Winter tires for 18” Aeros

[torch0395]

Because of Tesla backorder on winter tires, I was thinking of buying the Amazon.com: Buying Choices: Nokian Hakkapeliitta R3 Snow Winter Tire - 235/45R18 98T

If I just buy tires, should I buy wheels too? And if I should buy wheels, which cost effective wheels should I buy? Lastly, if I do all of this work buying on my own, will a tire shop want to switch it out even if I didn’t buy anything from them?

Thanks!

 

[vletnguyen]

tired to break down your questions in order.

1. I bought the r3 from discount tires at $200 each.
2. You don't have to buy wheels but it does make it easier to swap when it warms up. I did not buy rims yet, just swapped the tires.
3. You can get the oem 18" aero rims from tesla for ~$200 each without the TPMS or aero cap. ( you will need TPMS with rims anyway) not the most cost effective, but keeps the same look and oem quality.
4. They will charge you ~$20 to mount tires on each wheel/rim; if you have tires/wheels, some places just charge for tire rotation, again ~$20.

 

[squash1978]

If you decide you want dedicated winter wheels but feel the need to get winter tires put on your car ASAP, you could have the winter tires mounted onto your current wheels and then take your time over the winter searching for an extra set of wheels to re-mount your all seasons on. With a little patience and some searching around, you can find folks selling their aero wheels in the For Sale section here for a good deal.

 

[cbrigante2]

I know this will sound like a stupid question. If you just buy the tires and swap them on your aero wheels, how do you get the all seasons home for storage? Do they fit in the Model 3 with the seats folded down?

 

[yyzbig6]

I know this will sound like a stupid question. If you just buy the tires and swap them on your aero wheels, how do you get the all seasons home for storage? Do they fit in the Model 3 with the seats folded down?

Yes they fit in trunk + back seats. That’s what I did. Make sure you or the shop have some plastic bags to keep your car clean.

 

[cbrigante2]

Oh for sure on the plastic to stay clean! Lol

 

[Kevin_Freeman]

Are Nokian Hakkapeliitta R3 in size 235/45/18 available in the midwest? Local Discount Tire told me they were sold out of production for the season - maybe they wanted to upsell something else. Amazon link in first post also indicates out of stock.

 

[rtanov]

Are Nokian Hakkapeliitta R3 in size 235/45/18 available in the midwest? Local Discount Tire told me they were sold out of production for the season - maybe they wanted to upsell something else. Amazon link in first post also indicates out of stock.

Did you try their dealer locator page - it lists a lot of dealers around Chicago, some of these might have them.
Dealer locator - Find your retailer / Nokian Tires

 

[torch0395]

Are Nokian Hakkapeliitta R3 in size 235/45/18 available in the midwest? Local Discount Tire told me they were sold out of production for the season - maybe they wanted to upsell something else. Amazon link in first post also indicates out of stock.

Yup my tire shop said the same thing.

 

[MJB-CO]

I just had winter tires/wheels mounted last weekend:

1. Tesla 18" Aero wheels from Tesla
2. Michelin X-ICE XI3 - SIZE: 235/45R18 - had these on my Audi A4 Avant for 7 winters. They have excellent snow & ice traction, better than the performance winter tires I had before. They're just not rated for 130 mph. On the M3 they're just as quiet as the all season OEM tires and with 47 PSI pressure I'm getting equivalent range and excellent handling.
3. Seasonal Tire Totes for easier storage and initial transport (after mounting) of off-season tires.

 

[SageBrush]

I ordered 235/45 x 18" Hakki R3 and inexpensive wheels from Discounttire.com (DT) on Black Friday and was told the following week that the wheels are discontinued and the Hakki are out of stock. Can you say bait & switch ?

To the local store's credit (I think; we shall see), they found the next cheapest wheels they have and agreed to charge me the cost of my original order wheel cost. As for the tyres, they found x-ice 225/50 18" that I agreed to for about $30 less per tyre than the $200 per tyre Hakki R3.

The switch works out to 4* (173+85) per set, excluding lug nuts, installation and tax. If my black friday promo is accepted then I'll receive 20% in rebates and end up paying 0.8 * 4* (173+85) = $825 for the set. DT wants to charge $21*4 for installation and $55 for lug nuts. I'm inclined to buy the lug nuts online and go to a cheaper place for the installation. That is my plan so long as I am confident of the lug nuts needed and DT does not discount these additional fees and doodads.

 

[Lasttoy]

First find a small local tire shop who will mount for reasonable price. I pay $20 each.
Then make the decision whether u want 2 sets, (i have 2, because i go up north in winter)
Then call Tire Rack. I've bought 2 sets from them. 50% cheaper than any dealer.

 

[pdxev]

I ordered the Hakka R3s and had them mounted last month. There are several "upsell" or "bait and switch" comments on here. Just wanted to point out:
1. Nokians snow tires are some of the most expensive tires out there. If they don't have them, they are usually "downselling" you.
2. Winter tires are seasonal and often sell out. If you are interested in buying them, you really need to order them in the fall. Otherwise, options might be limited. It is a logistics issue. Tires have a shelf life and nobody wants to hold on to unused inventory for another year.

 

[ViperDoc]

I just had winter tires/wheels mounted last weekend:

1. Tesla 18" Aero wheels from Tesla
2. Michelin X-ICE XI3 - SIZE: 235/45R18 -

I went with these a couple of weeks ago also and an happy with them so far.

 

[Shopaholic]

I want to thank "torch0395" for the Amazon link! I hope it is real and expected delivery 12/14. Hope they wouldn't say "sorry out of stock"\

I ordered 235/45 x 18" Hakki R3 and inexpensive wheels from Discounttire.com (DT) on Black Friday and was told the following week that the wheels are discontinued and the Hakki are out of stock. Can you say bait & switch ?

Same here and I just cancelled my order and waiting to see if Amazon order is filled -@122$ with no tax is better than the 20% off of 200 at Discount tire.

 

[Thomas Edison]

How much better are the XI3 vs the R3? I live on a curvy hill that can get pretty icy.

 

[BTaylor32185]

How much better are the XI3 vs the R3? I live on a curvy hill that can get pretty icy.

I'd say that the Nokian Hakka R3s are the best studdless winter tire but the X-Ice i3s are an excellent alternative if you can't find the R3s in stock or want to save a little bit of money.

 

[tyguy]

If you plan to have the tires re-mounted each season, meaning using the same wheels for both summer and winter tires, then I recommend quizzing the shop on how they protect the wheel from damage. The pry bar and mounting head can be a little rough on the finish, as can the wheel weight removal tools.

 

[Shopaholic]

Finally got tires installed and also test fitted the TRAK Chains. Hope I don’t need to use them !

 

[ivan801]

One additional thing to consider is that getting additional set of wheels means that you will have to lift wheel and tire combination out of the car and into wherever you plan to store them. That's about 40 LB. Not a big deal for most, but for some people it may be a big deal.