Tire changes/rotations

IMO, if you have 19" tires, I'd let most any tire store do the work. If you have 21" tires, then I think you need to be more careful. You'll want someone who deals with low profile tires regularly -- not Costco or Sears.

Also, if you have air suspension, you want to help them set that properly for the lift and you may want to know where the lift points are so you can confirm that the store uses them -- but it's not that complicated and they should be able to figure that out.

FYI, I had Tesla do my rotation, and they replaced the rear axle nut washers with an updated version. So you may want to have them do at least one rotation, to address that.

When possible, I always let the dealer to all work while the warranty is in effect.

bollar said:

If you have 21" tires, then I think you need to be more careful. You'll want someone who deals with low profile tires regularly -- not Costco or Sears

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Not even Firestone. They fixed a tire for me and I had a curious vibration starting some time later and lasting for months, until Tesla looked at the car and fixed it.

Apparently you have to mark the wheel position on removal and replace it the same way when you put it back - which I (and evidently FireStone as well) never thought of before. And of course they had the torque wrong as well.

So Tesla only from now on for me.

I agree. Tesla service center until the aftermarket solutions have several years more experience with the MS

Does the Tesla Service Center usually charge for the rotation, alignment, balancing? If so, what have people seen as the cost for tire service at the Tesla Service Centers?

DJ Frustration said:

Does the Tesla Service Center usually charge for the rotation, alignment, balancing? If so, what have people seen as the cost for tire service at the Tesla Service Centers?

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I was charged 125$ to mount and balance aftermarket rims/tires.

I recently booked an appointment to rotate the tires and it is no cost. (I believe I read elsewhere that you can have your tires rotated twice yearly for no cost.)

I like Discount Tires. They have the car in their data base, so know lug nut torque and proper tire pressure.
If you have air suspension, probably ought to ensure they know the jacking procedure.

Puyallup Bill said:

I like Discount Tires. They have the car in their data base, so know lug nut torque and proper tire pressure.
If you have air suspension, probably ought to ensure they know the jacking procedure.

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Just be sure you check the torque and pressure the next morning. I've had both be out pretty far.

I have the 19" tires and I just turned over 5,000 miles. I have a slight wear starting on the rears, on the insides, so based on what I've been reading on this forum I decided to rotate them today. Where did I go? I thought long and hard about this because the rims are so easy to scratch, I was terrified of someone rushing and wrecking them. (Columbus is out of the question.) So at the end of the process I took the car to my trusted mechanic down the street from my house. One great thing about going this route, I was able to assist. I actually did 90% of the work (my choice) so not a scratch was had. (And I learned something LOL!)
Also, it was slow at the shop so I worked with Vince and showed him exactly where the lift pads are and how the car works. He now knows what this car is all about and the care that must be taken working on it. Finally, we looked over the brakes and suspension, so if anybody in the Walled Lake area needs a Model S rotation done, I think you should consider using him.
Vince Camaj, Camaj Auto
120 S Pontiac Trail
248-624-3491
Cheers!

The annual service plan may include rotation/balance at the annual service and again at 6250 miles/6 months. I'm putting about 2000 miles per month on my P85 and just completed the 12,500 service - so I'll find out in about 3 months whether or not the rotation/balance are included in the service plan...

Firestone doesn't have Tesla in their system, I was there getting new tires for an ICE & asked how much they would charge for rotation & alignment, he looked it up & zero info on Tesla.

bollar said:

You'll want someone who deals with low profile tires regularly -- not Costco or Sears.

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What's wrong with Costco?

TTT said:

What's wrong with Costco?

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+1 for Costco. They mounted, balanced, correctly torqued, and N2 filled the tires. I've had dealerships do worse than that.

The only problem I've seen at Costco is that they are insanely busy.

I have the 4-year Service Maintenance contract and had my 19" tires rotated at 5+K miles, courtesy of Tesla. You should check with your local Service Center if they do the courtesy rotation for you prior to your next maintenance.

andrewket said:

The only problem I've seen at Costco is that they are insanely busy.

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And they don't carry tires for 21" Tesla wheels. At least not the Costco near me.