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Wheel color opinions needed...

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I ordered a P85 black on black MS with the 21's and am going back and forth on the factory "dk grey" wheels or powder coating the wheels in gloss or matte black. I though that the grey wheels would look kind of off on a black car but I have seen so many pics of the cars with the grey wheels and from a far they look really nice. I am thinking that black wheels (either gloss or matte) will look best on a black car...your thoughts and input would be appreciated. But dont reply if you just like the silver wheels because I hate silver wheels...looks too "stock" for me. I also planon doing a CF wrap on the door handles and of course tinted windows.
 
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I think you will ultimately get many different opinions since the decision to powder coat them black is obviously very subjective. There is thread that might interest you about powder coating the stock 19" inch rims.

Powder Coating Wheels

Personally, I like the contrast between the black finish and painted dark grey performance rims so that combination would get my vote. That said, I saw a silver Cayenne as a display vehicle at my local Costco yesterday with gloss black rims and it looked great. There is also the philosophical difference between painted and powder coated rims. I'm not an expert by any means but from what I have read the powder coated rims are more durable with chipping but are subject to high temperatures and in theory can lose some structural integrity.

I am leaning towards a gray model S with the standard 19" rims and powder coating them either gunmetal grey or black. Hope that helps...
 
My ordered P85 car is black/black with the dark grey wheels. I saw a photo shoot of that car on AutoBlog and was sold (link below). For a moment I thought about going all black like you're considering, but I ruled it out mostly for the hassle of dealing with the swap. The Tesla grey wheel is also darker than most grey wheels I've seen. I also thought it might look a little too flashy since I frequently take clients in my car, particularly after tinting (which I plan on doing as well). If you go for it, I'd lean toward matte over gloss black. My 911 is Arctic Silver with a black interior and matte black wheels, and I think it looks fantastic.

http://www.autoblog.com/photos/2012-tesla-model-s-first-drive/#photo-5273215/
 
Laguna,

Have you actually seen and touched the grey wheels from Tesla at your local Tesla boutique? I did, and the grey on the wheels is not that dark...they are more of a true grey as opposed to a dark gunmetal grey which I prefer. The paint also reminds me of the grey of a battle ship...its kind of a muted grey. However, the link on autoblog does make them look nice although a bit deceiving since i just dont think that the wheels are as dark as they appear online. If i get gloss black they will match the paint and front grill...if i get matte black they might be a much nicer contrast? Hmmmmm....decisions decisions.

P.S. I have a place in Los Angles that will powder coat the wheels in either matte or gloss for only $200 per wheel!
 
I ordered a P85 black on black MS with the 21's and am going back and forth on the factory "dk grey" wheels or powder coating the wheels in gloss or matte black. I though that the grey wheels would look kind of off on a black car but I have seen so many pics of the cars with the grey wheels and from a far they look really nice. I am thinking that black wheels (either gloss or matte) will look best on a black car...your thoughts and input would be appreciated. But dont reply if you just like the silver wheels because I hate silver wheels...looks too "stock" for me. I also planon doing a CF wrap on the door handles and of course tinted windows.
The grey wheels certainly work great with the black finish, but matte black wheels would be the coolest - especially with the other mods you plan on doing.
 
Have you actually seen and touched the grey wheels from Tesla at your local Tesla boutique?

I have, and I guess it just seemed on the darker side to me. My CLS550 has graphite factory wheels and I had my '94 Defender 90's wheels refinished in the same grey, both of which are a little lighter than the Tesla color. If you're willing to spend the money and deal with a little downtime while they're being done, I say go for the matte black and post some pics!
 
If it was me, I’d also go for this look (as referenced above):

wheel.jpg


Image Credit: Copyright 2012 Drew Phillips / AOL
Through: 2012 Tesla Model S [w/video] First Drive

…because I too prefer some contrast between the wheels and the body if the car is going to be black.

Full disclosure: Ideally I’d want an electric car the size of the new Audi A3 Sportback (assuming that it's possible to fit two rear-facing child seats in the backseat). And I would personally pick a silver metallic in order to have the coolest car possible during the warm summer months (as in a not scorching hot car...).
 
I helped a buddy plasti-dip his wheels and 1) it took forever to do a good job and 2) it got chipped from road debris after the first day. This is just my single experience so take it FWIW.

My son and I did his. Took 6 coats, 20 minutes between coats. So far, has lasted 6 months in Minnesota weather. Chips can be fixed easily by a simple respray. The best part is low cost and option to change colors as often as you like.
 
That said, I saw a silver Cayenne as a display vehicle at my local Costco yesterday with gloss black rims and it looked great.

You're fancy. I get Kia's on display at my Costco :)

I'd go for the grey, given the option. I'll be getting the 19's because I'm not getting the perf, and didn't really want the silver 21's, so I either have to pay the $5200 from the Tesla store (not happening), or trade mine with a perf owner that doesn't want/need their grey 21's.
 
Have you actually seen and touched the grey wheels from Tesla at your local Tesla boutique? I did, and the grey on the wheels is not that dark...they are more of a true grey as opposed to a dark gunmetal grey which I prefer. !

i thought the same thing when i saw them in person at the Tesla store. not very dark. HOWEVER, i've seen some pics on this website and sometimes they look damn near black. very odd.

i think the amount of ambient light on them makes a big diff. i.e. in a well-lit store or under intense sunlight, they look lighter. but at dusk/night, or cloudy skies, they look darker.
 
Mine came with the grey 21" wheels and I was pleasantly surprised to see that the Tesla logo is highlighted in silver. Nice touch. Also, my car came with the Michelin Pilot Sport tires.

Nice! Fingers crossed that I get this lucky. I have Michelin Pilot Sport PS2s on my 911 and they're excellent tires (and should be for the price). You probably have the new Pilot 'Super Sport', which my tire shop contact said is Michelin's PS2 replacement. The reviews seem to indicate that they are even better tires than the already impressive PS2. The big downside is cost to replace, as the 19" Porsche set is about $1500 for Pilot Super Sports and likely more for the Tesla's 21" size. Strangely they're actually *less* expensive than PS2s they're replacing, so I'm not complaining. But I'm sure anyone moving to a Tesla from something like a Prius will faint when they go for their first replacement and get a quote.
 
My ordered P85 car is black/black with the dark grey wheels. I saw a photo shoot of that car on AutoBlog and was sold (link below). For a moment I thought about going all black like you're considering, but I ruled it out mostly for the hassle of dealing with the swap. The Tesla grey wheel is also darker than most grey wheels I've seen. I also thought it might look a little too flashy since I frequently take clients in my car, particularly after tinting (which I plan on doing as well). If you go for it, I'd lean toward matte over gloss black. My 911 is Arctic Silver with a black interior and matte black wheels, and I think it looks fantastic.

http://www.autoblog.com/photos/2012-tesla-model-s-first-drive/#photo-5273215/

Yes, but those shots are done in such a way that the wheels practically look black. I saw the grey wheels and I don't think they *quite* work the way one would expect against the black (in particular they aren't really that dark). I have the silver 21s against the black (on black with CF) and I can tell you that they look freakin' amazing. I suspect it will work either way, but be aware that the grey wheels aren't actually all that dark.

The greys look GREAT on the dolphin grey, BTW. They actually match quite well, or at least they did on the one I saw....
 
I'm rather glad I went with the brighter, silver wheels -- after I managed to curb (2 separate incidents in the first week or two) 3 of the wheels, the shiny metal didn't show as badly. :)

And yes, given the amount of actual rubber in one of those 21" tires, one would think the tires would be a bit cheaper. :)