Winter is Coming - Tires

[mnx]

Has anyone checked the tread depth on their winters from last year? I just checked mine out of curiosity. (They're not back on the car yet.) I drove 5200km last winter/spring and my fronts were down 0.5/32 and the rears lost 2/32. It looks like they're good for another ~13,000km or so before I'm at 6/32. Yikes!

 

[Doug_G]

Yeah I didn't measure but my eyeball indicates similar results. I rotated my tires front/back for this winter.

I might be happy to be rid of the Pirellis when they wear out. I'm not enthralled with them. They're probably a bit nicer in today's conditions, but they kinda suck in "real" winter weather.

 

[Forty Creek]

Yeah I didn't measure but my eyeball indicates similar results. I rotated my tires front/back for this winter.

I might be happy to be rid of the Pirellis when they wear out. I'm not enthralled with them. They're probably a bit nicer in today's conditions, but they kinda suck in "real" winter weather.

Hopefully Tesla Service will ease up on their policy about non Pirelli winter tires. I'm getting Nokian's put on next week but will be 'banished' from any tire work by Tesla after that. My first choice would be to stay with Tesla, but the Pirellis just aren't a very popular "real" winter tire. Oh, and I know... Ottawa gets true winter.

 

[mknox]

Hopefully Tesla Service will ease up on their policy about non Pirelli winter tires. I'm getting Nokian's put on next week but will be 'banished' from any tire work by Tesla after that. My first choice would be to stay with Tesla, but the Pirellis just aren't a very popular "real" winter tire. Oh, and I know... Ottawa gets true winter.

Ditto. My Hakka R2's go on the car Saturday.

 

[KR1]

It is what it is. If you want soft tires to grip on ice then the sidewalls are going to be soft. I'm driving on Winter/Performance tires (Pirelli) and I'm not terribly happy with their grip.

I've been starting to wonder if it would make sense to have three tire sets, summer performance 21s, winter - snow 19s, and winter-performance 19s. Maybe use the summers from May-mid Oct, winter snows from Jan-Mar and winter-performance in-between. The summers didn't seem as good as I thought they would be for traction from standing starts in the limited time that I had them in late October, maybe because it was cold, while the Xi3 winter snows aren't so great on dry roads.

Apart from the added costs of 4 wheels and 2 extra tire changes, more tires mean less wear per year on the other tires.

I feel a huge difference between the Tesla with Xi3s and my Audi S6 with older Blizzak LM-25s - my Audi feels tight to the road. I've used the LM-25s with pretty good results in Ottawa but the Audi has AWD. My only complaint is that they could be better when stopping on glare ice coming up to intersections.

Disappointing to hear your comments of not liking the grip on the Pirellis - is that in severe weather or in general?

 

[montgom626]

Disappointing to hear your comments of not liking the grip on the Pirellis - is that in severe weather or in general?

My Pirelli Sottozero II are great in Wisconsin right now.

 

[Peter_M]

Just a heads-up for anyone ordering the "Bright Silver" Rial Lugano's from Tire Rack. That's what I ordered and the pictures below are what I got (I included the TireRack picture for reference). Apparently the manufacturer has changed from an all-silver finish to silver on the face and black on the inside and back. It's not what I was expecting but I like the look and I'd never get another set in time for my delivery date, so I'm keeping them. Tire Rack offered to take them back so it's all good, but some people might be more particular about the finish than me.

 

[Mayhemm]

So what's the word from Tire Rack? Were they painted black in error, or has Rial changed their color scheme?

 

[Peter_M]

So what's the word from Tire Rack? Were they painted black in error, or has Rial changed their color scheme?

I'm not sure, but I think Rial changed their colour scheme. I think now instead of all silver and all black, they have silver or black fronts, but it's always black on the back. The funny thing is that Rial's website shows a "sterling silver" finish that might be what I got (hard to tell) and a "diamond black front polished" finish, but doesn't show either the "bright silver" or the "gunmetal black" that Tire Rack sells.

Best bet is to check it explicitly with a Tire Rack sales person to be sure of what you'll get.

 

[mcfadyena]

Read through this thread and getting ready for Winter tires. Tesla Service won't answer the phone (apparently they have been having trouble), nor answer emails (Toronto, frustrating), so I can't get info on what they have in stock for when I take delivery. I've looked at Tire Rack and other sites. Have a few questions:

1) How long does delivery usually take from TireRack (to Toronto area?)
2) If I go with something from KalTire, do they have the sensors? Do I need sensors if I just have them pop tires on my current wheels?

Think that's it for now! Thanks in advance for the help.

 

[Peter_M]

1) How long does delivery usually take from TireRack (to Toronto area?)

It should be about 3 business days. It was 3-4 business days for me in Ottawa (2 orders this fall), but they ship through Toronto so that might save you a day. The packages don't seem to make any progress in the UPS system on the weekends.

2) If I go with something from KalTire, do they have the sensors? Do I need sensors if I just have them pop tires on my current wheels?

I haven't dealt with KalTire, but my understanding is you can keep the sensors you have on your wheels if you change tires but they may need to replace the valve stems.

And if you're ordering wheels and tires from TireRack, they will install the TPMS sensors and mount and balance the tires, and even inflate them to the correct pressure, so you can put them on your car in your driveway if you want. I've been very happy with them - great web site, excellent selection, good packaging and shipping, good help by email/phone if needed and good prices!

 

[Forty Creek]

Read through this thread and getting ready for Winter tires. Tesla Service won't answer the phone (apparently they have been having trouble), nor answer emails (Toronto, frustrating), so I can't get info on what they have in stock for when I take delivery. I've looked at Tire Rack and other sites. Have a few questions:

1) How long does delivery usually take from TireRack (to Toronto area?)
2) If I go with something from KalTire, do they have the sensors? Do I need sensors if I just have them pop tires on my current wheels?

Think that's it for now! Thanks in advance for the help.

Just sharing... I ended up getting my Nokians through KalTire. They could have ordered sensors, but I chose for now to mount the new rubber on the existing Tesla rims. The TPS go with rims and since KalTire replaced then to their original positions and inflated the winters to the previous 45 psi, I never even had to use the new TPS software feature to reset.

 

[e4chan]

I had a quick question, I read in several threads you inflate the tires to 45 psi, but on the door frame it says 38 psi.

I am running 19" Rial Lugano rims with Michelin X-ice tires. Should I inflate them to 45 psi?

Please advise. Thanks.

 

[Forty Creek]

I had a quick question, I read in several threads you inflate the tires to 45 psi, but on the door frame it says 38 psi.

I am running 19" Rial Lugano rims with Michelin X-ice tires. Should I inflate them to 45 psi?

Please advise. Thanks.

I just went out to double check and the sticker on my door frame clearly states Inflate to 45 PSI. Also on 19" tires. I suggest you place a quick call to the service center just to be sure. My (limited) understanding is that due to the heavy weight of the Model S we need extra load rated tires.... tires that can be inflated to at least 45 PSI. I did check the pressure of my original summer tires before putting on winters, and Tesla had inflated them to 45 PSI. One caveat... since you went to a non-Tesla supplier for the winter tires (as I also did), Tesla may want to refer you to your actual supplier to answer your question on tire inflation. Your supplier will know for certain, yet I'm fairly sure that if you got Michelin X-ice xi3's, they would be good to go for 45 PSI. One last thought, if they aren't xi3's, is it possible your installer put a different sticker on the door panel over the original one that says inflate to 38 PSI? Hope not.

 

[wycolo]

> but on the door frame it says 38 psi. [e4chan]

Photo or it didn't happen. If that is correct it would be a collector's item.
--

 

[brianman]

> but on the door frame it says 38 psi. [e4chan]

Photo or it didn't happen. If that is correct it would be a collector's item.

Agreed. I bet his car says 42psi.

 

[mnx]

Agreed. I bet his car says 42psi.

The door sticker says 38 front 42 rear psi for the P+.

Source: My initial impression of my P85+ performance - Page 2

Perhaps you should spend more time reading posts instead of writing them Brian.

 

[mcfadyena]

Thanks for the help on this, everyone. TeslaToronto actually got back to me today. Their phone lines were down for a few days, and email backed up. Regardless, they are getting a shipment in for next week of Winters. I ordered the winter tire package, with Aero wheels for $3000, plus tax - installed, balanced, and with sensors. I was going to be paying $3200 for TireRack wheels/tires, so this made sense. They will ensure they are on the care for delivery in 16 short days!

 

[jerry33]

is it possible your installer put a different sticker on the door panel over the original one that says inflate to 38 PSI? Hope not.

The vehicle placard is only put on by the car manufacturer. It's part of the FMVSS compliance.

In most winter conditions, it's helpful to add 3 psi. This helps squeegee the water off the ice so the tires can grip.

 

[mknox]

Just sharing... I ended up getting my Nokians through KalTire. They could have ordered sensors, but I chose for now to mount the new rubber on the existing Tesla rims. The TPS go with rims and since KalTire replaced then to their original positions and inflated the winters to the previous 45 psi, I never even had to use the new TPS software feature to reset.

I did the exact same thing. No problems at all.