driver_EV
Member
+size on all four now
Ok, with near 500 miles on the new tires, front and rear, this is what I found.
The (+size) A/S3 Mich on the rear work as well or better than the "A/S plus" did.
It is difficult to say exactly how different they are, without being able to switch back and forth, but the A/S3 also provide a smoother ride over bumps, are more quiet, and also allow(and need) air pressure adjustments to tune the handling of the car. The original Yoko tires were so stiff/rigid that slight tire pressure changes seem to not affect handling much at all.
The A/S3 tires may be a little better handling on the back of the Roadster than the A/S plus tires. I think they feel more solid.
The big difference with the car now is the addition of +size Ultra High Performance All Season tires to the front of the Roadster to go with the backs.
First the issues of concern:
1) clearance issue with front tires of 1/4 inch radius increase?
Driving around a bit demonstrated an unusual noise when turning the steering wheel fully to the right. Back in the driveway for visual inspection shows the liner in the wheel well was lifting away from its normal shape, so that the edge was able to rub the tire tread.
I just trimmed the edge section back to where it was more flush near the fasteners that keep it there.
The rubbing noise is gone, and there seems to be good clearance with the slightly larger front tires.
2) Tesla drive control error messages showing tire wear out of limits due to tires out of spec size?
This was a minor issue with the original Yoko tires on front and the larger size only on the rear of the car. I think the fault was "#1153 Wear Factor" indicating the Tesla drive system noticed the relative speed difference of the front vs. rear wheels was more than it wanted to see. This error message is gone now that the +size tires are on the front as well.
3) tire pressure "too high" warnings?
Due to running with higher tire pressures than TPMS expects with the new tires, especially when driving in summer temperatures. This issue remains, and is the only technical glitch remaining with the car running on these tires. The car benefits from dialing the pressure to mid-upper 40's, and the TPMS needs a recalibration, if that is possible to allow the normal warmed up temperature/pressure to be increase above the maximum of 51psi that is nominal for the original lower pressure rated tires.
This is more of an issue than before, because the tire overpressure warning message "noise" is more prevalent with the new front tires, because they need to run a bit higher than the rear to give the desired/exciting response and cornering forces without bringing back under-steer.
_____________________________________________
Now that these tires are getting some miles on them, it is more clear how they are working.
From memory now, the Roadster with original tires gave steering that was more tight, but was more of a harsh response over rough road surfaces, even small bumps can be startling. It was more stressful to drive over time, as the ride quality is more of a shake monster unless you have really good roads. Unless you do something about it otherwise, there was the under-steer, such that if you accelerate in a turn, you had better crank that steering wheel farther, or you will swing into the other lane, or off the side of the road. It was an unnecessary challenge in that way. And of course the original rear tires wear out way-fast, and do cost more to buy.
Driving on the all 4 +size tires does change the feel of the Roadster, and it allows for an analog adjustment of the car's handling. Change the rear tire pressure a little, you can get a big difference in under/over steer characteristics. Adjust the front tire pressure a little, and you get more of a slight change in handling and response while accelerating in/out of corners.
Add 2psi to rear tire pressure to give more under-steer, go for lower rear psi to get less under-steer and moves toward over-steer.
On front tires it is the reverse: more air in front tires gives less under-steer, and lower air pressure gives more under-steer.
Currently I am running 45-46psi in rear, and 47-48psi in front tires. I would like to spend some time at higher pressures, but will wait until the TPMS can hopefully be calibrated to operate correctly with the new tires that are rated for 51psi, instead of the stock Yoko 44psi spec. As it is, the car starts complaining about 51psi being "too-high" when they get warmed up, even though it is just fine for these tires, since their cold spec is 51!
Driving the car and accelerating out of a turn while making little or no steering correction is fun, and overall the car has a more solid civilized feel. It is remarkable, how different it drives from the roadster loaner I drove in ATL last summer on making a service center visit for the Model S. My ride quality is more smooth and comfortable, road bumps are not such a shock. It feels like a quality improvement.
These tires are all season, and have better wet road characteristics, I hit some wet pavement in turns with the old Yokos that lost traction unexpectedly, so these are an improvement in that way.
The slight increase in road clearance due to a "lift" of 1/4inch that has helped prevent some under-nose scrape, and rubs over steep driveways. I had two spots locally, that are no trouble to clear now.
These tires make me want to drive the Roadster even more.
Ok, with near 500 miles on the new tires, front and rear, this is what I found.
The (+size) A/S3 Mich on the rear work as well or better than the "A/S plus" did.
It is difficult to say exactly how different they are, without being able to switch back and forth, but the A/S3 also provide a smoother ride over bumps, are more quiet, and also allow(and need) air pressure adjustments to tune the handling of the car. The original Yoko tires were so stiff/rigid that slight tire pressure changes seem to not affect handling much at all.
The A/S3 tires may be a little better handling on the back of the Roadster than the A/S plus tires. I think they feel more solid.
The big difference with the car now is the addition of +size Ultra High Performance All Season tires to the front of the Roadster to go with the backs.
First the issues of concern:
1) clearance issue with front tires of 1/4 inch radius increase?
Driving around a bit demonstrated an unusual noise when turning the steering wheel fully to the right. Back in the driveway for visual inspection shows the liner in the wheel well was lifting away from its normal shape, so that the edge was able to rub the tire tread.
I just trimmed the edge section back to where it was more flush near the fasteners that keep it there.
The rubbing noise is gone, and there seems to be good clearance with the slightly larger front tires.
2) Tesla drive control error messages showing tire wear out of limits due to tires out of spec size?
This was a minor issue with the original Yoko tires on front and the larger size only on the rear of the car. I think the fault was "#1153 Wear Factor" indicating the Tesla drive system noticed the relative speed difference of the front vs. rear wheels was more than it wanted to see. This error message is gone now that the +size tires are on the front as well.
3) tire pressure "too high" warnings?
Due to running with higher tire pressures than TPMS expects with the new tires, especially when driving in summer temperatures. This issue remains, and is the only technical glitch remaining with the car running on these tires. The car benefits from dialing the pressure to mid-upper 40's, and the TPMS needs a recalibration, if that is possible to allow the normal warmed up temperature/pressure to be increase above the maximum of 51psi that is nominal for the original lower pressure rated tires.
This is more of an issue than before, because the tire overpressure warning message "noise" is more prevalent with the new front tires, because they need to run a bit higher than the rear to give the desired/exciting response and cornering forces without bringing back under-steer.
_____________________________________________
Now that these tires are getting some miles on them, it is more clear how they are working.
From memory now, the Roadster with original tires gave steering that was more tight, but was more of a harsh response over rough road surfaces, even small bumps can be startling. It was more stressful to drive over time, as the ride quality is more of a shake monster unless you have really good roads. Unless you do something about it otherwise, there was the under-steer, such that if you accelerate in a turn, you had better crank that steering wheel farther, or you will swing into the other lane, or off the side of the road. It was an unnecessary challenge in that way. And of course the original rear tires wear out way-fast, and do cost more to buy.
Driving on the all 4 +size tires does change the feel of the Roadster, and it allows for an analog adjustment of the car's handling. Change the rear tire pressure a little, you can get a big difference in under/over steer characteristics. Adjust the front tire pressure a little, and you get more of a slight change in handling and response while accelerating in/out of corners.
Add 2psi to rear tire pressure to give more under-steer, go for lower rear psi to get less under-steer and moves toward over-steer.
On front tires it is the reverse: more air in front tires gives less under-steer, and lower air pressure gives more under-steer.
Currently I am running 45-46psi in rear, and 47-48psi in front tires. I would like to spend some time at higher pressures, but will wait until the TPMS can hopefully be calibrated to operate correctly with the new tires that are rated for 51psi, instead of the stock Yoko 44psi spec. As it is, the car starts complaining about 51psi being "too-high" when they get warmed up, even though it is just fine for these tires, since their cold spec is 51!
Driving the car and accelerating out of a turn while making little or no steering correction is fun, and overall the car has a more solid civilized feel. It is remarkable, how different it drives from the roadster loaner I drove in ATL last summer on making a service center visit for the Model S. My ride quality is more smooth and comfortable, road bumps are not such a shock. It feels like a quality improvement.
These tires are all season, and have better wet road characteristics, I hit some wet pavement in turns with the old Yokos that lost traction unexpectedly, so these are an improvement in that way.
The slight increase in road clearance due to a "lift" of 1/4inch that has helped prevent some under-nose scrape, and rubs over steep driveways. I had two spots locally, that are no trouble to clear now.
These tires make me want to drive the Roadster even more.
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