Wheel Swap question

[Rajraj22]

Hi all,

My first post on this forum .. I just ordered a Long range AWD today at the Tesla store. I wanted the 19 inch sport wheels, however, there was an inventory model 3 available with 18 inch aero wheels. The sales guys suggested that I can get the car with 18 inch wheels, take delivery and have the wheels replaced by taking it to the service center. Obviously I will have to pay the cost for the upgraded wheels ($1500), but the timeline for having the wheels swapped out is 4-5 weeks after delivery, which seems too long to me considering that its just a wheel swap.

I would like to know if anyone has had the same experience with swapping wheels after delivery and would you guys recommend it? I could obviously have made a custom order, but I wanted to take delivery while my parents are visiting, so this seemed like a quick and reasonable option. I was told that I can drive with the Aero wheels as long as the 19 inch are available for installation and that I will be given brand new 19 inch rim and tires.

Overall this wheel swap seems like a simple and easy job to me, but the sales rep went back and forth on how the ordering, payment and installation of the wheels would be handled and it has made me a bit nervous. Don't want to be stuck with 18 inch or having to pay anything more than $1500 for the 19 inch.

Looking forward to your suggestions and learning more about folks who were in a similar situation.

Thanks,
Raj

 

[OCR1]

Something doesn’t sound right. A set of 19” wheels and tires cost $3,500 on the Tesla web site. $1,500 is the incremental price from deleting the 18” aero wheels and upgrading to 19” wheels. If they were to only charge you $1,500 that would be a great deal but they would be taking back used 18” wheels which they can not resell so if they are really offering to do that I would get it in writing.

I have a similar situation in that I was offered a 19” wheel upgrade on my car but they did not have them in stock so they created a due bill for them. I’ve been waiting 2 weeks now with no confirmation of when they will be coming in. It’s been challenging to get anyone at Tesla to take responsibility for actually ordering the tires for me. I scheduled a service appointment to have them installed just to get something going in their system but I’m actually not planning on installing them on my car. Once I get them I will be selling them. PM me if you are interested. You can sell your lightly used 18’s if you do that and recoup some costs rather than giving them back to Tesla.

 

[Jbidwal]

I had ordered my car with 19s too but they didn’t have a delivery update and was offered one with Aeros sooner. I just bought 20s from someone with no wear on them and sold my aero. Ended up being cheaper and I wanted the 20 all along. You might be able to find a 19 inch set and just sell your aero. Probably will end up being less than what they charge you anyway.

 

[ewoodrick]

Stay with the 18's they get better economy.

If you don't like the look, take the aero covers off and put the $50 hubcaps on.

And believe it or not, the aero covers actually grow on people, they have a slight futuristic look.

You'll want to put the aero covers back on for trips to increase the efficiency.

 

[jkoya]

Stay with the 18's they get better economy.

I'm considering this route. I have a P3D with the 20" wheels and I'm thinking of down sizing to 18". Seems like the number of potholes around here are increasing......

I hit a pothole and blew out a sidewall, so now I'm a little gun shy.

 

[Rajraj22]

Something doesn’t sound right. A set of 19” wheels and tires cost $3,500 on the Tesla web site. $1,500 is the incremental price from deleting the 18” aero wheels and upgrading to 19” wheels. If they were to only charge you $1,500 that would be a great deal but they would be taking back used 18” wheels which they can not resell so if they are really offering to do that I would get it in writing.

I have a similar situation in that I was offered a 19” wheel upgrade on my car but they did not have them in stock so they created a due bill for them. I’ve been waiting 2 weeks now with no confirmation of when they will be coming in. It’s been challenging to get anyone at Tesla to take responsibility for actually ordering the tires for me. I scheduled a service appointment to have them installed just to get something going in their system but I’m actually not planning on installing them on my car. Once I get them I will be selling them. PM me if you are interested. You can sell your lightly used 18’s if you do that and recoup some costs rather than giving them back to Tesla.

_______________________________________
Thanks for your reply. Very helpful!

Yes, I was clearly told that since I want a 19 inch and the car doesn't come with it, I will only be paying $1500 at the time of swap. Until then I can drive with the 18 inch Aero's. I was also told that a due bill will be issued and I am looking at at least 4 weeks before the swap can happen. Apparently, they promised the same to a lot of other owners and are slowly going through the queue. I agree that I will definitely get this in writing before I even get delivery of the car. Looks like the car will be delivered this Thursday.

I cannot sell my 18 inch that comes with the car as they will take it back. Thats the reason why they are charging me $1500, which is the price they would have charged if I had built a custom order.

Are they also charging you $1500? I assume the price is mentioned on the due bill?

Thanks

RaJ

 

[Rajraj22]

I had ordered my car with 19s too but they didn’t have a delivery update and was offered one with Aeros sooner. I just bought 20s from someone with no wear on them and sold my aero. Ended up being cheaper and I wanted the 20 all along. You might be able to find a 19 inch set and just sell your aero. Probably will end up being less than what they charge you anyway.

____________________________
Thanks!
They are only going to charge me $1500, as this is the price you pay if you do a custom order on the vehicle on their website. I told them I do not need Aeros and like 19's mostly for their look and thats when they offered to do the swap after delivery. I definitely need to get this in writing before I accept delivery.

 

[OCR1]

I cannot sell my 18 inch that comes with the car as they will take it back. Thats the reason why they are charging me $1500, which is the price they would have charged if I had built a custom order.

Are they also charging you $1500? I assume the price is mentioned on the due bill?

Thanks

RaJ

I was offered a free wheel upgrade because it was end of quarter and they were cutting deals. Had they ordered and installed the 19" wheels when I picked up the car it would have just been an upgrade, but since they didn't have them in stock I made them put in writing that I'm not required to return the 18" wheels. In reality they have no use for a bunch of used wheels and tires. They can't sell them as new and they don't have time to mess around with selling them on Ebay so I don't think they really care. You may want to just ask if you can pick up the tires when they are ready and not have them installed. See what they say. The 18" wheels really are the better choice unless the appearance of them really bothers you. I could care less about how they look and would rather have the extra range.

 

[dmurphy]

I was offered a free wheel upgrade because it was end of quarter and they were cutting deals. Had they ordered and installed the 19" wheels when I picked up the car it would have just been an upgrade, but since they didn't have them in stock I made them put in writing that I'm not required to return the 18" wheels. In reality they have no use for a bunch of used wheels and tires. They can't sell them as new and they don't have time to mess around with selling them on Ebay so I don't think they really care. You may want to just ask if you can pick up the tires when they are ready and not have them installed. See what they say. The 18" wheels really are the better choice unless the appearance of them really bothers you. I could care less about how they look and would rather have the extra range.

Actually, they’re supremely useful to Tesla in the mobile service fleet. So I’m sure they’d want them back.....

 

[mswlogo]

I’d wait for a fresh 2019 with HW3 and wheels on the car. Rather than a 2018 left over. Lots of minor improvements as well.

 

[OCR1]

Actually, they’re supremely useful to Tesla in the mobile service fleet. So I’m sure they’d want them back.....

I’m not so sure of that. When sales offers a discount by comping a wheel upgrade it comes off of their department profit margins. I seriously doubt there is any facility whereby sales would attempt to take back some used 18” wheels, transfer them to the mobile service division, and ask for some sort of credit back to their department. Maybe in a more mature company that type of system could exist. But dealing with Tesla is like the Wild Wild West. There is little rhyme or reason to anything they do and little thought into small details like this. It’s all about moving on to push out the next car through the delivery center.

I’m still chasing down my comped wheels. The Delivery Center says it’s up to the Parts Department to order them. I asked how I can contact them and their response was “They don’t have a phone back there so you have to send them an email”. Seriously?? The parts department doesn’t have a phone??

So I sent them an email over a week ago. I’ll bet you can guess if I’ve received a response from them.

 

[Rajraj22]

Thank you all for your comments and suggestions. My sales advisor called today and apparently they matched me to a car that just came out of production line today and it has the 19 inch sport wheels. My delivery is scheduled for next Tuesday. Fingers crossed!

 

[jkoya]

My delivery is scheduled for next Tuesday. Fingers crossed!

Good Luck on the delivery. I hope you have a great delivery experience !