Winter tire recommendations

[MonkeyMind]

A couple weeks back I bought a set of Continental Viking Contact 7 winters and Replika rims from PMC Tire in Canada (I'm in Calgary). I had an interesting time with sizing due to going with 20" wheels from stock 21", and 9" wide rims on front and rear, from the 8.5" front and 9" rear of the stock setup, but I think the results look good and I'm happy with it.

The tire size I went with for all four new winter tires is 255/35, and with the wider front rims, they juuuuust fit without rubbing anywhere while turning. Rears are of course perfectly fine. Photos attached - close up is of the front with the wheel slightly turned to show how close the clearance is from the inside of the wheel wells. I can't quite get a finger in between

 

[mswlogo]

A couple weeks back I bought a set of Continental Viking Contact 7 winters and Replika rims from PMC Tire in Canada (I'm in Calgary). I had an interesting time with sizing due to going with 20" wheels from stock 21", and 9" wide rims on front and rear, from the 8.5" front and 9" rear of the stock setup, but I think the results look good and I'm happy with it.

The tire size I went with for all four new winter tires is 255/35, and with the wider front rims, they juuuuust fit without rubbing anywhere while turning. Rears are of course perfectly fine. Photos attached - close up is of the front with the wheel slightly turned to show how close the clearance is from the inside of the wheel wells. I can't quite get a finger in between

And what happens if you hit a bump while turning?

Too close for my taste.

 

[MonkeyMind]

And what happens if you hit a bump while turning?

Too close for my taste.

It's a good point - with the suspension set to "low" (which is my norm) I think there's a chance of some rubbing if I hit a large enough bump with the wheel turned to just the wrong spot. At "standard" or "high" setting, I suppose it would be less likely. For those worried about it, 19" wheels would probably be a safer bet.

 

[Jard]

Do we know what tires I will be getting? I ordered a Model S Performance with the sonic carbon 19" wheels - expect it in early or mid December...

 

[shellderp]

Do we know what tires I will be getting? I ordered a Model S Performance with the sonic carbon 19" wheels - expect it in early or mid December...

expect to get summer tires. They told me it always comes with them. I got mine in april and it was still sketchy to use summer tires

 

[Jard]

Yeah, so sounds like I need to drop $1k on tires immediately. Blah...

The 19s being delivered now are a square setup, right?

 

[supratachophobia]

Yeah, so sounds like I need to drop $1k on tires immediately. Blah...

The 19s being delivered now are a square setup, right?

I thought they always were on 19s

 

[shellderp]

Yeah, so sounds like I need to drop $1k on tires immediately. Blah...

The 19s being delivered now are a square setup, right?

right, only 21s are staggered. btw, annoyingly, all the Tesla advisors I asked before I got to pick it up told me it comes on all seasons, but they were wrong

 

[Jard]

right, only 21s are staggered. btw, annoyingly, all the Tesla advisors I asked before I got to pick it up told me it comes on all seasons, but they were wrong

Yep, advisor in the store told me all seasons but I called the delivery center today to confirm and they said summers. I really appreciate the replies. I have a delivery date now - December 5.

 

[shellderp]

Yep, advisor in the store told me all seasons but I called the delivery center today to confirm and they said summers. I really appreciate the replies. I have a delivery date now - December 5.

lol even the associate helping me at the delivery center was telling me they are all seasons, as I was pointing at the tire saying they are summers. They have no clue sometimes. Ask if they can swap the tires on delivery. I wouldn't try to get home on the summers, I've heard these ones start sliding around on any amount of snow

 

[meomyo]

how about the nokian WRG4?

Excellent...the sotozero3 were good but wore fast. The book and are better and last longer and work great on colorado snow

 

[MaxTorque]

Excellent...the sotozero3 were good but wore fast. The book and are better and last longer and work great on colorado snow

I have used Nokian WRG4 on my wife's 2015 Jeep and daughter's 2011 VW Jetta; they both hated the poor on-ice handling, so I have switched them back to Nokian Hakkapeliitta R3, which is what I have always had on my 2003 MB S55 AMG and my 2017 Model S. I have driven over 118,000 km in two years and last winter I was in the mountains near Quebec City, and I never had any issues with the Nokian Hakkapeliitta R3; highly recommended.

 

[supratachophobia]

I have used Nokian WRG4 on my wife's 2015 Jeep and daughter's 2011 VW Jetta; they both hated the poor on-ice handling, so I have switched them back to Nokian Hakkapeliitta R3, which is what I have always had on my 2003 MB S55 AMG and my 2017 Model S. I have driven over 118,000 km in two years and last winter I was in the mountains near Quebec City, and I never had any issues with the Nokian Hakkapeliitta R3; highly recommended.

About what is the treadlife on the R3's? I ask because the Ice3's I have are just graduating on their 4th season this year with around 5/32 left heading into the season. They have done 25k miles easy and I've been very pleased.

 

[SmartElectric]

I'm on my 5th winter (2015-2019) with Nokian Hakka R2 over 70000 km of winter driving (ODO is 140000).
They are border line now, and last year were still Ok.
So, I'd say the first 3 years were excellent, followed by Ok, and now border line.

Still, even with "border line" performance, the Hakka R2 right now is much better than the pure summer OEM good years, I switched late last year and the car was bordering on unsafe in conditions colder than 3C. I switched early this year and it's a real relief.

 

[Jard]

I bought a set of 19" WRG4s to mount on the stock wheels for "3 season" use here in the Washington, DC area. I ran the WRG3 SUV on my minivan and the WRG3 on an old Subaru Outback and loved the utility.

I also bought some 21" turbines with summer tires for April - October use.

 

[Ross88]

Just ordered my Model S and will be buying to sets of wheels (summer and winter). do you guys have thoughts of putting on 20" snows, or mostly 19"'s? Thanks

 

[dark cloud]

Just ordered my Model S and will be buying to sets of wheels (summer and winter). do you guys have thoughts of putting on 20" snows, or mostly 19"'s? Thanks

Would you do this for a specific tire size you have in mind? or just because you like the look of the larger wheel?

In theory a 20" tire will give another 0.5" of clearance, given the same width and profile, but hopefully those who have installed that size can comment on whether there are rubbing issues; I know there isn't a lot of distance from my radiator vents to the 19" tire when turning the car in reverse.
You need to investigate which width/profile winter tire fits on the 20" wheel. You don't want to go any larger in overall diameter, and going wider than 245 will give you less traction in winter conditions, (contrary to many uninformed opinions) Here is a calculator to determine this:

Personally I love the looks and aerodynamic advantage of the 19 " Tesla Cyclone wheel, and they are easy to clean to boot, so I have one set with Michelin MXM4's and one set with Nokain WRG4's. In addition to the many recent comments of the WRG4's above I love them because they are almost as good as the Michelin's on dry roads, and probably just as quiet. There are many periods of weeks here when it is still -10 degrees and 2 feet of snow in the ditches but the roads are bare and dry and spirited driving is still desired. I couldn't stand doing this on winter tires because in every corner I can hear and smell the money burning away. In 2013 the Hakkapellita's I bought only lasted me 2 seasons on my Honda Ridgeline, and the P85D has a wee bit more weight and torque.

Imagine being able to buy a snowflake designated (severe winter use) all weather tire (that is not the same as an all-season tire) that has a wear out warranty of 60000 miles, that give up nothing when handling twisty roads, are quiet, and are have a rolling resistance better than most all seasons. That is the WRG4. There is no winter tire that can do that.

 

[Ross88]

Would you do this for a specific tire size you have in mind? or just because you like the look of the larger wheel?

In theory a 20" tire will give another 0.5" of clearance, given the same width and profile, but hopefully those who have installed that size can comment on whether there are rubbing issues; I know there isn't a lot of distance from my radiator vents to the 19" tire when turning the car in reverse.
You need to investigate which width/profile winter tire fits on the 20" wheel. You don't want to go any larger in overall diameter, and going wider than 245 will give you less traction in winter conditions, (contrary to many uninformed opinions) Here is a calculator to determine this:

Personally I love the looks and aerodynamic advantage of the 19 " Tesla Cyclone wheel, and they are easy to clean to boot, so I have one set with Michelin MXM4's and one set with Nokain WRG4's. In addition to the many recent comments of the WRG4's above I love them because they are almost as good as the Michelin's on dry roads, and probably just as quiet. There are many periods of weeks here when it is still -10 degrees and 2 feet of snow in the ditches but the roads are bare and dry and spirited driving is still desired. I couldn't stand doing this on winter tires because in every corner I can hear and smell the money burning away. In 2013 the Hakkapellita's I bought only lasted me 2 seasons on my Honda Ridgeline, and the P85D has a wee bit more weight and torque.

Imagine being able to buy a snowflake designated (severe winter use) all weather tire (that is not the same as an all-season tire) that has a wear out warranty of 60000 miles, that give up nothing when handling twisty roads, are quiet, and are have a rolling resistance better than most all seasons. That is the WRG4. There is no winter tire that can do that.

Thanks. I really love the look of the 20", which was the main reason for considering them.

I was also considering just getting the WRG4's and keeping them on all year round to avoid the hassle of swapping snows and summers. I live in southern NY state and we get hot summers and cold winters, so wasn't sure these would be good enough for all yer driving.

 

[Jard]

2020 Model S Performance being delivered soon and I’m really stuck trying to decide if I should install WRG4s or Pilot AS 3+ on the stock 19s.

I’m in Maryland (DC Metro) and we get snow a few times a year but I can usually just stay home until the roads are cleared. We do drive to the mountains of western PA a few times a year but I don’t think the snow ability of the WRG4s is worth giving up the better performance and steering feel of the Michelins for most days of driving.

What do you all think?

I plan to run 21s with summer tires from April - October.

 

[dark cloud]

2020 Model S Performance being delivered soon and I’m really stuck trying to decide if I should install WRG4s or Pilot AS 3+ on the stock 19s.

I’m in Maryland (DC Metro) and we get snow a few times a year but I can usually just stay home until the roads are cleared. We do drive to the mountains of western PA a few times a year but I don’t think the snow ability of the WRG4s is worth giving up the better performance and steering feel of the Michelins for most days of driving.

What do you all think?

I plan to run 21s with summer tires from April - October.

Tough call. Let me throw a wrench into this and suggest if money is no object have 3 sets? Michelin 21" supersports for 3/4 of the year, AS3+'s for the cold months, and dedicated winters (Alpins, Sottozero's, Hakka's) for the few times you go up the mountain. As long as you have the ability to change the sets on and off quickly. I do it myself in about half an hour so it would no bother for me, but I wouldn't if I had to bring it to someone else and wait (and pay) for them to do it. The downfall is with that little mileage in about 5-7 years the winter tires will actually get old and oxidize before they actually wear out.

If not, then I think chancing putting your brand new Raven in the ditch should supersede the notion of an extra 10% of possible performance the AS3+'s probably give over the WRG4's. (I say probably as I expect it, but haven't tried the AS3+ yet, but I think you would be surprised at how well the WRG4's initiate turns and hold lines)

Here are owners reviews: and here is one of them regarding spirited driving from a vehicle with stiffer suspension than the Raven.

"My wife chose a Mini JCW Countryman AWD for her family / rally car. Nice build with 6 spd manual and no cursed sunroof. I was delighted to find this thing is a rocket. All except for the OE tires. These were rock hard, noisy, poor performing junk. After 6 months of useless talks with Mini, we gave up and bought a set of WR G4s. Being used to fast cars, I was wondering if the Nokians were up to the Minis performance. Indeed they are. Right away turn-in was smooth and positive. Higher speed stability is very good. Tire noise went way down on most surfaces. The ride got a lot better but they do feel like performance tires. I don't mind this at all. Up to about .7 Gs cornering, the steering and grip is similar to top quality performance rubber. Beyond that the tires progressively loose and regain traction, just what you want..."