Talk me into or out of buying Aodhan AFF7 wheels...

[turbolxstang]

New 2020 Model S Performance owner, car has 21" staggered wheels, I hit a major pothole a few nights ago and blew out the front driver side tire and the wheel was bent, I'm filing a claim with the city in hopes they cover since the pothole was reported over 30 days prior to me hitting it

Regardless of this happening I've been looking at downsizing to either 19's or 20's, I've been doing as much research as possible and I think a flow-forged wheel would be much better than any cast wheel, I'm not opposed to a square setup, but wonder if staggered would be better for traction, rotating option would likely net more time out of the tires I'd think.

The wheel I'm looking at is decently priced but I don't like the idea of running hub centric rings or using aftermarket lug nuts, it's the main thing that is stopping me from pulling the trigger and still considering the TSportline Wheels since those two points are non issues.

The Aodhan AFF7's are available in 19x8.5 & 19x9.5 which would allow me to go with a 245/45 and a 265/45 or 275/45, I like the idea of the 45 sidewall compared to the option in 20" square which would be a 20x9 and 255/40/20 all around.

 

[MFrunkerOG]

I believe Tesla has consistently underspec’d its 21” tire options ever since they started making the S. They only improved it in the 2021+ refresh.

Good decision to give yourself some more sidewall with the 19” or 20” wheels. However the decision / choice should be based on 2 factors

1. Wheel and tire load ratings - tires need at least a 98 load rating - ideally 102. Also aftermarket wheel needs to be above 690kg load rates - ideally 750kg

2. Offsets - a 255 tire in the front will be more grip to avoid understeer on a heavy car. But you need to make sure the wheel offsets will prevent rubbing - look at willtheyfit dot com

 

[krsgio]

Just be aware flow forged is not a true forged wheel. But it should be better than a basic cast wheel but wouldn't rule out bending one again in the future. The problem is unless your wheel was designed to use OEM lugnuts you should run aftermarket. The seating surface for aftermarket wheels/lug nuts are typically made for aftermarket not OEM. Some higher quality forged wheels allow you to have them made to be used with OEM lugs. Same goes for hubcentric, custom made forged wheels allow you to specify size, color, offset, hub bore etc so if you're so particular about hub adapters & aftermarket lugnuts you need to shop custom made forged wheels or settle for tsportline.

 

[turbolxstang]

I had a plan I thought, run this setup...

19x8.5 +35 w/ 245/45/19
19x9.5 +35 w/ 275/45/19

Front wheel moves 5mm closer to fender
Rear wheel moves 11mm closer to fender

Suspension clearance not effected, would definitely look a lot better in fender flush regards, I'm just not sure how important it is to run a wider rear wheel on this car, for simplicity the square setup in either 19x8.5 or 20x9 seems to make a lot more sense.

 

[2101Guy]

Also in my experience, there are levels to cast wheels. Example. Im almost positive the 21" cast Arachnids are not as soft/as easily bent as generic cheap cast wheels off of ebay. Not 100% certain if an Arachnid is as strong as aftermarket "flow" forged, but it wouldnt suprise me either way

 

[MFrunkerOG]

I had a plan I thought, run this setup...

19x8.5 +35 w/ 245/45/19
19x9.5 +35 w/ 275/45/19

Front wheel moves 5mm closer to fender
Rear wheel moves 11mm closer to fender

Suspension clearance not effected, would definitely look a lot better in fender flush regards, I'm just not sure how important it is to run a wider rear wheel on this car, for simplicity the square setup in either 19x8.5 or 20x9 seems to make a lot more sense.

I think a square setup is a great potential convenience but a bit futile for a dual motor EV. If the alignment is good, The wear on the tires is almost equal between the fronts and rears negating any real need to “rotate”.

On the performance side, a square setup compromises on the width in the rear and overcompensates for the width in the front.

I feel that smaller than staggered rear tire means poorer acceleration traction. Wider than staggered front tire means a heavier steering and possibly a shift in the bias to the front.

I’m sure there are different opinions, but I think staggered provides the best driving experience.

 

[TLLMRRJ]

Never had any issues with hub centric rings. Have you? They are only there to center the wheel while mounting and once the wheels are fully torqued, their job is done.

And while I would worry about aftermarket bolts or studs being strong enough, lug nuts aren't under the same stress, so not sure what the concern is there either. I've never heard of anyone talking about lug nut failure unless they forgot to torque them. I have certainly heard about plenty of studs failing, especially when the wheel is over-torqued. Have you had lug nut issues before?

 

[KalJoMoS]

Suspension clearance not effected, would definitely look a lot better in fender flush regards, I'm just not sure how important it is to run a wider rear wheel on this car, for simplicity the square setup in either 19x8.5 or 20x9 seems to make a lot more sense.

If you plan to use the same width rims on front and rear them bear in mind that front suspension needs spacer’s if you are putting rim inner edge closer that 8” (as the OM 19” set is 8x40ET). I have summer rims (37ET) with 9” width and I need at least 5mm spacer’s on front rims. Rear is fine thought.

 

[beatle]

You can do 20x9 +35 and a 245/40R20 tire without spacers. I ran that that setup for years on my 2015 and then swapped them over to my 2019 where they are still great. You'll get just a touch of rub at full lock when in reverse, but I understand you also get that from the stock 21s. A 245/40R20 is the same diameter as stock, so your speedometer will stay accurate. I have not found traction to be a problem on either car. If anything I'd like a bit more grip up front. Handling is pretty neutral, maybe a touch of understeer. When launching I can chirp the front tires, but the rears hold fine. This is with A/S 3+ tires. I'd like to know how people with 255/45R20 tires are doing. A 245 looks a bit stretched on a 9" wheel.

Tire wear is pretty close to even, but not identical. Rears still wear a bit faster than the fronts, so it's nice to have the option to rotate and get the most out of the set of tires (which are fairly expensive).

My TSW Turbinas are flow formed and I've not had any issues with durability. They require hubcentric rings. I use a very cheap set of plastic rings, no problems. As others have said, you'll probably need aftermarket lugs. I picked up a set of McGard spline drives which are great. I've also run McGard spline drives on my Miata for over a dozen years.

Forged wheels are "better" but I'd argue that there isn't much benefit to reap for their premium price. I can say forged wheels aren't a requirement for durability in 19" or 20" sizes.

 

[KalJoMoS]

Well perhaps this 2mm difference (37>35) is the distance that clears yours as mine did touched on front - see photo. There are good comparison sites where user can define does it fit, the setup that I use is see on second photo, I do need to use 5mm spacer’s.

 

[beatle]

20x9 +35 is definitely very close, but I chose that size as it's the same as the Model X front which is also pretty popular. TSportline also sells 20x9 +35 wheels. Good to know that even a 2mm difference would require spacers.

Truth be told, I'd rather have a 20x8.5 or even 20x8 for a 245 section width tire. I've got no rim protection with my current setup.