Wiki Model Y 19" vs 20" Decision Guide

[MrTemple]

Did you consider 245 at all? I’ve seen that recommended for 8.5 19s

I wanted to get a size with the exact same outer tire diameter so the speedometer and odometer would not be off.

The closest you can get in a 245 tire is 245/50R18, which is 1.4% smaller. Resulting in the speedo/odo reading high by that same amount. Not a huge deal, but I wanted to be the same.

I'm also not sure about tire availability of 245/50R18 (or the 245/55R18 which is 2.1% larger). Some sizes are just really hard to find in the version of winter tire I wanted. The 255/50R18 is an exact match in size, but almost nobody made the tire in that size (and they were a lot more expensive). So the sweet-spot for me was 255/45R19.

255 tires fit very well on 8.5" rims. Even better than on the 9.5" rims that come stock.

 

[SpoonDogSVT]

Heck yeah @SpoonDogSVT ... Did you go with 8.5 wide? What size are the vredesteins? So jealous they're out of stock now!!

I weighed the 20x8.5 and it's 26lb! Have you noticed the lighter weight when driving?

Thanks! We are super-happy with how this set turned out. The MY feels quicker on these vs. the 21" Ubers but I forgot to get actual weights at the time of installation.

These are the Replika R241 20" x 8.5" (5x114.3mm, +35, 64.1mm) -- wanted thinner wheel to get more tire-presence since the main driver is somehow attracted to curbs (F to the original passenger-side Uberturbines; gotta see if that can be repaired.)

Tires are Vredstein Quatrac Pro 255/40R20 All-Weather tires, rated 3-Peak-Mountain-Snowflake so in my area they count as 'traction-devices' for visiting the mountain this coming season.

 

[iamnid]

Anyone switched over from 20" Inductions to 20" TST?... Look like the 20" TST wheels are about 3.25lbs heavier than Inductions. Did you experience any range loss when you switched over?

Inductions

• Size: 20X9.5" Front & Rear
• Offset: +45
• PCD: 5X114.3
• Center Bore: 64.1mm
• Weight: 31.55 lbs

TST

• Size: 20x10"
• Offset: +40
• (PCD): 5x114.3
• Center Bore: 64.1
• Weight: 34.8 lbs
• Load Rating: 900 kg/1,980 lbs

Not sure where you are getting your weight figure from. I just took the following screenshot from their website

 

[miggz410]

View attachment 605709
Not sure where you are getting your weight figure from. I just took the following screenshot from their website

Tesla Model Y Wheels - 20" TST Tesla Wheel (Set of 4) - T Sportline - Tesla Model S, 3, X & Y Accessories

For some reason those are showing 34.8 lbs.

 

[iamnid]

Tesla Model Y Wheels - 20" TST Tesla Wheel (Set of 4) - T Sportline - Tesla Model S, 3, X & Y Accessories

For some reason those are showing 34.8 lbs.

Only difference I can see is that those ones are listed separately and are not listed as "flow forged." You can get TSTs that ARE listed as "flow forged" that weigh 30.35lbs at this link:

Tesla Model Y Wheels - 20" TST Flow Forged Tesla Wheel (Set of 4) - T Sportline - Tesla Model S, 3, X & Y Accessories

 

[origingalatic]

Love this guide as I am too deciding between 19” vs 20”. One thing I will note tho, nobody is selling the 20” induction is not a good indicator on how bad or regrets on the 19”. Many folks may already decide to upgrade third party so naturally not spending $1000 at order make sense. For those who spent $1000, they are unlikely to sell cause they literally chose to pay for the upgrade.

I am typing this at a tire shop as my ICE truck hit a pothole yesterday. It has 235x45x20. This is my second blown tires in 61k miles in road of New York City. I can’t imagine a 40 profile surviving nyc potholes long.

I will do the black dips on the cover once I get it.

 

[MrTemple]

Love this guide as I am too deciding between 19” vs 20”. One thing I will note tho, nobody is selling the 20” induction is not a good indicator on how bad or regrets on the 19”. Many folks may already decide to upgrade third party so naturally not spending $1000 at order make sense. For those who spent $1000, they are unlikely to sell cause they literally chose to pay for the upgrade.

What I wrote was that nobody selling Inductions will make it harder for regretful Gemini buyers to change their mind after the purchase. (And easier for regretful Induction buyers to change their mind.) Simple availability question of changing your decision after the fact.

I am typing this at a tire shop as my ICE truck hit a pothole yesterday. It has 235x45x20. This is my second blown tires in 61k miles in road of New York City. I can’t imagine a 40 profile surviving nyc potholes long.

It doesn’t seem like you realize that the 40 or 45 part of the tire size is meaningless without the other parts. 40 isn’t a profile. It’s a ratio of tire width. You need both parts to calculate the profile.

235/45R20 and 255/40R20 have almost identical sidewall.

 

[origingalatic]

It doesn’t seem like you realize that the 40 or 45 part of the tire size is meaningless without the other parts. 40 isn’t a profile. It’s a ratio of tire width. You need both parts to calculate the profile.

235/45R20 and 255/40R20 have almost identical sidewall.

Ah yes, you are right. Thanks for the reminder and with that I will definitely go for a thicker sidewall. When I got my truck, I was living in rural area in NJ. It was fine until I moved to NYC. Thanks for writing and updating! Hope you will share your thoughts on your experiences with the 20”

 

[Quinnchey]

Looks like TSportline came out with some Ubertubine replicas and they are available in 19" 20" and 21" sizes

Tesla Model Y 19" TSV Flow Forged Tesla Wheel (Set of 4) - T Sportline - Tesla Model S, 3, X & Y Accessories

Throws a monkey wrench into some of the above discussion. I'd be interested in how the 19" versions of these look. Oh, and available in matte black (like the turbines) or the grey like uberturbines.View attachment 594604
View attachment 594607 View attachment 594604

Has anyone in Canada ordered these? Curious about what they cost with conversion and duties at the border. Debating wether it is just cheaper to order the induction wheels as opposed to ordering these.

Also, can you the regular black steel rims most people use for winter tires on the MY. I feel like the 20” induction wheels won’t do a great job in the winter here in Toronto. Would love to hear what other MY owners in Toronto are doing for winter and if they got the induction wheels and how they like them.

 

[Schlesinger183]

Thanks so much for this amazingly informative, thorough and well-written comparison at the top of this thread Just picked up my new MY Long Range today, black with those awesome 20" induction wheels - and the ride is really smooth, like my two Model S's that preceded it. This thread was pivotal in my decision to stick with the 20" inductions, clearly right choice for me. TSportline is happy though, got beautiful Ferrari tan leather seat upgrades from them, installing now.

 

[Noflash]

Thanks so much for this amazingly informative, thorough and well-written comparison at the top of this thread Just picked up my new MY Long Range today, black with those awesome 20" induction wheels - and the ride is really smooth, like my two Model S's that preceded it. This thread was pivotal in my decision to stick with the 20" inductions, clearly right choice for me. TSportline is happy though, got beautiful Ferrari tan leather seat upgrades from them, installing now.

pics please!

 

[ACAG]

Something to consider:

 

[MrTemple]

Something to consider:

His math is good, but he's comparing identical diameter tires with different wheel sizes. You CANNOT translate that across different wheel/tire combo sizes.

Almost all the energy differences between the three tires is due to SIDEWALL size and not WHEEL size.

As mentioned in the OP, the 18" wheels on the 3, have about identical sidewall as the 20" wheels on the Y.

The 19" and especially 20" wheels on the 3 are super low profile. The 20" wheels on the Y are not. The 19" wheels are even better (hence the small bit of range difference), but nowhere near the sort of losses seen on the 20" 3 wheels.

 

[DFibRL8R]

I ended up going with 8.5x20 Martian wheel and Michelin CrossClimate SUV 245-45-20. I’m happy with the result. Pics posted in the Martian wheel thread.
Martian wheels

 

[alby168]

Thanks! We are super-happy with how this set turned out. The MY feels quicker on these vs. the 21" Ubers but I forgot to get actual weights at the time of installation.

These are the Replika R241 20" x 8.5" (5x114.3mm, +35, 64.1mm) -- wanted thinner wheel to get more tire-presence since the main driver is somehow attracted to curbs (F to the original passenger-side Uberturbines; gotta see if that can be repaired.)

Tires are Vredstein Quatrac Pro 255/40R20 All-Weather tires, rated 3-Peak-Mountain-Snowflake so in my area they count as 'traction-devices' for visiting the mountain this coming season.

I also have a PUP and want a winter wheel set up for mountain winter drives, any reason why you went with the all weather tires instead of straight winter wintrac pros? Also do you mind letting me know where you got the rims from? AftermarketEV vs canada wheels?

 

[DFibRL8R]

I also have a PUP and want a winter wheel set up for mountain winter drives, any reason why you went with the all weather tires instead of straight winter wintrac pros? Also do you mind letting me know where you got the rims from? AftermarketEV vs canada wheels?

The CrossClimate are also "All Weather". I have previously used performance winter tires (Michelin X-Ice) on my RWD S and RWD 3 since I found the "all Seasons" winter performance bad even in the mid atlantic area. The Model Y is my first all wheel drive Tesla and I am hoping I can get by with the improved winter specs of the All Weather CrossClimates. I will keep a set of chains just in case since I do head up into the mountains.

 

[origingalatic]

Almost all the energy differences between the three tires is due to SIDEWALL size and not WHEEL size.

Energy loss on the tires should be on the diameters/circumference, not sidewall size.

Found this calculator: Tire size calculator

For example:

Specification Sidewall Radius Diameter Circumference Revs/Mile Difference
255/45-19 4.5in 14.0in 28.0in 88.1in 719 0.0%
255/45-20 4.5in 14.5in 29.0in 91.2in 695 3.6%

This would be model Y's 20 vs 19. This would mean the supposed energy savings from the 19 on MY comes from the "aero" wheel covers.

Specification Sidewall Radius Diameter Circumference Revs/Mile Difference
255/45-19 4.5in 14.0in 28.0in 88.1in 719 0.0%
255/40-20 4.0in 14.0in 28.0in 88.1in 719 -0.0%

 

[MrTemple]

The CrossClimate are also "All Weather". I have previously used performance winter tires (Michelin X-Ice) on my RWD S and RWD 3 since I found the "all Seasons" winter performance bad even in the mid atlantic area. The Model Y is my first all wheel drive Tesla and I am hoping I can get by with the improved winter specs of the All Weather CrossClimates. I will keep a set of chains just in case since I do head up into the mountains.

FYI the Michelin Xi3 tires are not performance winter tires. They are Studless (aka Nordic), which means when driving atop snow or ice they are a teeeeeeny bit better than performance winter tires (like Michelin’s PA4). But that tiny advantage (when you are already driving slow) comes at a pretty huge trade off.

Studless/Nordic tires are some of the worst at stopping/traction when they are actually touching dry/wet pavement. 10% sleds traction on dry pavemee went and 20% worse on wet!

You’re driving a lot faster and less cautious on clear pavement, so it’s doubly unsafe.

There’s really no good use case for the Studless/Nordic tires IMO. (Michelin Xi3, Hakka R3, etc.)

Any time you’re willing to sacrifice 10-20% traction on pavement because you’re driving on so much snow, you’ll be 100x better off getting actual Studded tires instead of Studless.

So go Studded or Performance Winter. The squishy unsafe studless are the worst of both worlds.

 

[DFibRL8R]

FYI the Michelin Xi3 tires are not performance winter tires. They are Studless (aka Nordic), which means when driving atop snow or ice they are a teeeeeeny bit better than performance winter tires (like Michelin’s PA4). But that tiny advantage (when you are already driving slow) comes at a pretty huge trade off.

Studless/Nordic tires are some of the worst at stopping/traction when they are actually touching dry/wet pavement. 10% sleds traction on dry pavemee went and 20% worse on wet!

You’re driving a lot faster and less cautious on clear pavement, so it’s doubly unsafe.

There’s really no good use case for the Studless/Nordic tires IMO. (Michelin Xi3, Hakka R3, etc.)

Any time you’re willing to sacrifice 10-20% traction on pavement because you’re driving on so much snow, you’ll be 100x better off getting actual Studded tires instead of Studless.

So go Studded or Performance Winter. The squishy unsafe studless are the worst of both worlds.

Thanks for the clarification and good info about studless -v- performance. You're right, X-Ice (Xi3) is not a performance winter tire. At the time I first purchased for my RWD Model S, the tire was very highly rated including wet/dry braking. Interestingly, when I look at current reviews on the tire, it is not as highly rated as I recall it being and I researched options pretty extensively when I first purchased. Perhaps this is from the evolution/development of other technologies in the past several years that are now available? Nevertheless, I have been satisfied by 5 winters of driving on them compared to previously suffering through winters with the OEM all seasons. Looking forward to trying out my new CrossClimate SUVs this winter.

 

[MrTemple]

Thanks for the clarification and good info about studless -v- performance. You're right, X-Ice (Xi3) is not a performance winter tire. At the time I first purchased for my RWD Model S, the tire was very highly rated including wet/dry braking. Interestingly, when I look at current reviews on the tire, it is not as highly rated as I recall it being and I researched options pretty extensively when I first purchased. Perhaps this is from the evolution/development of other technologies in the past several years that are now available? Nevertheless, I have been satisfied by 5 winters of driving on them compared to previously suffering through winters with the OEM all seasons. Looking forward to trying out my new CrossClimate SUVs this winter.

The review you saw likely only compared them to other Studless (aka Nordic) tires. Which is why so few people know about how much worse the class is in the conditions they actually drive.

Check out this awesome video, which tests Summer, All Season, CrossClimates, Winter, and Studless (called Nordic in Europe).

Objectively measures each of their performance on Dry pavement, Wet pavement, and Snow. And does it across a range of temperatures.

If you don’t have time, just look for the charts in the video.

Crazy how much less safe the Studless/Nordic are in all categories at all temperatures, except being a bit better on snow.

The test doesn’t compare Studded, but you can find others by the same guy that do compare, and they beat Studless/Nordic pretty much in all conditions (even pavement).