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Spare rims for winter tyres

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I recently acquired my Model 3 LR in the middle of September, and thoughts now turn to getting a spare set of rims with some winter tyres on them. I live in Aberdeenshire, so these things are definitely needed most winters.

The question of OEM vs aftermarket rims is one to bring up. Quite aside from differences in price, it doesn't appear as though OEM rims can be purchased from Tesla in the UK (and they are out of stock on their US website).

So:
What experience do people have of fitting aftermarket rims? Any issues to be mindful of?
The manual states these specs: 18 Inch Rims, 8.5inch width, 40mm offset, 175NM lug nut torque, 21mm socket size.
The manual also states a warning that I should only use Tesla Approved Wheels. So: If my aftermarket rims match the spec above, does that mean they are approved?
 
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Whilst not an exact match, lots of useful generic information in the threads below.

Oh, and don't forget to inform your insurance company.

 
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A lot of people on the Facebook group get these wheels from a guy on the group:
 
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We asked when ordering ours last October for the car to come on winter tyres and Tesla obliged. It was £1800 for the normal 18” wheels (with TPMS) with winter tyres and they kindly delivered the summer wheels and tyres to the house. Very impressive how the car handled the snow we had last year.
 
All your questions are answered in the threads @VanillaAir_UK kindly posted in #2. His advice about the insurers is sound. If you lease the car, then let them know too.

I'd recommend going for it. The YouTube videos that show how braking performance degrades with low temperatures on summer tyres finally convinced me.

I put the 18" Varro VD25s with Michelin Cross Climates on last year. I am very pleased that I chose to fit them. I hadn't realised just how poor summer tyres are in winter until I tried the alternative. The Cross Climates are an ideal choice for the temperatures where I live. It doesn't permanently dive below 7ºC here, so they are a better choice than pure winter tyres and still give me the option to drive in the Alps. My local ATS offered a tyre hotel service for a very reasonable price.

It was very nice to get the 20" PS4s back on for the summer though.
 
His advice about the insurers is sound.
Yes I spoke to DirectLine about winter wheels, with a specific question about aftermarket rims for winter tyres.

The representative did his entry into the computer. He had a specific option in his database along the lines of "winter wheels to replace summer set". That may not be the exact wording, but there was no question about OEM vs Aftermarket. So long as I tell Directline when I change, then there's no charge.
 
All your questions are answered in the threads @VanillaAir_UK kindly posted in #2. His advice about the insurers is sound. If you lease the car, then let them know too.

I'd recommend going for it. The YouTube videos that show how braking performance degrades with low temperatures on summer tyres finally convinced me.

I put the 18" Varro VD25s with Michelin Cross Climates on last year. I am very pleased that I chose to fit them. I hadn't realised just how poor summer tyres are in winter until I tried the alternative. The Cross Climates are an ideal choice for the temperatures where I live. It doesn't permanently dive below 7ºC here, so they are a better choice than pure winter tyres and still give me the option to drive in the Alps. My local ATS offered a tyre hotel service for a very reasonable price.

It was very nice to get the 20" PS4s back on for the summer though.

I did exactly this and didn't bother switching back to the original 20s. They are sat neatly in my garage and get rotated monthly, possibly never to be used again. I'm just too worried about pranging one of the low-profile wheels in a pot-hole and getting stuck. The 18 inch Cross Climates have been great all year round and actually give a more comfortable ride. I think I get better range too, although I haven't actually quantified it. The handling on the 18s has also been fine although I don't go hooning around as much these days :)
 
Interesting that you think the ride is more comfortable, I can't say I particularly noticed that. I wouldn't say I hoon around, but I do find the PS4s help me enjoy the performance characteristics of the car more.

Curbs are the nemesis for my 20" rims. Would be so much better if the sidewalls of the PS4s protruded further than they do. Go too close to anything higher than a packet of Rolos and you ding them.
 
I did exactly this and didn't bother switching back to the original 20s. They are sat neatly in my garage and get rotated monthly, possibly never to be used again. I'm just too worried about pranging one of the low-profile wheels in a pot-hole and getting stuck. The 18 inch Cross Climates have been great all year round and actually give a more comfortable ride. I think I get better range too, although I haven't actually quantified it. The handling on the 18s has also been fine although I don't go hooning around as much these days :)
This is good to know, I am considering switching to crossclimates for year round use. Do your 20’s have the Michelins or Pirellis?
 
Interesting that you think the ride is more comfortable, I can't say I particularly noticed that. I wouldn't say I hoon around, but I do find the PS4s help me enjoy the performance characteristics of the car more.

Curbs are the nemesis for my 20" rims. Would be so much better if the sidewalls of the PS4s protruded further than they do. Go too close to anything higher than a packet of Rolos and you ding them.
Subjective but definitely felt a bit more forgiving than the 20s. My missus was the key here - she didn't like the "hard" ride on the 20s but seems fine with the 18s.
 
This is good to know, I am considering switching to crossclimates for year round use. Do your 20’s have the Michelins or Pirellis?
My car was an August 2019 with the Michelins. I've only done around 13k miles total of which 11k approx has been on the Cross Climates. Wear seems pretty minimal. The only thing I was worried about was driving down in France in very hot weather but due to the restrictions, we never got to test that. Info on the web suggests that this wouldn't have been an issue but I'd questioned a potentially softer compound. All good so far.
 
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I recently acquired my Model 3 LR in the middle of September, and thoughts now turn to getting a spare set of rims with some winter tyres on them. I live in Aberdeenshire, so these things are definitely needed most winters.

The question of OEM vs aftermarket rims is one to bring up. Quite aside from differences in price, it doesn't appear as though OEM rims can be purchased from Tesla in the UK (and they are out of stock on their US website).

So:
What experience do people have of fitting aftermarket rims? Any issues to be mindful of?
The manual states these specs: 18 Inch Rims, 8.5inch width, 40mm offset, 175NM lug nut torque, 21mm socket size.
The manual also states a warning that I should only use Tesla Approved Wheels. So: If my aftermarket rims match the spec above, does that mean they are approved?

I'm running Kleber KrisAlps on Borbet BLX 18 inch rims with OEM specs after the first on November. I had to change the lug nuts. Very pleased with wet performance. Not experienced any snow yet. They are much quieter than the Pilot Sport standard tyres.
 
Iast year I picked up a set of genuine 18s on Ebay, from a guy in Kent. Got them sent up by Shipley. Had them fixed and sprayed by a firm in Dyce and fitted Goodyear winter tyres to them. All for about £1100. Easily Worth it in Aberdeenshire .
 
I just ordered a set of cross climate which I aim to keep on the car for two years or so and then switch back for a summer into the nearly new pilots. 600 instead of 1800 for a spare set of wheels and tyres from Tesla.
 
One advantage of a second set of wheels is that you get an emergency spare - not that you would carry it around with you, but ok to keep in garage and take to car if needed - we nearly needed to do this when we had a tyre issue over the xmas break the day before a big road trip. There would have been no one around to supply a new tyre but thankfully in the end it was just cosmetic - our winter tyres have a big lip so the tyre takes the hit that otherwise the rim would. We just damaged that lip, an easy repair by garage in 5 minutes and some cash for their bacon buttie fund.
 
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One advantage of a second set of wheels is that you get an emergency spare - not that you would carry it around with you, but ok to keep in garage and take to car if needed - we nearly needed to do this when we had a tyre issue over the xmas break the day before a big road trip. There would have been no one around to supply a new tyre but thankfully in the end it was just cosmetic - our winter tyres have a big lip so the tyre takes the hit that otherwise the rim would. We just damaged that lip, an easy repair by garage in 5 minutes and some cash for their bacon buttie fund.
How did they repair the lip?