New tires before lease end

[sk00]

My MY lease ends in 8 months and I have 25k miles on it so far. At 20k miles I visited the service center for an unrelated matter and they did a tire inspection that showed 6/32 tread and specifically noted no need for new tires at the time.

I've read somewhere that Tesla may charge me for new tires when I return the car depending on tread condition. My guess is that the current tires will have had enough tread wear to require replacing by the time the lease expires. Assuming that's true, I want to consider replacing the tires now, but I don't want to spend a ton of money since I'll be returning the car in a few months anyway.

What's the cheapest option for MY 19inch tires? Since this is a lease, would I need to get the same stock tires? What would you do in my situation? Thanks.

 

[psgabin]

google or ebay “used tire”

 

[exxxviii]

What does your lease say about tires? I would start there. Then, there are several decent options under $200 USD, including a Kumho and Yokohama.

 

[MY1stEV]

Assuming the tires that came with your car were Continentals, the tread depth when new was 9/32" (which is on the skimpy side to begin with). You were at 6/32" at 20k mi. I don't know what Tesla's lease specifies, but >4/32" is not uncommon on leases. Keep them properly inflated to prolong life and buy a cheap tread depth gage to keep an eye on them as you approach your lease end. If you are at or below Tesla's minimum spec as you near the end of your lease, start hunting for cheapest tires you can find that meet the cars required specs.

 

[240vPlug]

Tire rack or discount tire direct. Put your year, make, model in. Sort by price and get the cheapest available all season tire that meets the specs for your car. If you want to get more use out of the car you can request to extend the lease by 6 months.

 

[ATPMSD]

Your lease tells the tail. Mines says Excess Wear is paid for "any tire with less than 1/8 inch of tread or not part of a matching set of four." Note also that if the tear wear is uneven, they may get you if the depth is less than the required amount anywhere on the tire.

Be sure to carefully read the excess wear section and go over the car thoroughly looking for scratches, dings, wear, etc. inside and out. Sometimes it is best to take the car to a body shop and get an estimate for fixes so you have ammunition if Tesla wants to charge you for repairs.

 

[Dennisis]

Just a suggestion going forward - when leasing always plan to replace the tires before lease end. That said, my strategy was to remove the OEM tires and put on the tires I really wanted shortly after getting the car then putting the OEM tires back on before returning the car. I figured I wanted to drive with the best tires during my lease. Again, just a suggestion.

 

[exxxviii]

my strategy was to remove the OEM tires and put on the tires I really wanted shortly after getting the car then putting the OEM tires back on before returning the car.

Ha, this is brilliant. I often cannot wait for the OE set of tires to wear out so I can buy my favorites.

I really want to ditch the Continentals on my Y, but I cannot bring myself to trash nearly new tires that I own.

 

[Dennisis]

Ha, this is brilliant. I often cannot wait for the OE set of tires to wear out so I can buy my favorites.

I really want to ditch the Continentals on my Y, but I cannot bring myself to trash nearly new tires that I own.

Yeah I hated putting new tires on just to return the car - better I get to use ones I really liked during the lease. But I don’t lease anymore so done with that. The way the MY goes through tires though I’ll probably get to try another set before long .

 

[fiehlsport]

A friend of mine put a set of Chinese tires on his Model 3 before lease turn-in. They met the specs of the OEM tires and he had no problems. Even the cheapest Amazon or Wal-Mart tires will suffice if you want to go that route. Just make sure the load and speed ratings are at or greater than what Tesla specs. Or like another member said, used tires from eBay are very popular for BMW lease turn-ins, no reason you can't go that route on the Model Y as well.

 

[Dennisis]

A friend of mine put a set of Chinese tires on his Model 3 before lease turn-in. They met the specs of the OEM tires and he had no problems. Even the cheapest Amazon or Wal-Mart tires will suffice if you want to go that route. Just make sure the load and speed ratings are at or greater than what Tesla specs. Or like another member said, used tires from eBay are very popular for BMW lease turn-ins, no reason you can't go that route on the Model Y as well.

Just be careful and check the dates on those used tires. I've seen people have done that too but some have been burned by old tires.

 

[240vPlug]

Just be careful and check the dates on those used tires. I've seen people have done that too but some have been burned by old tires.

Yes it's a gamble. Tires have to be matching. The DOT numbers should all be relatively close and the tires all have to be the same. Best to just get the cheapest set on tire rack or discount tire direct. They will match up the OE specs.

I like the idea of buying your own and then putting the OE tires back on but then again your still paying for tires and mounting/balancing. I would use the OE tires and return it with the cheapest set I could find there. Lower operating costs

 

[fiehlsport]

I can say with 99% certainty that Tesla isn't looking at DOT codes or dates on trade-in tires. Just tread.

They didn't even look at my trade-in to confirm it existed before letting me drive off in my Model 3 a few years ago.

 

[240vPlug]

I can say with 99% certainty that Tesla isn't looking at DOT codes or dates on trade-in tires. Just tread.

They didn't even look at my trade-in to confirm it existed before letting me drive off in my Model 3 a few years ago.

Adhere to the terms in the lease. If it's written there it's enforceable. Going against the terms and betting on it not being enforced is a gamble

 

[BigNerd]

I was concerned about this too as I just termed my lease early.

But there was no lease inspection as I guess they just relied on the photos I took (I didn't realize how hard it was to find a penny in my house).

I did have a curb rash that I had fixed but based on the early term quote, I had about $2k of room but didn't want to deal with the hassle (cost me $100 to fix it and it looked brand new).

I just showed up at the Tesla service center, they took my card keys, I e-signed the mileage paperwork and it was done. Sort of like when I picked it up.

The Early Term quotes did vary in the last year or so... from $0 to $4k... it was $505 last month and when my last quote was $0... I decided to turn it in.