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Winter rim style

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i am hunting for winter rims and rubber. A buddy of mine suggested that I get a tim that is more closed than open (open meaning something like a 5 star where more the rotor etc is exposed) saying that it'll better protect from things like chunks of ice. Anything to this in your opinion?

Not sure where to begin...considering vossen cv2 19/20 with blizzak? Searching the forums to see what others have...maybe just some steelies :cool:
 
I live in the Boston area, so not as much snow as you. But, I haven't had any problems with the factory 19s with some good winter tires. Also, it seems like they are easy to find in the forums as people upgrade their factory rims for sometime a bit nicer / bigger / flashier.

I don't think anything smaller than 19s will clear the rotors and calipers. If you get really lucky, maybe you could find some factory 19" aeros. They have a very closed design, for better aerodynamics.
 
I tried to go the steelie route, as I also think that is the ideal winter wheel. Problem is, no one makes steelies that big.

In whatever you end up getting, if its not factory, be careful. The 19" wheels I bought rubbed against the lower ball joint mount, and the service center had to shave a bit off to prevent rubbing on the wheel.

Chunks of ice are about as likely to damage the rotors and calipers as getting hit by a meteor.

Friends and neighbors tell me blizzaks are great, I know for personal experience the Michelin ice x are also great.
 
I happened to have a loaner Model S with the Aero wheels and winter tires during a big snowstorm last winter. I had a problem. Snow/ice would get packed in to the narrow opening between the hubcap-like center of the wheel and the outer circumference throwing the balance off. I would have to get my ice scraper out and try to pry the snow out of that little slit of an opening. Personally, I would recommend a more open design, or one that is completely closed off like a steel rim (if you can find one). Big fan ot the Nokian Hakka R2 tires that I put on my own car.
 
I happened to have a loaner Model S with the Aero wheels and winter tires during a big snowstorm last winter. I had a problem. Snow/ice would get packed in to the narrow opening between the hubcap-like center of the wheel and the outer circumference throwing the balance off. I would have to get my ice scraper out and try to pry the snow out of that little slit of an opening. Personally, I would recommend a more open design, or one that is completely closed off like a steel rim (if you can find one). Big fan ot the Nokian Hakka R2 tires that I put on my own car.
That's a good point. I've had snow/ice packed into wheels that'll through off the balance. If you don't know what's going on, it can be pretty disconcerting.

I've never had it happen on steel wheels, only alloys with open spaces. Fewer spokes is probably better, since it'll be easier to clean out on the side of the road.

I have several friends who really like the Hakka R2's. I'll probably switch to them after my current winter tires wear out. I wish Tire Rack would carry them.
 
I ordered my rims and TPMS from Tire Rack and simply took them to a local tire dealer who sells Nokians and had them installed there.
Yes, I'm just being lazy. I haven't bought tires anywhere else in so long, I'm not sure where I'd find R2's locally. Probably doesn't matter; I went to the basement during lunch and looked at my snows in storage, and they're still in decent shape. The Mini's were the worst, but should still be good for another season.
 
I happened to have a loaner Model S with the Aero wheels and winter tires during a big snowstorm last winter. I had a problem. Snow/ice would get packed in to the narrow opening between the hubcap-like center of the wheel and the outer circumference throwing the balance off. I would have to get my ice scraper out and try to pry the snow out of that little slit of an opening. Personally, I would recommend a more open design, or one that is completely closed off like a steel rim (if you can find one). Big fan ot the Nokian Hakka R2 tires that I put on my own car.

Where are you buying them? Will the service center month them?
 
Had the OEM 19s the first winter. Other than the Goodyear tires being a problem, I don't recall any specific problem with the wheels. For the second winter, I had the Rial Luganos and the Michelin Xi3 tires. A little bit more snow between the spokes, but the performance of the tires was so much better that if the wheels were any problem, I didn't notice it when compared to the previous year.
 
Where are you buying them? Will the service center month them?

I bought the Nokian Hakka R2s from a local tire dealer and had them remove the stock Goodyears from the stock Tesla rims and install them on those. Over the winter (last year) I bought Rial Lugano rims and TPMS from Tire Rack and had them delivered to my home. I had the same tire shop mount my previously removed Goodyears on to the new Rial rims and balance them. In the spring, I did the seasonal swap myself.

I like the look of the turbine Rials (although I like the Tsportlines better, but they weren't on the market when I bought the Rials) and want them for the summer where they will be on the car longer. I will run the winter tires on the Tesla stock 19" rims from mid-November until early April.
 
Thanks mknox - I am planning to get my stock 19" rims powder coated (a'la 21" grays) and then mount the R2s in late November and use that config until end of March.
I think the stock 19" or the Tsportline or the Rials would all be fine. For my purposes the main concern is rain, so got some shiny rims and Michelin all season wheels like so:
new rims.jpg