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Took delivery in December 2013 and with new tires, and sensible driving I was very impressed with the Model S during one of the worst winters on record in Philadelphia. One year later (and 30,000 miles) I am surprised at how often the traction control has to come on and how the car slides in today's storm with 3-4 inches of snow. I'mlooking at either snow tires, or even studded tires (overkill, I know) and just swap out the rear wheels each winter. I drive my Model S everywhere as evidenced by 30,000 miles in a year. But, in normal conditions the current tires are fine.
Any snow tire (studded or otherwise) needs to be used as a set of four to be safe. This is because if you use two dissimilar types of tires on your vehicle, you'll have a vehicle that has a "split" personality. One end of the vehicle won't react and perform the same as the other in the dry, wet, slush and snow conditions you'll encounter before the end of winter. Especially in emergency situations, you'll find that your vehicle will probably understeer in one condition and oversteer in another. It is preferable to keep your vehicles handling as consistently as possible by "matching" all four tires. Our customers who have matched their tires tell us they're glad they made the extra investment in four winter tires (and wheels) so they can accelerate, brake, handle and better control their vehicle through winter's challenges.