Model 3 SR+ Range : 19" Sport wheels vs 18" Aero wheels vs 18" Aero with Hubcaps

[verystandard]

Hi All

Is there anyone who currently owns a Model 3 SR+ that comes with 19" Sport Wheels? how's their range and if there is any expected range loss?

Always curious to see what's the difference between the Sport Wheels/Aero Wheels/Aero Wheels with Caps.

Thanks!

 

[JFChenger]

Lots of threads on this, might want to do a search. Comes down to your driving conditions if other people's stats mean anything to you specifically. 3-5% between 19" and 18" on the freeway is the general consensus, but individual driving style will effect that significantly. City or local driving prodcue minimal differences between all three configurations you are asking.

 

[OCR1]

Probably closer to a 10% loss when comparing the two extremes - 19” wheels vs 18” wheels with aero caps.

 

[Zoomit]

The documents that Tesla filed with the EPA indicated that at 50mph the road load is 10% higher on 19" wheels/tires, see below. For reference 10 hp is about 7.5 kW. If you add in, say, another 1kW for vehicle systems (pumps, HVAC, AP computer, etc), the difference between the wheel/tire combos is 9% at 50mph. According to the coast-down dyno coefficients calculated by Tesla, also shown below, this percentage difference doesn't change much at highway speeds.

 

[TMThree]

Everything you need to know:

Tesla Range Table - Teslike.com

It shows you EPA ratings, what the EPA ratings should be, and combinations between options.

BTW, "D" = dual motor = AWD

 

[Zoomit]

On the 3LR, removing hubcaps lowers highway efficiency by 4%. Since 3SR is more efficient overall, this would technically be a little higher but basically within that test's measurement error.

 

[Leafdriver333]

Probably negligible.
10 miles for full charge?
I like the plasticky EV look.

 

[TMThree]

On the 3LR, removing hubcaps lowers highway efficiency by 4%.

4% isn't a real number. "Highway" could refer to 50 mph, 70 mph, or even 90 mph traffic. It isn't a set % gain across all traffic conditions or speeds. Also wind gusts could skew his numbers between runs. Conditions aren't controlled, and only one run was done for each.

 

[Zoomit]

4% isn't a real number. "Highway" could refer to 50 mph, 70 mph, or even 90 mph traffic. It isn't a set % gain across all traffic conditions or speeds. Also wind gusts could skew his numbers between runs. Conditions aren't controlled, and only one run was done for each.

All valid points. I wonder what you’d suggest as a generalized suggestion to the OP.

Incidentally, if you do the math on teslike’s table you’ll notice he basically used a constant 4% even though it should increase with speed.

 

[commasign]

Go with the 18” wheels. If you don’t like the hubcap look, pull off the aero covers. When you’re doing a roadtrip, put the aero covers back on.

 

[Jedi2155]

The 19" wheels range loss isn't bad because of the bigger size or even the lack of the aero covers, its terrible because they're sports tires optimized for grip instead of efficiency. Put in efficiency focused tires and the range loss is probably closer to 5% instead the 10-11%+

 

[verystandard]

Hi guys, thanks for all the response, for now I will grab the cap kit for 18 inch first and see how it goes. If i do come across a sets of used 19" sports wheels for good price later I might consider that jump as well!

 

[Juicywheels]

Trip A Aero Wheels. Trip B Aero for last 1k miles miles, Sport for previous 12k.

10% efficiency confirmed. Mostly highway miles. Wh/mi before swap was 265. After - 239. I always drive the same commute.

Adds approx 33 miles real world range for my M3LRAWD.