RWD M3 Winter Experiences, Tire Recommendations?

[Pollux]

My RWD '13 S P85+ led me to purchase 19" Nokiaan Hakkapolitta R2s mounted on Rial wheels for winter use. (Staggered Tesla OEM 21s + OEM wheels for the summer.) Driving in Massachusetts. Wow... awesome!

Continued that tradition with '16 P100D, even though AWD. Still happy.

Coming up: RWD M3 in February, with 18" aeros/caps and Tesla OEM all-seasons. I'm thinking I don't want to buy another set of wheels. But I am thinking that winter tires would be a great idea once again. I live in the Washington, DC area now, though, so it's not clear to me that I would need winter tires here... EXCEPT I'm once again nervous about winter driving in an RWD car.

So:

(1) Anyone have any experience yet with RWD M3 in winter temperatures, snow, ice, etc.?

(2) Any recommendations for good 18" winter tires for RWD M3?

Thanks,
Alan

 

[Snow Drift]

I’d normally say Blizzaks for RWD, but DC is the south so how much snow do you really get? I’d think a performance snow or just a M&S all-season might be enough.

 

[Pollux]

Hi, @Snow Drift,

Thanks for the thoughts! I'm more thinking about the performance of the rubber in low temperatures than frequency or quantity of snow. Even in the DC area, we seem to see a lot of below 45 temps from December through March.

My summer tires (on my P100D) felt like hockey pucks; much better on the winter tires (the Hakkas), even though not yet challenged by snow/ice. Just low temps.

Thanks,
Alan

 

[Snow Drift]

Hi, @Snow Drift,

Thanks for the thoughts! I'm more thinking about the performance of the rubber in low temperatures than frequency or quantity of snow. Even in the DC area, we seem to see a lot of below 45 temps from December through March.

My summer tires (on my P100D) felt like hockey pucks; much better on the winter tires (the Hakkas), even though not yet challenged by snow/ice. Just low temps.

Thanks,
Alan

Totally understand the sub 50degree issue. Go to TireRack.com and you can find tires and reviews for your size tire. I would suggest Performance Winter Tires: Michelin Alpin or Dunlop Winter Sport or Pirelli Winter SottoZero...or for the most extreme, Blizzak.

Hakkas will be completely unnecessary. Even in NY we don't need that level.

 

[03DSG]

My RWD '13 S P85+ led me to purchase 19" Nokiaan Hakkapolitta R2s mounted on Rial wheels for winter use. (Staggered Tesla OEM 21s + OEM wheels for the summer.) Driving in Massachusetts. Wow... awesome!

Continued that tradition with '16 P100D, even though AWD. Still happy.

Coming up: RWD M3 in February, with 18" aeros/caps and Tesla OEM all-seasons. I'm thinking I don't want to buy another set of wheels. But I am thinking that winter tires would be a great idea once again. I live in the Washington, DC area now, though, so it's not clear to me that I would need winter tires here... EXCEPT I'm once again nervous about winter driving in an RWD car.

So:

(1) Anyone have any experience yet with RWD M3 in winter temperatures, snow, ice, etc.?

(2) Any recommendations for good 18" winter tires for RWD M3?

Thanks,
Alan

No 3 experience (except driving You You’s 3 in snow) but I swear by Bridgestone WS 80’s. Ontario, Canada. On our AWD Escape and my kids Honda’s. Great winter tires. My second choice would be Michelin X-Ice Xi3. Both great all around winter tires with the Bridgestone better in snow and the Michelin on ice but only incrementaly so.

 

[Pollux]

Hi, @03DSG,

Thanks for the recommendations!

Best regards,
Alan

 

[My2cents]

2017 test results from the Norwegian Automobile Association (NAF). Unsure which brands are in your area but the main ones for sure (Michelin/Goodyear etc.)?

Test av piggfrie vinterdekk og piggdekk 2017


Non-studded

1. TESTVINNER Continental ContiVikingContact 6, 8,1 poeng
2. Sava Eskimo Ice, 7,6 poeng
3. Nokian Hakkapeliitta R2, 7,5 poeng
4. Goodyear Ultra Grip Ice 2, 7,5 poeng
5. Michelin X-Ice XI3, 7,4 poeng
6. Hankook Winter I*Cept IZ2, 7,4 poeng
7. Bridgestone Blizzak WS80, 7,2 poeng
8. Pirelli Ice Zero FR, 7,1 poeng
9. Landsail Winter Lander, 6,7 poeng
10. Linglong Green-Max Winter Ice I-15, 6,3 poeng
11. Nankang Ice Activa Ice-1, 6,2 poeng

Studded

1. TESTVINNER Continental ContiVikingContact 6, 8,1 poeng
2. Sava Eskimo Ice, 7,6 poeng
3. Nokian Hakkapeliitta R2, 7,5 poeng
4. Goodyear Ultra Grip Ice 2, 7,5 poeng
5. Michelin X-Ice XI3, 7,4 poeng
6. Hankook Winter I*Cept IZ2, 7,4 poeng
7. Bridgestone Blizzak WS80, 7,2 poeng
8. Pirelli Ice Zero FR, 7,1 poeng
9. Landsail Winter Lander, 6,7 poeng
10. Linglong Green-Max Winter Ice I-15, 6,3 poeng
11. Nankang Ice Activa Ice-1, 6,2 poeng

 

[Pollux]

Hi, @My2cents,

Thank you! Love the test results! (I'm a fan of the Hakka R2s, myself.)

One question, though: could there have been a cut-and-paste error? To my eyes, the Non-studded and Studded lists look identical, which surprises me. I wouldn't have thought that all 10 manufacturers and brands would line up identically for both studded and non-studded versions.

Thanks,
Alan

 

[Snow Drift]

Hi, @My2cents,

Thank you! Love the test results! (I'm a fan of the Hakka R2s, myself.)

One question, though: could there have been a cut-and-paste error? To my eyes, the Non-studded and Studded lists look identical, which surprises me. I wouldn't have thought that all 10 manufacturers and brands would line up identically for both studded and non-studded versions.

Thanks,
Alan

Hakka would be overkill for you. You also have to consider performance in the dry. Some snow tires are toooooo soft and you will suffer in cornering (like sagging on off-ramps). TireRack.com shows ratings in snow, dry, rain, etc etc from professionals and millions of user reviews.

Look here (click the + in each category to see the sub-score):
https://www.tirerack.com/tires/surveyresults/surveydisplay.jsp?type=W&VT=C

 

[Pollux]

Thank you, @Snow Drift!

 

[GSP]

Tesla is selling 18" winter tire and wheel sets now, $1700 IIRC. May want to check them out.

However, for D.C. I would try the 18" all-seasons that come with the car. Unlike summer performance tires, they should handle winter temperatures fine.

GSP

 

[DFibRL8R]

I will get my Model 3 next week (yay!) so no direct info yet. I can say the DC area does get enough winter weather (especially the particularly dangerous ice storm type) that winters were a must for my RWD ModelS 60. All seasons were very bad in snow/ice with a heavy RWD like the S. Traction control can only do so much to overcome traction loss and I had many close calls even when driving very cautiously/slowly. I now do what you have and swap to winters every year in late November. I never used winter tires before but now I'm a believer (even in the "South"). From what I have read, winters generally perform better than all seasons in colder temp even for dry braking/handling. I have been happy with Michelin X ice. The one downside (besides swapping and storing an extra set of wheels) is we do see frequent warm spells even in mid winter where temps can get into the 60s+. You can definitely feel the difference in warmer temps, the tires feel "floaty". I just drive more gently on warm winter days.

Since Model 3 is much lighter, I would imagine all seasons might be better than on the S. I don't plan on buying winter wheels this winter so will see how it goes if we get some slop.

 

[Pollux]

@GSP - I'm gonna go take a look, thanks!

@DFibRL8R - I have to admit, at this point, staring out the window at another sunny, warmish DC day, the temptation to only use the Tesla all-seasons is increasing. I think I'm first going to stare at their $1700 wheel/tire set (per GSP). One thing that really affects my thinking: even after a year and a half here in the DC area, I've yet to find a place that will store my offseason tires and do tire/wheel changes for me! In Massachusetts, I had a great local tire/wheel shop that stored my winter Prius tires & winter Tesla tire/wheels and did two swaps per year. No one in the DC area appears to believe that there is enough demand for this kind of service; maybe there isn't.

Alan

 

[Pollux]

Huh. So the winter tire/wheel package for Model 3, $1700 as reported by @GSP, contains Pirelli Winter Sottozero Serie II tires. Per tire rack.com's ratings (thanks, @Snow Drift), these tires are in the green for the reported characteristics (ranging from good to excellent) but overall score puts it 9th on the Performance Winter / Snow list. I don't know anything about the stats on this list, so can't tell whether these variations are statistically significant.

That said, $425 per corner, tire and Tesla Aero wheel together included, plus installation, doesn't strike me as a bad deal at all. Certainly not by normal auto manufacturer / Tesla markups! Tire rack.com claims that this tire size (235/45/18) doesn't exist; I haven't looked farther for a comparison price.

I may wind up taking delivery on the Model 3 -- just got a phone call, it's here at the SC, five days ahead of their promise, eight days ahead of our agreed-upon pickup date -- and then seeing how comfortable my father is with it before deciding on the winter tires/wheels.

Alan

 

[DFibRL8R]

@DFibRL8R - I have to admit, at this point, staring out the window at another sunny, warmish DC day, the temptation to only use the Tesla all-seasons is increasing. I think I'm first going to stare at their $1700 wheel/tire set (per GSP). One thing that really affects my thinking: even after a year and a half here in the DC area, I've yet to find a place that will store my offseason tires and do tire/wheel changes for me! In Massachusetts, I had a great local tire/wheel shop that stored my winter Prius tires & winter Tesla tire/wheels and did two swaps per year. No one in the DC area appears to believe that there is enough demand for this kind of service; maybe there isn't.

Alan

Yeah, I swap and store my own wheels which is a bit of a PITA but better than going sideways down the road! I'm not aware of any places that'll store them for you in the area.

 

[Pollux]

You're a good man, @DFibRL8R! I'm a lazy git. I stack 'em in the garage and tote them to a local service station for swaps.

 

[03DSG]

Tire rack.com claims that this tire size (235/45/18) doesn't exist

Alan

It may not exist for retail. Manufactured specifically for Tesla. Same for the 19” Conti ProContact RX 235/40/19 XL 96W ContiSilent. It is available for retail but only in Tesla’s 19” size. Again manufactured specifically for Tesla.

 

[Pollux]

It may not exist for retail. Manufactured specifically for Tesla. Same for the 19” Conti ProContact RX 235/40/19 XL 96W ContiSilent. It is available for retail but only in Tesla’s 19” size. Again manufactured specifically for Tesla.

Please forgive my ignorance: why would a tire manufacturer and auto manufacturer make this arrangement? Is there a benefit for the ultimate customer? Cost reduction for the auto manufacturer?

Thanks,
Alan

 

[BM3B]

I think the stock 18” MXM4 tires will be fine for DC as long as you drive defensively. I took my RWD M3 with stock 18” AS to mountain snow and ice and it handled great. I passed several 4x4 in the ditch on the way up. As we say in the Midwest, it’s the driver not the car. Model 3 is heavy and has excellent traction control. Buy some autosocks in case you get stuck, you’ll be fine.