Stock tires wearing faster than expected?

[SDKoala]

I spoke to my service center and all the rep would say is that they know tires wear down faster on Teslas. He wouldn't divulge more information when I pressed him to see if only getting 10K miles was typical. I'm guessing probably not as I'd expect way more posts by people than the ones I've seen searching the various forums.

If I really do have to shell out over $1000/year just for tires, that's a cost of ownership that I was not expecting. I have a service appointment next week and I'm hoping they find something wrong at this point so I don't have to make a huge change in driving habits.

 

[Big-T]

Probably a stupid question - but if tires are wearing out before their expected life shouldn't all of you be filing a tire warranty claim? I've never had a tire wear our prematurely, so I can't speak to how these well these kinds of warranties are honored - but I'd think whenever my SR+ gets delivered and the clock starts, if the 19" wear out before they're supposed to I'd call up and file a claim, even for partial reimbursement of the tire(s) they're not cheap.

 

[⚡️ELECTROMAN⚡️]

I spoke to my service center and all the rep would say is that they know tires wear down faster on Teslas. He wouldn't divulge more information when I pressed him to see if only getting 10K miles was typical. I'm guessing probably not as I'd expect way more posts by people than the ones I've seen searching the various forums.

If I really do have to shell out over $1000/year just for tires, that's a cost of ownership that I was not expecting. I have a service appointment next week and I'm hoping they find something wrong at this point so I don't have to make a huge change in driving habits.

I could easily wear out a set of tires in 10,000 miles if I drove the way I wanted to. My first set of tires needed to be replaced at 12,000. That’s why I currently drive like I want my tires to last longer. It’s pretty easy to grind your tires down with all that instant torque.

 

[hcdavis3]

You guys are all very knowledgeable about tires. My 3 is brand new, but when it’s time to replace my tires what are the quietest tires in your opinion. I’m not so much interested in performance or even how quickly they wear. I’m only looking for quiet. My tires are Continental on 19 inch wheels. Thanks very much in advance.

 

[SoccerMan94043]

3500 miles here on my model 3. Just had it in for service and Telsa reported the following on my 19" Continental Procontact RX, according to Tire Rack. For the record I am a very spirited diver:

Front Driver Outer: 8
Front Driver Middle: 8
Front Driver Inner: 8

Front Passenger Outer: 7
Front Passenger Middle: 7
Front Passenger Inner: 8

Back Driver Outer: 7
Back Driver Middle: 8
Back Driver Inner: 7

Back Passenger Outer: 7
Back Passenger Middle: 7
Back Passenger Inner: 7

I had a Model S 70D before and was still a spirited driver. Those lasted 25K but needed to be replaced when I sold it.

 

[Quickstart88]

Gave this some thoughts about why tires wear out faster than ICE car. It's not just torque. It's the constant gripping the road regardless if you are an aggressive driver or not. Re-Gen is constantly gripping and traction control is constantly gripping. The way I look at it, it's like your shoes you wear and to walk with are constantly being drag against the floor.

 

[⚡️ELECTROMAN⚡️]

Gave this some thoughts about why tires wear out faster than ICE car. It's not just torque. It's the constant gripping the road regardless if you are an aggressive driver or not. Re-Gen is constantly gripping and traction control is constantly gripping. The way I look at it, it's like your shoes you wear and to walk with are constantly being drag against the floor.

I’ve had that thought too about the regen, but aren’t ice cars doing the same gripping when they are decelerating from brake use or engine braking?

 

[woodguyatl]

That's probably true on a Prius but it looks like Tesla specified high quality (not inexpensive) tires on the Model 3. That said, high quality tires don't necessarily last a long time because all the tire design parameters are tradeoffs. But low rolling resistance tires do tend to build less heat due to their sidewall construction so that can add to their tread life.

The most important thing any owner can do for long tread life is to keep their tires properly inflated. Often times the PSI specification is more about creating a cushy ride than it is about performance, safety or treadwear.

OEM tires for manufacturers will have the exact same name as aftermarket but manufacturers will specify slight changes such as different compounds to improves performance, reduce noise or soften ride. This is one reason that OEM tires often have poor warranties.

 

[woodguyatl]

Thanks, I’ve generally used wear bars. But I wanted to get a feeling how much wear folks were at from the prior posts. I rotate frequently and watch my pressure. And have not had much uneven wear and generally hit near the rated range of the tire for as long as I can remember. 20 years? I hope that continues with Model 3. But these posts are making me a little concerned. These tires are not cheap and contribute to the cost of ownership. Most cars have got at least 40k miles out of tires.

A chain called Discount Tire here in GA will sell you a non-prorated tread and damage warranty with free balancing and rotating for about $30/tire on the oem Tesla tires. You just have to swing by so they can have a quick look at them to avoid shanannigans. Maybe something near you?

 

[jonotastic]

Mine will probably wear out fast, but at no fault to Tesla or the tires. I bought the performance model and I'm always using that acceleration when I can lol.

 

[SDKoala]

Probably a stupid question - but if tires are wearing out before their expected life shouldn't all of you be filing a tire warranty claim? I've never had a tire wear our prematurely, so I can't speak to how these well these kinds of warranties are honored - but I'd think whenever my SR+ gets delivered and the clock starts, if the 19" wear out before they're supposed to I'd call up and file a claim, even for partial reimbursement of the tire(s) they're not cheap.

I put in a claim with Michelin and took it back to Discount Tire, which is their preferred tire shop for warranty coverage. After Discount measured the tires again and confirmed the mileage, Michelin authorized 25% off the purchase of another set of four Michelins. I have no idea how the came up with that number. It's getting a tire for free basically, but seeing as how I didn't make it even a quarter of the way to the warranted mileage, I thought the amount they'd cover would be greater.

 

[SammichLover]

I’ve had that thought too about the regen, but aren’t ice cars doing the same gripping when they are decelerating from brake use or engine braking?

Unless you're driving a standard and are magically able to be always be downshifted, not to the same extent. On an automatic transmission ICE it isn't even close to the same.

I guess you could do it with a manual shifted, typically these days via paddle-shifters although some do it via a console shifter in what amounts to a sequential throw shifting, automatics with a huge number of gears. Like the 7-speed DCT you'll find on newer M2 's. If you were constantly downshifting aggressively you could approach it. Not sure how many people actually do this?

 

[SDKoala]

Another follow-up. I put the appropriately-sized Michelin Pilot Sport 4S tires on my stock 18" wheels with Aeros and my efficiency has gone down. In 10,000 miles with the OEM Michelin Primacy MXM4s, I was at almost exactly at 250 Wh/mi with "spirited" driving (apparently spirited enough to wear through the tires after just 10K miles). After about 500 miles while consciously driving more conservatively, I'm at 270 Wh/mi doing my regular commute with the new tires. The weather has been very mild and I've had the HVAC off like half the time. It's a not a huge difference in energy requirement, but the decrease in efficiency (and therefore range) is bothersome. It's basically a 10% difference and it's only going to get worse going into the summer as the AC is needed more. Thinking I'll probably go back to the OEM recommendation the next time tires are needed to see if the efficiency goes back to normal.

 

[woodisgood]

Just did my third rotation at 20K. Rears at 6/32 and fronts at 7/32 prior to rotation. 230 wh/mi, not very spirited driving (at least from stop).

Should be able to comfortably get to 40-45K.

 

[Wennfred]

One of the best rated LRR tires are the Ecopia 422’s these are the ones that come with the Nissan Leaf and gave me the longest range, the Nokian’s were not as good and lost Range so I went back to the Ecopia’s... will replace the stock M3 tires with these Ecopia’s as soon as I see some wear.

Ecopia EP422 ECO | All-Season Fuel Efficient Car Tires

 

[SammichLover]

Another follow-up. I put the appropriately-sized Michelin Pilot Sport 4S tires on my stock 18" wheels with Aeros and my efficiency has gone down. In 10,000 miles with the OEM Michelin Primacy MXM4s, I was at almost exactly at 250 Wh/mi with "spirited" driving (apparently spirited enough to wear through the tires after just 10K miles). After about 500 miles while consciously driving more conservatively, I'm at 270 Wh/mi doing my regular commute with the new tires. The weather has been very mild and I've had the HVAC off like half the time. It's a not a huge difference in energy requirement, but the decrease in efficiency (and therefore range) is bothersome. It's basically a 10% difference and it's only going to get worse going into the summer as the AC is needed more. Thinking I'll probably go back to the OEM recommendation the next time tires are needed to see if the efficiency goes back to normal.

You got the PS4S in 235/45R18? First understand that although they have the same sizing numbers, they are wider front cross-section than the stock MXM4. Also, they are a somewhat softer, "sticker" compound and inherently have a somewhat higher rolling resistance number. It is a trade-off for the extra grip and what is better handling of wet conditions.

Third, what pressure are you running the tires at?

 

[SammichLover]

One of the best rated LRR tires are the Ecopia 422’s these are the ones that come with the Nissan Leaf and gave me the longest range, the Nokian’s were not as good and lost Range so I went back to the Ecopia’s... will replace the stock M3 tires with these Ecopia’s as soon as I see some wear.

Ecopia EP422 ECO | All-Season Fuel Efficient Car Tires

That website says they don't have a sizing for the Model 3, and when I checked for their full listing for the Model 3 they don't list any Ecopia variants.

I checked through Tire Rack. They have nothing named "EP422 ECO" but a few named in part "Ecopia EP422". The V-speed rated version of the EP422 Plus does have a 235/45R18 (none of the other "EP422" named models have any 18" sized tires there). It unfortunately has poor reviews for noise.

 

[Wennfred]

Didn’t seem to have a noise problem and I ordered another set of tires for it.

Amazon has them in this size:
Bridgestone Ecopia EP422 All-Season Radial Tire - 235/45R18 94V

Probably special order through Discount Tires

Fred

 

[SammichLover]

Didn’t seem to have a noise problem and I ordered another set of tires for it.

Amazon has them in this size:
Bridgestone Ecopia EP422 All-Season Radial Tire - 235/45R18 94V

Probably special order through Discount Tires

Fred

I suspect they are either actually the "Plus", and that retailer is naming it that way, or potentially it is old stock that they are clearing out and Tire Rack has already cleared their old stock in those particular sizes. You'll note the limited numbers for that size on Amazon. The later is something I've seen before for other tires, a sort of natural progression in a transition to the next gen of a particular model line.

The poor noise assessment seems fairly uniform, but that can be tough to assess as you have to figure out what those customers are likely comparing the tires too.

P.S. A/S for in San Diego? That seems like a very dubious choice.

 

[Atari2600]

Another follow-up. I put the appropriately-sized Michelin Pilot Sport 4S tires on my stock 18" wheels with Aeros and my efficiency has gone down.

I did the same thing. I inflate mine to 45 PSI cold. No way in hell would I ever go back to MXM4. My dual motor drives very well with those on.

With my Nokian R3 I used between 3 and 4 32nds depending on the tire for 6,000 miles driving. So that’s a three season tire at most. It’s a good snow tire though.