Michelin MXM4 tires out of stock everywhere

[OCR1]

It’s time for me to replace my 18” tires on the Model 3. I’ve checked all the major tires shops - Tire Rack, America’s Tires, Discount Tires, Costco…all out of stock on the OEM Primacy MXM4. Has anyone else been shopping for these recently and had any success in finding them?

Also, I was reading through some old threads on alternatives to see if there are any EV specific tires now selling. It looks like both Goodyear and Michelin have EV tires but neither offer them for an 18” Model 3. Is there any other EV tire out there yet? Any update on when these might be available for the Model 3?

If I have to I can go with the Pilot Sport 4S but I‘ve been happy with the OEM tires and I like getting the maximum possible range.

 

[Knightshade]

PS4s will be 5-10% less range, but stop the car 20-30% shorter distance from highway speed in an emergency- seems a worthwhile trade to me.

 

[OCR1]

PS4s will be 5-10% less range, but stop the car 20-30% shorter distance from highway speed in an emergency- seems a worthwhile trade to me.

What is the difference in noise level between the MXM4 and the Sport 4s?

 

[tm1v2]

Keep in mind there is no 18" Tesla-spec Pilot Sport 4S, if that matters to you.

There is an 235/45R18 Tesla-spec Pilot Sport 4 (not 4S!). Since you were okay with MXM4 grip & handling, maybe the Tesla-spec 18" Pilot Sport 4 (with foam liner I assume) would suit you better than the generic 18" Pilot Sport 4S. The PS4 won't grip quite as well as the PS4S but will still be a very nice upgrade from the MXM4 in terms of performance. (PS4 should be much closer to PS4S than to MXM4.)

Personally I'm not concerned about running a Tesla spec tire, but I'm mostly focused on grip and handling. If you're more focused on efficiency and quietness then the OE Tesla-spec tires will usually be good options.

 

[tm1v2]

Btw the only difference I know of in the Tesla spec tires is they always (from what I've seen) have a foam liner. However it's possible some of them have further differences in tread design or even compound geared towards EV efficiency and quietness. I've seen a lot of talk about that but I'm not sure how much is speculation vs reality.

I have no personal experience with PS4 or PS4S yet. Wife and I have used MXM4 on our Model S and I really didn't like them, too soft and not grippy, just not my kind of tire. I have used past Michelin summer performance tires - PS2 I think - and they were a very good street tire for their era (many years ago).

 

[OCR1]

Keep in mind there is no 18" Tesla-spec Pilot Sport 4S, if that matters to you.

There is an 235/45R18 Tesla-spec Pilot Sport 4 (not 4S!). Since you were okay with MXM4 grip & handling, maybe the Tesla-spec 18" Pilot Sport 4 (with foam liner I assume) would suit you better than the generic 18" Pilot Sport 4S. The PS4 won't grip quite as well as the PS4S but will still be a very nice upgrade from the MXM4 in terms of performance. (PS4 should be much closer to PS4S than to MXM4.)

Personally I'm not concerned about running a Tesla spec tire, but I'm mostly focused on grip and handling. If you're more focused on efficiency and quietness then the OE Tesla-spec tires will usually be good options.

The Pilot Sport 4 might be a good option but those are out of stock too. Basically anything that is specifically for the Tesla is out of stock. I just started tracking availability so I don’t have any idea how long this has been an issue for. Costco has a sale on the Michelin line of tires but it ends tomorrow so if I don’t go with the 4S I’ll probably have to wait a few months for the next sale.

 

[tm1v2]

To be honest I would avoid the PS4S or anything else in that category if you're after maximum efficiency i.e. minimum rolling resistance.

By all accounts the PS4S is a great summer performance tire for street use, but it has a very different mission than what you seem to be looking for.

Then again maybe trying a good summer performance tire will convert you, and you'll become like many of us who gladly give up a little range to get much better grip and handling. You can certainly run a summer tire year round in southern California!

 

[Knightshade]

What is the difference in noise level between the MXM4 and the Sport 4s?

Can't say for sure... for one this seems to be hugely subjective.... for another because it does occasionally get below freezing here I went with the Pilot Sport A/S4 instead, which is still a huge upgrade for handling/stopping compared to the MXM4, if slightly less great than the PS4s. Neither I nor my wife noticed any significant noise difference, but then I haven't found the Model 3 in general to be bad for road noise while others apparently do- so as I say, very subjective.

 

[OCR1]

I’ve had the 4S tires previously on my Lexus so I’m familiar with them. And yes, in So Cal they work fine as year round tires. I might move ahead with them. I’m just wondering if the fact that all of the Tesla specific Michelins tires are out of stock might indicate they are getting ready to come out with something new to replace them?

 

[tm1v2]

I’m just wondering if the fact that all of the Tesla specific Michelins tires are out of stock might indicate they are getting ready to come out with something new to replace them?

I think Michelin is having supply issues, I wouldn't read anything more into it. Just my guess because lots of their tires have been out of stock frequently or continuously for a while now, and there's been news about rubber shortages expected to impact the tire industry.

I was going to try the 245/45R18 PS4S myself on my 18x8.5" wheels for my M3P and they were out of stock everywhere for months. So I went with the new Bridgestone Potenza Sport and they've been AWESOME, fantastic performance tire for street use and a much bigger upgrade from the OE 20" PZ4 than I expected. BUT I still haven't tried the PS4S yet, so I can't make any comparison there.

 

[OCR1]

I ended up ordering 4 Michelin Pilot Sport All Season 4 tires today from Discount Tire (America’s Tire). I was hoping they would match the Costco discount when the rep I spoke to let me know that American Tire Depot was offering a buy 3 get one free sale and they could match that price, which was even better than Costco. So the all in price with installation and sales tax came to $867.22 for the 18” tires.

If anyone is looking for replacement tires I think the buy 3 get one free promotion is pretty much the best deal around, and Discount Tire is willing to match it.

I went with the All Season because for our 2018 Model 3 we do make some trips to Mammoth and need to have all season during ski season. For our 2019 Model 3 I don’t take that one to Mammoth so I will likely go with the Pilot Sport 4S when I’m ready.

 

[calm-one]

Has anyone been able to obtain the Michelin Primacy MXM4 T1 XL 98W 235/45R-18 OEM this year in the US (midwest)? If so, could you share where?

I have had a set of 4 on backorder since last Nov. Current Tirerack website ETA is April. Tirerack confirmed April even when asked about where I might be in the backorder queue; hopefully better than 6 months total. I am starting to think they might have Tesla SAs or delivery personnel moonlighting in Tirerack's contact center.

 

[SkipShip]

Has anyone been able to obtain the Michelin Primacy MXM4 T1 XL 98W 235/45R-18 OEM this year in the US (midwest)? If so, could you share where?

I have had a set of 4 on backorder since last Nov. Current Tirerack website ETA is April. Tirerack confirmed April even when asked about where I might be in the backorder queue; hopefully better than 6 months total. I am starting to think they might have Tesla SAs or delivery personnel moonlighting in Tirerack's contact center.

Where are you located? I’m hopefully taking ownership within 30 days and am taking the OEM wheels/tires right off. I’m in Minneapolis.

If you aren’t near me, check out TireAgent. They were able to get me Michelin PS4S the next day when everyone else was a 2 month wait.

 

[calm-one]

I called Tirerack for an update.

I was told that there is 100s of customer orders received for these tires but Michelin is telling them no production is scheduled currently; indefinite backorder.

I also asked if these were being discontinued or replaced and was informed they weren't based on what they knew.

 

[CosmosMpower]

Local Tesla service center should have them. I got a nail in a 900 mile old tire and local Plano service center sold me one, 308 bucks out the door, ouch.

 

[tm1v2]

In general I feel like Tesla service parts and labor pricing is actually quite reasonable, better than most traditional car dealers especially for like-priced ICE car brands. HOWEVER...their tire pricing is super expensive. Every time we've gotten a tire quote from them it's been significantly higher than the same exact tires sold anywhere else.

If you urgently need a replacement tire or two and Tesla are the only ones with it in stock locally, by all means do what you need to do. But I really suggest shopping around when possible.

My guess - totally a guess - is that Tesla prices tires so high because they actually don't want big numbers of Tesla owners using service centers for tire changes. Their service centers are overwhelmed enough already, and any tire shop can changes tires on a Tesla, whereas most of the other work in service centers' queues really does need to be done by them (warranty repairs, special Tesla tooling & software access, etc).

If you really want to get tires at Tesla, they will oblige as they should, but they will make you pay extra for taking time away from their core service work. Which is fine by me. (Better still would be to continue expanding service centers so they can actually handle the full volume of demand, but in lieu of that, they should do what they can to prioritize their more important work.)

 

[TW14 9LF]

$308 out the door isn't bad. Tire Rack has them listed for $278 before mounting and balancing. But, they don't have them in stock, so really doesn't matter.

 

[gearchruncher]

HOWEVER...their tire pricing is super expensive.

This poster disagrees with you.

As with basically everything Tesla, your experience may vary.

 

[tm1v2]

This poster disagrees with you.

As with basically everything Tesla, your experience may vary.

Are you saying "your mileage may vary" with these cars?

 

[calm-one]

$308 out the door isn't bad. Tire Rack has them listed for $278 before mounting and balancing. But, they don't have them in stock, so really doesn't matter.

If I really want new MXM4 Tesla SC can get them in a week I have found late last week. $1,700 w/IL tax, mounted, balanced and 4 wheel alignment. Expensive but being in stock is the dealmaker.

Who would have thought the OEM MXMs would take four months thru proven resellers?

If any Goodyear or other quality tire manufacturers social AI bots are listening, Michelin needs competition that provides similar or better specs without compromise to those MXMs.

Cheers