Welcome to Tesla Motors Club
Discuss Tesla's Model S, Model 3, Model X, Model Y, Cybertruck, Roadster and More.
Register

Think I found replacement lug nuts for the 21" wheels

This site may earn commission on affiliate links.
To be blunt the lug nuts for the 21" wheels are junk. They have a stainless foil cap of some kind that is easy to damage. After much searching I found these, which seem to be an exact match but solid steel. They could be chrome plated I'm guessing. I've ordered a pair to try them out. If they work I'll post confirmation.

413ldpmScIL.jpg
 
To be blunt the lug nuts for the 21" wheels are junk. They have a stainless foil cap of some kind that is easy to damage. After much searching I found these, which seem to be an exact match but solid steel. They could be chrome plated I'm guessing. I've ordered a pair to try them out. If they work I'll post confirmation.


They say steel/stainless steel dometop which leads me to think they are two piece jobs.
 
Thx, great idea.

A couple of mine were mangled... by Tesla service center replacing a blowout winter 2012/13. They replaced them with a smile - but since I've now bought aftermarket winter wheels/tires that SC will no longer rotate, I'm gonna have others touching the lug nuts once a year, and it's just a matter of time before they get mangled again.

Looking forward to your findings!
 
To be blunt the lug nuts for the 21" wheels are junk. They have a stainless foil cap of some kind that is easy to damage. After much searching I found these, which seem to be an exact match but solid steel. They could be chrome plated I'm guessing. I've ordered a pair to try them out. If they work I'll post confirmation.

View attachment 56891

Probably won't help, but I see that the T-Sportline folks sell caps for the TM lug nuts (more specifically to color match their wheels). Would this suffice?
 
Probably won't help, but I see that the T-Sportline folks sell caps for the TM lug nuts (more specifically to color match their wheels). Would this suffice?

Caps won't do the trick.

- - - Updated - - -

Curious to see what you find. Someone on TMC also recommended these, but I have not had a chance to try them out: Amazon.com: Gorilla Automotive 61147CX Chrome 13/16 (14mm x 1.50 Thread Size) Hex Lug Nut, (Pack of 4): Automotive

Those look like they'd work too. Ordered a set to try them out as well. I mangled two of my Tesla lug nuts yesterday and managed to get them back and properly torqued but with great difficulty. So I have to replace at least two. If these work I'll replace them all.

- - - Updated - - -

They say steel/stainless steel dometop which leads me to think they are two piece jobs.

They are most certainly two piece and that's the problem. If the socket is not perfectly placed over the stainless cap it's very easy to mangle them.
 
Last edited:
Perhaps they don't show rust as quickly when they are capped with stainless steel. I wonder if chrome lugs just don't hold up to modern tire shops with their ubiquitous impact wrenches. Some people say that stainless steel is prone to galling. With high torque settings, I suppose there could also be a problem with different "stretch" characteristics between lug and stud.
 
To test the fit, I installed four of the Gorilla Automotive 61147CX Chrome 13/16" (14mm x 1.50 Thread Size) Hex Lug Nuts on one wheel today. The fit was perfect, so I've placed an order for another 16 and will replace all of the stock lug nuts.

Here's a side-by-side comparison of the stock Tesla nuts and the Gorilla ones. The cone tapers are exactly the same but the Gorilla cones extend further, probably because they don't require the small rim for the easy-to-damge stainless cap.


DSC_5425.JPG



As you can see the stainless caps on the two piece Tesla lug nut are all buggered up. Why Tesla puts such junk on expensive wheels is beyond me, but the Gorilla nuts are $11.85 for a set of four, so replacing all of the Tesla nuts will cost about $60, well worth the savings in the anxiety the Tesla nuts create when they get banged up and are difficult to remove or tighten down.

Here are the four Gorilla nuts on one wheel. One stock lug nut shows.

DSC_5427.JPG
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: Letin and morrisdl