This is a topic in every brand car forum I've looked. It's partially due to the current fad of convex wheels and low profile tires. But tires that stick out past the rims doesn't protect much given the weight of these vehicles. My wife's BMW X5 has big SUV tires that stick out way past the rims, the wheels are deeply concave, and she has rashed all four wheels.
I noticed with our new-to-us Model 3, the “closeness” graphic appears to be reading off the edge of the sidewalk, a couple of feet or more from the actual curb.
better safe than sorry, unless you're out so far some hits the driver's side and takes off a mirror. Thank goodness they fold in!
Speed is not the only issue, force and angle are as well. You can mitigate it yes, but rubber gives & concrete doesn't. If you're backing in at a bad enough angle even at a snail's pace, the concrete will push the rubber in and scrape your wheel quite easily. You might get away with a light brush or two, or if you're parallel enough to spread the force and shift the car over, but it eventually happens. Sometimes the tire will pinch between the sidewalk and wheel, and rip the protective bead clean off or gouge out the sidewall if a driver is determined enough. I've seen it all and done it all in my years of driving.
I guess my point was (poorly stated) I could be scraping the curb, and having the closeness graphic read 39”.
Oh, okay. Do you have the USS sensors? My Y doesn't give distance at all, I wish it did. It only gives orange/red graphics.
Don’t know enough about the car yet to answer. The graphic usually, but not always, includes numbers.
Very true. All I know is that I've never had curb rash as often as I have owning a Tesla. I've never liked "rubber band" tires and certainly don't like wheels that stick out farther or even with the tires. The beefier the tire, the better in my book.
Agreed on beefy tires. This Tesla is my first vehicle with the wheels sticking out like they do. It happens. My wheels were perfect till I gave my key to a careless valet a while back...
teslamotorsclub.com
Yeah, I was able to get a new set from the establishment, since the seller wouldn't sell just one. They were relieved to discover that they were wheel covers and they wouldn't have to replace a wheel.That’s quite a gash.Those look like wheel covers, a little bit bit cheaper and a little less hassle to replace.
And why I've never let a stranger (valet), drive my car. It's hard to prove they caused the damage, if you don't see it right away. And even then it becomes your word against theirs if they deny doing it.
It’s true, but you must admit in OP’s case. It was a great outcome, he handled it well. The other thing is most of us are car enthusiasts (being here qualifies lol) and we know our vehicles well. I’m sure we’ve all done the walk around before someone else gets the key card!
Yeah, normally I wouldn't either. It wasn't a restaurant or anything...I was at a major hospital and the situation warranted me handing them the key. Having cameras all around the car is a strong motivator when it comes to fessing up.
