Model 3 Tires for Winter: UHP All-Season vs. Dedicated Winter Tires - Opinions?

[Daniel in SD]

Interesting, so that's an ad for why *NOT* to use winter tires on dry roads, at least if you want to be able to stop quickly. Significantly worse braking performance for the winter tires vs. the summer tires in winter temperatures. I thought it was going to go the other way. But if there had been ice or snow, I'm sure it would have gone differently.

The other thing I need to consider is the TPMS sensors. If I'm going to be swapping out tires twice a year, I should probably buy a set of these for the new tires, right? I've heard they can break when swapping between different sets of tires. Tempted to just buy a separate set of winter wheels for the car as it would make things a lot simpler.

TPMS sensors are attached to the wheels. I've never heard of anyone swapping them between summer and winter wheels since you have to remove the tires to get at them. Also, they are super cheap these days.
4x ITM TPMS Uni-Sensors Metal Clamp-On 433MHz for Tesla Model 3 2017-2018 667952810783 | eBay

 

[Bimmerville]

Tempted to just buy a separate set of winter wheels for the car as it would make things a lot simpler.

That's the right way to go.

 

[coleAK]

We have a 2nd set of wheels for all our vehicles (and a 3rd off-road set for one). It makes it much easier as you can do the swap easily yourself. For the Tesla I did my 2nd set of rims and TPMS sensors from tire rack (got my tires locally), nice set for <$1000. That being said when I had my 996 turbo I didn’t get a 2nd set of wheels because I knew I probably wouldn’t keep it all that long and rims would have been >$5k. So I just got the tires re mounted twice a year.

 

[dfwatt]

Great thread. I took a chance on a set of Michelin 235/35-20 Pilot Sport A/S3+ – top-rated all season by far on Tire Rack's website, but I was concerned about their behavior in real snow, even with Michelin claiming better snow traction over the older A/S3. Well, as it turns out, I may have had nothing to worry about - what a revelation. Haven't driven the car yet in deep snow but on slushy roads, light snow, and generally crappy conditions (which are very plentiful in New Hampshire this time of year) these tires seem amazingly good. And their performance on dry pavement that is cold is just phenomenal. You can see from the attached picture they are obviously somewhat similar to the Pilot Sport 4S, but with obvious cross snipes and grooves to grab snow.

I still can't quite figure out what Tesla claims around improving cold weather issues around the frameless windows. The only thing that would really make a difference is if the system could sense freezing rain and lower the windows a quarter of an inch so you couldn't get locked out of your car. We had to turn the heat on for a couple of hours because even though I was able to open the driver side door, I couldn't shut it. Did some minor damage to the window frame in attempting to do so, although it's almost impossible to find unless you're looking for it. In any case the frameless windows mean that if you've got rain and then a subsequent freeze, you better make sure you lower the windows by a quarter of an inch before the freeze hits because otherwise you may not be getting in or out of your car without a whole lot of grief.

Overall though I'm extremely pleased with how the car behaves in slippery conditions. Not surprisingly, with electric drive, traction control can be much more finely graduated. The car just refuses to break traction and whatever traction is there, it's got. Absolutely incredible in light snow with these tires. We'll have to see how they do when serious weather hits – but this may not happen this winter since we're in Florida for all but two weeks of New England Winter crapola.

 

[Bobbo8]

I’m planning on getting a set of rims to put snows on, will I need to buy a set of TPMS sensors and what would the cost be? Would I need to get Tesla specific sensors?

 

[coleAK]

I’m planning on getting a set of rims to put snows on, will I need to buy a set of TPMS sensors and what would the cost be? Would I need to get Tesla specific sensors?

I tried to get just TPMS sensors from Tesla with no luck. Ended up getting them from tire rack at about $40 each, which is pretty cheep.

 

[Bimmerville]

I tried to get just TPMS sensors from Tesla with no luck. Ended up getting them from tire rack at about $40 each, which is pretty cheep.

I installed my winter wheel package from TireRack two weeks ago. Zero issues with the TPMS sensors they sell being recognized by the car.

 

[Msjulie]

Tempted to just buy a separate set of winter wheels for the car as it would make things a lot simpler.

Agree.

Used to own an Audi A4 Quattro living in New England - every fall swapped dedicated -1size snow tires (with rims) onto the car, in the (late) spring, the original summer tires went back on...

All wheel drive can get you going in low traction; steering and stopping is all about the rubber. Snow tires are cheap compared to sliding into a tree or some such..

 

[MrBoylan]

I’m planning on getting a set of rims to put snows on, will I need to buy a set of TPMS sensors and what would the cost be? Would I need to get Tesla specific sensors?

I think others have answered already about the TPMS sensors. I think those are fairly generic. Tire Rack sells compatible ones for $57 each but you can get them cheaper on eBay or via other sources.

But I'm not seeing the rims for sale in the Tesla shop without the Pirelli Sotozero tires on them. I know I can go with aftermarket rims, but I'm one of those oddballs who likes the look of the aero wheels. And I like the 4.3% efficiency gain with aero covers on. Do I have to contact my local shop to buy the rims on their own?

Also, would you guys trust CostCo with a Model 3 tire installation? Seems like they just need to know the lift points and it's pretty straightforward, right?

 

[Jaguar]

I think others have answered already about the TPMS sensors. I think those are fairly generic. Tire Rack sells compatible ones for $57 each but you can get them cheaper on eBay or via other sources.

But I'm not seeing the rims for sale in the Tesla shop without the Pirelli Sotozero tires on them. I know I can go with aftermarket rims, but I'm one of those oddballs who likes the look of the aero wheels. And I like the 4.3% efficiency gain with aero covers on. Do I have to contact my local shop to buy the rims on their own?

Also, would you guys trust CostCo with a Model 3 tire installation? Seems like they just need to know the lift points and it's pretty straightforward, right?

When it came to switching to winter tires, I went to a shop that had experience with Teslas. To accommodate the rush this time of year so many dealers hire part-time help and give them a half hour training. I wasn't going to trust them with my car.

 

[dfwatt]

I think others have answered already about the TPMS sensors. I think those are fairly generic. Tire Rack sells compatible ones for $57 each but you can get them cheaper on eBay or via other sources.

But I'm not seeing the rims for sale in the Tesla shop without the Pirelli Sotozero tires on them. I know I can go with aftermarket rims, but I'm one of those oddballs who likes the look of the aero wheels. And I like the 4.3% efficiency gain with aero covers on. Do I have to contact my local shop to buy the rims on their own?

Also, would you guys trust CostCo with a Model 3 tire installation? Seems like they just need to know the lift points and it's pretty straightforward, right?

It's not just the lift points but also the lift doughnuts. If they don't have the specialized hockey puck contraption that sits in those little frame holes, and they try to lift the car without that, you're jeopardizing your battery pack. Even really good shops may not have that specialized hockey puck. If they don't have it and you can't provide it (you need 4 for a full body lift), don't have somebody work on your car. It's just too risky.

 

[mswlogo]

The R3 actually did worse than the R2 for rolling resistance and noise on Consumer Reports' latest tire tests.

I can believe that. I saw one member post that his R3's are noisier than the OEM All-Season Tesla tires.

The Xi3's are quieter, cheaper, and come with 40,000 mile warranty. They are 95% as good as Nokian on snow and Ice.

The Euro label on efficiency has like 5 levels, R3 is notably Level 1, Xi3 is Level 2. Interestingly the Sotto Zero's were like level 3 or 4.

I've had Nokian's for the last 20 years. I do like them a lot. But the Xi3 being noted for being extremely quiet is what swayed me because I just could not take the Model 3 being any worse than the stock all season tires. The Xi3's feel like I took off some hard soled shoes and put on some sneakers. They are great.

R3's and Xi3's are BOTH great tires but you need to decide your priorities. Noise was a huge priority for me and the Xi3 is clearly a winner in that category.

 

[mswlogo]

View attachment 356429

It's not just the lift points but also the lift doughnuts. If they don't have the specialized hockey puck contraption that sits in those little frame holes, and they try to lift the car without that, you're jeopardizing your battery pack. Even really good shops may not have that specialized hockey puck. If they don't have it and you can't provide it (you need 4 for a full body lift), don't have somebody work on your car. It's just too risky.

So are folks carrying 4 pucks in the car in case they need emergency service at some shop that does not have the proper lift adapters?
I would think it would be really tedious to position 4 arms EXCATLY at the lift points.

 

[mswlogo]

TPMS sensors are attached to the wheels. I've never heard of anyone swapping them between summer and winter wheels since you have to remove the tires to get at them. Also, they are super cheap these days.
4x ITM TPMS Uni-Sensors Metal Clamp-On 433MHz for Tesla Model 3 2017-2018 667952810783 | eBay

Those look pretty good. Do they need to be "programmed". I bought my snow tire rims TPMS at Tire Rack for $47 each and they look identical to OEM (Continental 433 Hz). No programming or activation needed.

 

[Daniel in SD]

Those look pretty good. Do they need to be "programmed". I bought my snow tire rims TPMS at Tire Rack for $47 each and they look identical to OEM (Continental 433 Hz). No programming or activation needed.

Nope. They were preprogrammed for the Model 3. They work fine so far.

 

[Bobbo8]

When it came to switching to winter tires, I went to a shop that had experience with Teslas. To accommodate the rush this time of year so many dealers hire part-time help and give them a half hour training. I wasn't going to trust them with my car.

I gave up waiting for the Tesla Rims and Pirellis, I went to a local MAVIS Tire shop and they got the Michelin Xi3’s and installed with no problems, I was concerned also about the instal but the tech knew about the lift points. I will be getting rims and probably from TireRack.

 

[brianman]

Michelin … Pilot Sport A/S3+

These are my default tire choice for Model S and now Model 3.

Perhaps you get worse weather winters my make sense, but I've never had regrets with the A/S 3+ -- year-round.

 

[taraquin]

That's interesting. The Michelin Xi3 also is supposed to have low rolling resistance (for a winter tire) and did better than the other Winter tires for fuel efficiency in Tire Rack's tests, but I don't think it would match the results you describe with the Nokian. Seems like the Nokians are not as widely available but I'll see what I can find on them.

Thanks!

Yeah. The last tests I saw comparing Xi3 to R2 (haven`t seen R3 compared), the consumption with R2 was around 1% lower.

 

[MrBoylan]

Do I have to contact my local shop to buy the rims on their own?

Answering my own question, Apparently the stock Tesla 18" rims (wheels) are only $200 each. Not listed online, but you can order them through your local Tesla service center. I called around the NYC area Tesla stores and no one seems to have them in stock (of the few shops that actually picked up the phone that is). As for the jack pads, I'll either pick up a set or make my own DIY ones. They look pretty simple.

 

[dfwatt]

These are my default tire choice for Model S and now Model 3.

Perhaps you get worse weather winters my make sense, but I've never had regrets with the A/S 3+ -- year-round.

They are amazing. Almost as good on dry pavement as the summer Tires in warm weather, way better in cold weather and in snow