need new tires - should I get ps4s for my aero wheels or upgrade to 20"?

[la3541]

Hello, this question has probably been asked before, if so, sorry...

I need new tires on my m3p. I have the 18" aero wheels. I live in LA and want to get summer tires. Do you all think it is better to get PS4 tires for my aero wheels, or is it worth the extra money to get the 20" wheel and tire upgrade from Tesla?

I want the ride to be as sporty as possible and am willing to lose some range. Do the 20" wheels and tires make a big difference?

Thanks!

 

[AlanSubie4Life]

Hello, this question has probably been asked before, if so, sorry...

I need new tires on my m3p. I have the 18" aero wheels. I live in LA and want to get summer tires. Do you all think it is better to get PS4 tires for my aero wheels, or is it worth the extra money to get the 20" wheel and tire upgrade from Tesla?

I want the ride to be as sporty as possible and am willing to lose some range. Do the 20" wheels and tires make a big difference?

Thanks!

The 18” PS4S tires alone should be enough to make you very happy. They’re great. Just don’t drive in the snow (or freezing conditions - ever) and expect about a 10% range hit. This is approximate. With the Aeros still you should maybe be able to get 270-290 miles without too much problem (depending on speed of course). Assuming no rain or heating of the cabin of course. 10% hit is a good rough guide which will apply regardless of your speed. But it is not exact. Range hit is probably a greater % for primarily city driving where aero is not as large a factor.

In other words, it is likely to be 30Wh/mi worse than your MXM4s, ballpark.

There are lots of factors here - the tread width on the 18” PS4S is significantly narrower than the 20” PS4S (Tesla version), so that may help a bit with efficiency. There are also unknown compound differences which may cause my estimated number to be incorrect vs. my P3D+ experience, but not by a huge amount. And of course the Aeros provide some relief over the 20” Tesla package, but only significantly so (~10Wh/mi) at highway speeds.

In general at freeway speeds the tires make the least % difference (Wh/mi impact stays the same though) because aero becomes a much larger proportion of the loss. But it will be significant regardless for reasonable freeway speeds.


Note that the 20” Tesla package is not for the P3D+ (Incorrect offset presumably), but that is not what you have so I think you should be ok if you go that route. (I don’t recommend it.)

 

[dr_rav]

LA - don't even bother with 20s, they will get bent eventually or hurt your soul over potholes, much more comfortable with 18's or 19's if you really want additional handling. I think 19's may be the perfect medium

 

[Feathermerchan]

20" are not an upgrade.
Heavier => slower
More tendency for damage
Ride much worse.
Lose range.

I bought forged 18" and sold my 20's. I am very happy.

 

[beastmode13]

I sold my P3D+ 20" and "downgraded" to a set of forged 19x9" with 255/40/19 PS4S. Could not be happier. Off the shelf PS4S is stickier than PS4S that came on P3D+.

 

[Feathermerchan]

PS4S tires are great no doubt. My favorite street performance tires. But summer only. And many have found them not for track or autocross except for mild use.

 

[ForeverFree]

If you do Mammoth, or even local mountains, in winter, the summer tires will be a problem.

Great for the canyons, though!

 

[wenkan]

Max performance: get 19x9.5 forged wheels and 265/35/R19 tires
Max look/efficiency: get 20x8.5 forged wheels and 235 tires

 

[Feathermerchan]

Actually 18" wheels are lighter and more efficient than 19 or 20". They also give you more sidewall for safety and ride quality.
In addition you will find a larger selection of 18" tires. Any race cars with thin sidewalls? I didn't think so.

 

[beastmode13]

Actually 18" wheels are lighter and more efficient than 19 or 20". They also give you more sidewall for safety and ride quality.
In addition you will find a larger selection of 18" tires. Any race cars with thin sidewalls? I didn't think so.

Depends on the racing series. NASCAR and F1 series by rule had to run the ridiculous small wheels, but all the teams would love to run much larger wheels which will improve brake cooling and handling dramatically. IMSA is one series where tire/wheel size is more balanced.

For weight, you would need to look at the complete wheel + tire combo. For the same cross-section, say 235, 18" tire will be heavier than 19" tire, while the 18" wheel will be lighter than 19". Do your research, the 19" combo might be lighter than 18" combo.

For our car, 19" is probably the best balance between performance, looks, and street practicality. IMHO

 

[Feathermerchan]

Like F1, right? And Indy.

 

[beastmode13]

The non-Fat tire, little wheel racing series >>> IMSA

 

[WilliamG]

I sold my P3D+ 20" and "downgraded" to a set of forged 19x9" with 255/40/19 PS4S. Could not be happier. Off the shelf PS4S is stickier than PS4S that came on P3D+.

Huh?

 

[beastmode13]

Huh?

235/35/20 PS4S on stock Tesla has different compound that is more optimized for efficiency than generic PS4S. And it Is wider than generic 235. But generic PS4S without for Tesla designation is stickier. It picks up small rocks on the road more so than Tesla version.

 

[WilliamG]

235/35/20 PS4S on stock Tesla has different compound that is more optimized for efficiency than generic PS4S. And it Is wider than generic 235. But generic PS4S without for Tesla designation is stickier. It picks up small rocks on the road more so than Tesla version.

Source for this info?

 

[AlanSubie4Life]

Source for this info?

The widths are all available on Tire rack website. For the compounds, I think it is more “lore” & personal experience that people here have with the tires, etc. I’m not aware that it is publicly published anywhere. I am not surprised at all that Tesla would choose a wider, slightly less sticky version for P3D+...might be more optimal in the noise/grip/efficiency tradeoff space. And cost was apparently not a consideration.

 

[p-f-g]

In Europe, the OEM for 18" Aero is Michelin PS4 235/45 ZR18 98Y T0 Acoustic.

 

[beastmode13]

The widths are all available on Tire rack website. For the compounds, I think it is more “lore” & personal experience that people here have with the tires, etc. I’m not aware that it is publicly published anywhere. I am not surprised at all that Tesla would choose a wider, slightly less sticky version for P3D+...might be more optimal in the noise/grip/efficiency tradeoff space. And cost was apparently not a consideration.

@AlanSubie4Life thanks for chiming in. Yep width is published. Stickiness is bass on my own driving experience of both sets. Tire manufacturers make custom tire per car manufacture’s requirement all the time. Porsche 911 specific tires has more structure casing to support the rear weight bias compare to non-Porsche spec of the same tire.

 

[dmd2005]

For the price that Tesla charges for their 20” Performance setup you can get a set of forged wheels from Titan or VS Forged setups for the same price and you’ll have lighter and stronger wheels. Contact Josh from Get Your Wheels as he’s a vendor on TMC if you want a set of VS Forged.

 

[SDKoala]

In other words, it is likely to be 30Wh/mi worse than your MXM4s, ballpark.

This is accurate. I put PS4Ss on my car about 2000 miles ago replacing the stock MXM4s on my 18" wheels with Aeros and it's been less efficient by 25 Wh/mi. I guess I'm just not that in tune with my car and don't drive that aggressively because I don't really notice any difference compared to the MXM4s. I'd expect the wear is going to be just as fast, if not faster compared to the MXM4s, so all things being equal, I'd rather have the range back.