Winter wheel/tire strategy

[pkalhan]

Hello Everyone,

I hope you all have a nice Memorial Day weekend! I have a question that I was hoping one of you more experienced individuals would be able to answer for me. I have always had an SUV that was AWD so I never purchased winter tires before. The Model 3 will be my first car that I purchase that is not AWD so I think it is best to purchase a set on winter tires. My question is, can I get by with just having 1 set of wheels and a set of summer and winter tires or is it better to have two sets of wheels with summer tires on one set and winter tires on another?

I was originally planning on getting the Model 3 with the sport wheels and getting winter tires for them, but I have seen many people say they will get the OEM 18s for winter and an aftermarket for the summer. I am wondering if I should also go that route. With my original plan, would I incur an addition cost of rebalancing the tires also where just getting another set of wheels would eliminate this cost?

Apologies if this is a silly question, I am just not knowledgable about this topic.

Thanks In Advance

 

[Tony_YYZ]

I'd say you're better off with two sets of rims/tires. I'm planning on using my Aero wheels as winters and then buying a new set of rims next summer. I'll either go with 18" rims as again and wrap them with the original tires that I take off of the Aeros or go with 19" rims and wrap them in Pilot Sport 4S tires.

I mean, either way you are storing a second set. Tesla seems to charge a reasonable price for the bundled 18"/winter tire package. That's worth looking into for you.

 

[TT97]

This was just answered on another thread yesterday by @Knightshade :

Just got 20" performance wheels installed on my Model 3!

 

[ModelNforNerd]

I'd say you're better off with two sets of rims/tires. I'm planning on using my Aero wheels as winters and then buying a new set of rims next summer. I'll either go with 18" rims as again and wrap them with the original tires that I take off of the Aeros or go with 19" rims and wrap them in Pilot Sport 4S tires.

I mean, either way you are storing a second set. Tesla seems to charge a reasonable price for the bundled 18"/winter tire package. That's worth looking into for you.

I'm doing the same thing, except I might go with the TST 19's with Pilot Sport 4S's on them.

19

 

[pkalhan]

@TT97 thanks for that, much appreciated.

 

[mspohr]

Hello Everyone,

I hope you all have a nice Memorial Day weekend! I have a question that I was hoping one of you more experienced individuals would be able to answer for me. I have always had an SUV that was AWD so I never purchased winter tires before. The Model 3 will be my first car that I purchase that is not AWD so I think it is best to purchase a set on winter tires. My question is, can I get by with just having 1 set of wheels and a set of summer and winter tires or is it better to have two sets of wheels with summer tires on one set and winter tires on another?

I was originally planning on getting the Model 3 with the sport wheels and getting winter tires for them, but I have seen many people say they will get the OEM 18s for winter and an aftermarket for the summer. I am wondering if I should also go that route. With my original plan, would I incur an addition cost of rebalancing the tires also where just getting another set of wheels would eliminate this cost?

Apologies if this is a silly question, I am just not knowledgable about this topic.

Thanks In Advance

I live in an area with lots of winter snow and have always had a separate set of wheels with winter tires. It is much easier (and cheaper) to change over on my schedule than try to beat the scrum at the gas station when the first snow flies. I just happened to change over to summer wheels/tires a few days ago and it took less than an hour. I bought the winter wheel/tire package from Tesla when the car was new. It also saves the cost of mounting and balancing each year. I had three years use of the winter tires so that's three times mounting and balancing. Also, I don't trust the local places to do a proper jack point lift and torque of the wheels.
Good to get separate winter tires (even for your SUV) since winter tires are much better on ice and snow ("all season" tires just aren't very good).

 

[nvx1977]

Last winter I drove our Model S RWD w/ all season tires in some serious snow. It was a lot of fun, but not for everyone. There are definitely conditions where traction can be poor and driving skill is needed. Granted I was pushing it. In minor slushy roads, the RWD + all-seasion tires are solid.

This winter, I've decided to get winter tires for both S and 3 because I've read enough to be convinced that winter tires are amazing, and my wife probably doesn't want to deal with any stressful slippage situations. That said, she did just fine last winter.

My long time ICE mechanic recommended to just get a new set of rims for the winter tires rather than unmount/remount on one set. Not good for the wheel. I just bought a set of refurbished stock wheels for the S. Nothing like that exists for the 3 yet, but maybe by fall there might be something. I like the idea of having aero covers during the winter as well. Otherwise, I'm planning to get a clearance set from tirerack.com and have them mount the TPMS and tires.

And I plan to buy a floor jack, a breaker bar, and a torque wrench and do the swap myself.

 

[VT_EE]

I’m ordering the Sport wheels with the Model 3 and buying Tesla’s 18” winter wheel/tire package for winter. Their price for the aero wheels with tires is pretty good.

 

[mspohr]

And I plan to buy a floor jack, a breaker bar, and a torque wrench and do the swap myself.

Also get a 3" extension for the torque wrench to clear the spokes and fender.
That's all you need to DIY.

 

[ModelNforNerd]

Last winter I drove our Model S RWD w/ all season tires in some serious snow. It was a lot of fun, but not for everyone. There are definitely conditions where traction can be poor and driving skill is needed. Granted I was pushing it. In minor slushy roads, the RWD + all-seasion tires are solid.

This winter, I've decided to get winter tires for both S and 3 because I've read enough to be convinced that winter tires are amazing, and my wife probably doesn't want to deal with any stressful slippage situations. That said, she did just fine last winter.

My long time ICE mechanic recommended to just get a new set of rims for the winter tires rather than unmount/remount on one set. Not good for the wheel. I just bought a set of refurbished stock wheels for the S. Nothing like that exists for the 3 yet, but maybe by fall there might be something. I like the idea of having aero covers during the winter as well. Otherwise, I'm planning to get a clearance set from tirerack.com and have them mount the TPMS and tires.

And I plan to buy a floor jack, a breaker bar, and a torque wrench and do the swap myself.

You and I are practically neighbors. I'm getting the 18s w/aeros from the factory, and giving the aftermarket (and Tesla) time to catch up with some options for next spring/summer.

I figure, around here, even if i did get it shipped w/summer wheels and tires on it, I'd have to take them off in a month/month and a half anyway (my window is early Aug-Mid Sept).

I'll have my tax credit money burning a hole in my pocket when they add new wheel options.....

this car is going to have a lot more options than the S did. aftermarket OEM's are going to want to cash in, too.

 

[pkalhan]

I’m ordering the Sport wheels with the Model 3 and buying Tesla’s 18” winter wheel/tire package for winter. Their price for the aero wheels with tires is pretty good.

I did not think of their winter package. I just checked their site and the price is not bad for the 18s. Thanks for your post, I think I will go this route!

 

[tmwilkin]

For me in the Indiana area we tend to get more ice, less snow and a ton of big pot holes. If I could only afford winter tires or AWD I would always go winter tires IMO, better stopping power in the cold. WIth that said 18" er's with thicker side walls is a better option as the roads end up rougher with more holes .

So for me I'll be getting a dedicated set of rims with permanent mounted winter tires.

 

[nvx1977]

You and I are practically neighbors. I'm getting the 18s w/aeros from the factory, and giving the aftermarket (and Tesla) time to catch up with some options for next spring/summer.

I figure, around here, even if i did get it shipped w/summer wheels and tires on it, I'd have to take them off in a month/month and a half anyway (my window is early Aug-Mid Sept).

I'll have my tax credit money burning a hole in my pocket when they add new wheel options.....

this car is going to have a lot more options than the S did. aftermarket OEM's are going to want to cash in, too.

And we practically have the same cars. Our S is a CPO 2014 as well.

I might just wait till 2019 to get the winter wheel set for model 3. Was planning for OEM or anything that could accept the aero caps.

 

[Snow Drift]

It is cheaper to get the OEM 18’s and just swap tires.

That’s what I do for our Crosstrek. All-Seasons come off, and Blizzak snow tires go on. It’s about $125 or less twice a year.

For my STI since the stockers are 19” summer tires, I have a set of 18s with snow tires.

New rims, new TPMS sensors and the hassle of figuring out radio codes is expensive annoying.

PS, these are both AWD cars and snow tires make them a blast to drive in snow. All-seasons suck at everything, comparatively.

 

[galbrecht7]

For those that responded they have done this previously with a complete 2nd set of rims/tires... Where do you store the other set when not in use??

 

[pkalhan]

For those that responded they have done this previously with a complete 2nd set of rims/tires... Where do you store the other set when not in use??

I would think in their garage, right? That is where I was planning on storing mine.

 

[galbrecht7]

I would think in their garage, right? That is where I was planning on storing mine.

Yeah, I was thinking I could try to squeeze them in there. I have a tight 2 car garage that, as of tomorrow (my delivery date!), will have two cars in it. I’m thinking there won’t be much extra room. I also have a crawl space area under my porch that might have room. It’ll get hot in the summer & cold in the winter, but I guess as long as I wrap or cover them properly, they’ll be fine.

 

[Aellinsar]

It is cheaper to get the OEM 18’s and just swap tires.

That’s what I do for our Crosstrek. All-Seasons come off, and Blizzak snow tires go on. It’s about $125 or less twice a year.

For my STI since the stockers are 19” summer tires, I have a set of 18s with snow tires.

New rims, new TPMS sensors and the hassle of figuring out radio codes is expensive annoying.

PS, these are both AWD cars and snow tires make them a blast to drive in snow. All-seasons suck at everything, comparatively.

Depending how long you own the car, that $200-250 per year can buy an extra set of wheels. Swapping my own only takes ~30 minutes and I can do it on my schedule, so for that reason I like swapping wheels on my own instead of taking the car to a shop.

I just have the spare wheels stacked int he garage next to the firewood.

 

[mspohr]

For those that responded they have done this previously with a complete 2nd set of rims/tires... Where do you store the other set when not in use??

I have room in the garage.
The Tesla winter tire set came with a nice set of covers.

 

[rtanov]

For those that responded they have done this previously with a complete 2nd set of rims/tires... Where do you store the other set when not in use??

Tires are like potatoes - they need to be stored in a cool and dark place A garage that gets hot is therefore not the ideal storage place, a basement would be better if possible. I store mine in the basement, in black bags, away from the HVAC as the electric motors generate ozone which eats the rubber. Nevertheless, when they come to their 4-th season the traction is deteriorated very noticeably.