aesculus
Still Trying to Figure This All Out
Do you think the "fuzzy" texture lining has anything to do with the snow sticking more in the wheel well?On winter driving, I am seeing a lot more snow accumulation in the wheel well than other cars.
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Do you think the "fuzzy" texture lining has anything to do with the snow sticking more in the wheel well?On winter driving, I am seeing a lot more snow accumulation in the wheel well than other cars.
Do you think the "fuzzy" texture lining has anything to do with the snow sticking more in the wheel well?
On winter driving, I am seeing a lot more snow accumulation in the wheel well than other cars. It's packed full, touching or almost touching the tires on all sides. My gas guzzlers don't do that. Maybe it's the shape of the well and smaller gap between tire and plastic well. I spent quite a bit of time cleaning it out. If I parked it outside overnight with all that snow solid in there, I am not sure how the car would perform in the morning.
A/C off. Recirc to no outside air.
I don't like the Pirelli winter tire from Tesla in the snow. I find the Model X on Ice can slide it appears to me to be due to the momentum of the car. It's quite heavy and slips sometimes with decelerating turns. Otherwise, I find it great.
Thanks for posting @Gwgan. Would you be able to provide some photos too? I may consider doing the same.I added 1/4” high D gasket to the front doors opposite the gasket on the frame and this took care of some draft down by the outer knee and thigh of the front passenger and I noticed it was not cold when I put my hand down by the seat controls. About 12F outside today. There is another gasket along the bottom of the door which doesn’t seem to be very tight (doesn’t hold a piece of paper) and I may give that one a mate as well. I had a little bit leftover and put that inside the C gasket on the frame where the fixed window rests and noticed less frost on the window compared to yesterday, but yesterday was about 10F colder, too.
Service had done some gasket work on the doors when the car was new which cut down a lot on noise and I did not notice much difference in that regard. Most road noise seems to come through the dash from the front wheel wells. I suspect the doors themselves could use a little soundproofing, too. May look into something for that next.
Material was Frost King E/O 5/16 in. x 1/4 in. x 17 ft. Black EPDM Cellular Rubber Weatherstrip Tape-V25BK - The Home DepotWould you be able to provide some photos too
Model X Winter Experience story time!
This past weekend, I rented a place in Tahoe so the kids could go play in the new fallen snow. We left on Friday morning around 9/9:30am and made our way to the Rocklin Supercharger. On the way, I saw amber signs saying that I-80 was closed due to whiteout conditions. While charging, I found that indeed, 80 was closed at Colfax due to heavy snow and had no ETA on opening. We decided to kill some time in Rocklin eating and shopping, then meander our way up the hill toward Colfax slowly. I charged to 95%.
I stopped in Auburn at a music store and played some acoustic guitars (Taylors) for about an hour, and we decided to drive up to Colfax and see how things looked. Sure enough, road was closed and the town was mobbed with people waiting out the opening of the interstate. We parked for about 30 minutes and realized this was a waste of our time, so we headed down the hill toward Auburn to take the kids bowling. I think that bowling alley was as busy as a Friday night, as we weren't the only ones with the idea. I continually checked the DOT cams at Colfax to see if the road was open - it wasn't, so we drove to get some pizza and wait a little longer before deciding our next course of action. After sitting and ordering, I saw the road open. We got the food to go and hurried up the hill.
On the way, I realized that trip planner had us arriving at our destination with only 10% SOC remaining, but it also was trying to reroute us off of the highway due to traffic. I still didn't like the estimate, but I also didn't want to drive back down to Rocklin, charge, and risk having I-80 close again. There are two CHAdeMO stops open along 80 now -- Dutch Flat and Emigrant Gap. I figured I would just play it by ear, and we headed up past Colfax and into the snow.
Things went smoothly all the way up to Emigrant Gap, and despite trip planner suggesting I would arrive with 9% SOC at my destination, I knew I could also stop in Truckee which was slightly short of the destination. I decided not to stop and to press forward. That's where I made a huge error.
Once we got past Yuba Pass, traffic slowed down considerably to stop-and-go levels. Continuing on, traffic eventually stopped dead just short of Donner Pass. I had 24 rated miles left. I turned the cabin heat off, which had already been lowered to 65. We sat in traffic for about two hours, and the problem is that without cabin heat, I cannot defrost the windshield. We were in blizzard conditions, the snow was piling up, and I was getting out every 5 minutes or so to brush off the car so I could see. Traffic began to move again, I couldn't see well enough, and I had to pull over and scrape again. Wipers were frozen solid and worthless, so I brushed manually through an open window while driving.
Traffic stopped again just over Donner Pass. 17 rated miles left and I was about ready to call a flatbed, as I figured it would take hours to get one and I could get a head start. I knew we had a descent to Truckee but had no idea how long we'd be in traffic. Thankfully, not long, but visibility was horrendous even without windshield issues. We made it down at about 2mph, and limped into the Supercharger with about 10 miles of rated range left.
I'm not sure I've been so happy to plug in. I hit the defrost on HI and exhaled.
The lesson is simple and already common knowledge: plan accordingly in winter conditions and don't take risks. I was under the pressures of a vacation that might not happen (road closure), the fear of a road closing on us while waiting for a charge, and a bit of impatience, and I made an error I am unlikely to repeat.
Oh, we got stuck in a drift pulling into our rental house, and I had to dig us out. Also, leaving my home, our gate accidentally closed on the X and broke the plastic trim around the passenger side front wheel well.
Yeah.
Wheels and tires are the same as yours and I had zero traction or maneuverability issues despite having 27k miles on them. Nothing wrong with the car here, just the foolish driver.Wheels and tires? Any comments?
I am on the stock 20" Conti silent cross contact, all season. I feel they perform amazingly in the worst (best?) CA winter conditions through the Sierra.
From decades of driving in Quebec winters, that combination of settings will pretty much guarantee rapid window fogging.
To de-humidify the air you and passengers are exhaling (plus possibly from melting snow in the floor mats) you need to keep the A/C ON, and you must allow fresh air in (turn recirc OFF).
For winter, I'm running 19" Bridgestone Blizzaks. They perform great in Utah powder and frosty downhill runs to Park City. However, I take about a 10% hit in range relative to the 20" stocks. So, for your specific conditions, I would not have made it to the destination. And Nav always overestimates remaining charge until it's gotten several miles down the road. I've got it calibrated now.Wheels and tires are the same as yours and I had zero traction or maneuverability issues despite having 27k miles on them. Nothing wrong with the car here, just the foolish driver.