKIAN TIRE
HAKKAPELIITTA R3
235 /45 R18 98T XL BSW

WHEELS :
VELOX
NIRVANA
18 X8 5-114.30 40 BKMEXX

Any feedback/suggestions will be appreciated whether it's good choice for tire/rims. Currently I have 19" summer wheels inch mounted.

Also if anybody mounted tires in Albany NY area, what shop did you use?

Thank you very much for help!

 

[MJB-CO]

I bought a second set of OEM Aero wheels with TPMS from Tesla, and Michelin X-Ice tires from TireRack.

Second set of wheels so I don't have to have tires remounted twice a year - and I can do the switch myself.

Michelin X-Ice because they are excellent in snow and ice -

• I had them on my Audi A4 for about 8 years and have never had a problem in bad weather.
• This winter on my Model3 we had some snow and ice - didn't have a slip (while other vehicles slipping and sliding).

 

[acarney]

I’ve run the R3s on an old Audi A6 (~2002 model) and they rocked in ice. The morning after I put them on we got an ice storm and I failed to leave enough extra time to drive to the airport to catch a 6am flight... the R3s were amazing and let me do about 30 on the freeway when everyone else was doing about 10mph... as soon as I got to the airport they delayed the flight two hours. But the tires made it feel safe and controlled!

I also ran xIce on the Audi before, though not xIce 3s. They were pretty good too, but I would say the R3s felt a little better on glazed ice when really asking a lot from the brakes.

There are also the Bridgestone WS90s which are new for this year. I used the WS80s for the last three years with a Chevy Volt. Never got stuck, but damn close... though I think that was down more to the Volt’s limited ground clearance, FWD, and aggressive traction control (which just totally cut engine power).

 

[afadeev]

First of all, love my model 3 so far. I received it 2 weeks ago and so far been happy with it.

Currently I'm in process of getting/looking for winter tires because here in upstate NY snow will be flying soon.

Smart move!

Here what I pick for my tires/rims: (Discount Tire)
TIRES :
NOKIAN TIRE
HAKKAPELIITTA R3
235 /45 R18 98T XL BSW

WHEELS :
VELOX
NIRVANA
18 X8 5-114.30 40 BKMEXX

Any feedback/suggestions will be appreciated whether it's good choice for tire/rims. Currently I have 19" summer wheels inch mounted.

I haven't personally tried Hakka R3's, but have heard positive things about them.
Personally, I run either Blizzak WS*0 or Michelin X-ICE Xi* winter tires (* number keeps getting incremented over time). I had tried others over the years, but keep coming back to these two.

I had ordered and just received a set of 18" winter tires and wheels (mounted and balanced with TMPS, shipped) from tirerack.com the other week for $1,868.80.

They come ready to go, and I install them myself when either temps start dropping below 40F at night, or there is a forecast for the first snow storm of the season.

Also if anybody mounted tires in Albany NY area, what shop did you use?

Consider searching the list of independent tire shops that work with TR, by zip code:
https://www.tirerack.com/content/tirerack/desktop/en/deliver_installation.html

Every place I ever tried was willing to work on a set of wheels and tires that I brought to them.
Alternatively, ask if DT will do what TR does - namely, you order a set, and they ship wheels+tires pre-mounted directly to your door.

Good luck!
a

 

[Legen---dary]

First of all, love my model 3 so far. I received it 2 weeks ago and so far been happy with it.

Currently I'm in process of getting/looking for winter tires because here in upstate NY snow will be flying soon.

Here what I pick for my tires/rims: (Discount Tire)

TIRES :
NOKIAN TIRE
HAKKAPELIITTA R3
235 /45 R18 98T XL BSW

WHEELS :
VELOX
NIRVANA
18 X8 5-114.30 40 BKMEXX

Any feedback/suggestions will be appreciated whether it's good choice for tire/rims. Currently I have 19" summer wheels inch mounted.

Also if anybody mounted tires in Albany NY area, what shop did you use?

Thank you very much for help!

I went with the Hakkapeliitta R3 SUV 235/50. They fit perfectly, correct the speedo to be exact, and ride great. They're a bit noisy and it's taken me some time getting used to the different cornering dynamics, but so far so good.

 

[acarney]

I went with the Hakkapeliitta R3 SUV 235/50. They fit perfectly, correct the speedo to be exact, and ride great. They're a bit noisy and it's taken me some time getting used to the different cornering dynamics, but so far so good.

View attachment 463325

SUV? Do you have an X?

 

[flyingowl]

Anybody can recommend better company than VELOX NIRVANA for rims that I can get from tiretrack or discount tire? Rims are my concern because I never used this company before but at same time want to get something pretty cheap for winter.

I"m looking to ship directly to a shop this time but will be mounting them in the future when I get all necessary equipment I need.

 

[Legen---dary]

SUV? Do you have an X?

Nope. 3. Fits perfectly as you can see.
I don't like the noise, but better than an accident.

 

[StealthP3D]

I went with the Hakkapeliitta R3 SUV 235/50. They fit perfectly, correct the speedo to be exact, and ride great. They're a bit noisy and it's taken me some time getting used to the different cornering dynamics, but so far so good.

Ouch! I always try not to go up in load range when I select winter tires. I've found the extra sidewall belts make the tires feel wooden. Especially when it's really cold out. It makes driving like having sex with two condoms on. You will be happy when you get those off in the spring.