Pothole took out two of my tires, what to expect next?

kirkbauer · Nov 29, 2015

OK, so unfortunately I hit a pothole and it took out two of my 21" tires. Roadside assistance paid for the first 50 miles of getting my vehicle to the Marietta Service Center, but they are closed today. I wanted to put together a game plan for what to ask when I call them tomorrow.

Hopefully there was no structural damage since I wasn't going very fast (<30mph) so assuming not then obviously I'm going to need two new tires and a front alignment (since it was the front-right and rear-right tires I lost). I was actually going to go in for a tire rotation on Friday (almost 4000 miles on my P85D) because I noticed the front tires seemed to be wearing more on the outside than on the inside. Should I have them put the new tires in the front or the back?

Now on to the rims (21" chrome cyclone). One of them has a minor scrape and the other has a more major scrape (pic below shows the worst of the two). Can the Tesla Service Center fix these at all? Or is my choice either new rims or leave them alone? Should I just get Tesla to get my car on the road again and then take it in to see somebody who specializes in repairing rims? Is it possible I'd have to replace one of the wheels, if so anybody know the cost?

Sorry, kind of vague, I have never had this serious of a tire incident before. If you are interested here is the dashcam footage (in my defense it was really dark and not as obvious as it seems in hindsight in the footage, in my mind it registered as a hole that had been filled, not an open hole): I drive right over a nasty pothole in my Model S

- YouTube.

PS - not sure what subforum to post this to, moderators please feel free to move.

Made in CA · Nov 29, 2015

Sorry you banged up your wheels. We have 21's also and are nervous about this happening. Fortunately here in SoCal the potholes are relatively small.

If it is only cosmetic damage then you could consider leaving them as-is. There are also used 21's advertised. You could get one or two to use while you have your wheel(s) repaired. I am considering buying one and have a tire mounted on it. I would keep it in the garage as a spare. We have two MS's and are about 50 miles from the SC.

Good luck.

jerry33 · Nov 29, 2015

Or you might look into getting 19" wheels and tires. Far less expensive in the long run, better looking, and when equipped with proper tires, no handling loss. (There will be a slightly less crisp feeling in steering due to the longer sidewalls.)

kirkbauer · Nov 29, 2015

jerry33 said:
Or you might look into getting 19" wheels and tires. Far less expensive in the long run, better looking, and when equipped with proper tires, no handling loss. (There will be a slightly less crisp feeling in steering due to the longer sidewalls.)

Thanks! I'm not ready to give up on the 21" wheels yet (I do think they look better), potholes are really not too common in my usual driving, I just need to be more careful on road trips at night. I'm just looking for tips other than buying four new wheels.

Caligula · Nov 29, 2015

Call a local wheel repair place. Some are even mobile and come to you. Send the picture and have an estimate done. If it's repairable, it'll only be and few hundred to fix versus thousands to replace, and they will look good as new. Of course if it'still dented or warped, you'll need new units.

Made in CA · Nov 29, 2015

I am no expert but, based on your picture, it looks like it is only cosmetic. It does not look bent. I have seen much worse.

If you confirm this you might consider getting a bottle of the silver wheel touch up paint and see how it looks. Worse case is you are out $20 for the paint and get them repaired anyway.

Merrill · Nov 29, 2015

You will need to make sure the wheels are not bent or cracked and are true, if they are not replace the tires and do your own repair. Get some 80 and 150 grit sand paper and sand down the affected area, once smooth use some 0000 steel wool and smooth out the area. Then tape off the rim below the curb rash and spray with clear acrylic paint. If you want a better job have a specialist repair them $150 to $200 in most areas.

Caligula · Nov 29, 2015

Any tire place can tell you if it's bent or not by putting it on a balancer. FYI. Not sure if a tire actually needs to be on the rim when they check though. I Don't see why it would, however.

sorka · Nov 29, 2015

Since the OP had to be towed, the wheels were obviously bent to the point of not being drive-able.

If bent, repaired wheels are never as strong and will most likely bend even easier on a much smaller pothole.

Caligula · Nov 29, 2015

sorka said:
Since the OP had to be towed, the wheels were obviously bent to the point of not being drive-able.

If bent, repaired wheels are never as strong and will most likely bend even easier on a much smaller pothole.

OP insinuated that the tow was over 50 miles ("Roadside assistance paid for the first 50 miles of getting my vehicle to the Marietta Service Center"). At most, runflat tires are good for 50 miles of travel as long as you never exceed 50 MPH. This is obviously outside those recommended parameters, and on top of this he had two flats... not just one. Towing was really the only option, bent rim or not.

kirkbauer · Nov 29, 2015

First of all I didn't even know that I had runflats on my MS, do I? I have the Continentals that came with my P85D. I had no idea I could have kept driving (if that's true). Both tires had zero pressure and the vehicle told me to pull over immediately. I don't think this is related to any potential damage to the rims.

Once I pulled over I called roadside assistance and they sent the tow truck, there was never any discussion of me continuing to drive.

Lawsteve · Nov 29, 2015

kirkbauer said:
First of all I didn't even know that I had runflats on my MS, do I? I have the Continentals that came with my P85D. I had no idea I could have kept driving (if that's true). Both tires had zero pressure and the vehicle told me to pull over immediately. I don't think this is related to any potential damage to the rims.

Once I pulled over I called roadside assistance and they sent the tow truck, there was never any discussion of me continuing to drive.

you do not have run flats, so driving was not an option. Need to have the wheels checked to see if they are bent. I had a hard hit on my right side several months ago. The tires did not pop, but a few weeks later I was experiencing a slow leak. I discovered both rims were bent.

they are expensive to replace, but my insurance covered the loss (including two new tires and an alignment). Nave the rims checked and, if necessary, then call your auto insurance carrier.

good luck.

Lloyd · Nov 29, 2015

Quick google check found multiple rim repair operations in the atlanta area.

https://www.google.com/#q=mobile+wheel+repair+atlanta

stopcrazypp · Nov 29, 2015

sorka said:
Since the OP had to be towed, the wheels were obviously bent to the point of not being drive-able.

If bent, repaired wheels are never as strong and will most likely bend even easier on a much smaller pothole.

Thought the OP can't drive because both tires were blown out, not necessarily that the rims were bent. The tow truck can't mount new tires on the existing rims in the field (and might not have two spares), so the car would have to be towed anyways.

Navyguy · Nov 29, 2015

I watched the vid, THAT took out your tires and did that?? I have hit pot holes in cars before that really felt nasty and nothing was done. I would be mad. I doubt the city will do anything even though you have video although I would still try. they need to fix that crap. especially since it was in a place that could have caused an accident (very little room in lane) and on the on ramp. DEF bad.

jerry33 · Nov 29, 2015

Bear in mind that the number one way to prevent pothole damage is to keep some [expletive deleted] air in your tires. With the cooler temperatures, tire pressure is reduced so you must add air to compensate. You can't rely on the TMPS to warn you because it's there to warn of significantly low pressure. (If you have the new style that shows the actual pressures be sure to look at it frequently.) Use the vehicle placard pressure a a minimum that you never want to go below.

tomas · Nov 29, 2015

The 21s on a tesla are very susceptible to pothole blowouts. I had 2. Then bought some 20" wheels I like, and trouble free since. I suspect that weight of car just not good with +2 wheels/tires. If you can fix cheap, go for it. But if you diagnose you need new wheel(s) spend an hour on tirerack.com and see if there are 19s or 20s you like. I predict this won't be the last time you lose a 21.

themacs · Nov 29, 2015

If they are not bent or NEED repair you can buy the paint color in an applicator from Tesla (or they might just give it to you) and you could gently file them and apply the touch up paint. OR you could buy a set of rim guards/rim blades and do all 4 of your wheels. I have installed them in both my Tesla "S" s and they hide these very well. I just put them on my new P90D. It was the 1st thing I did. They are about $50-$60 a set and well worth the price. Rimblades.com

Yes Tesla will also do the repairs for about $100-$200 a wheel. They sub it out.

Good luck!

Karey · Nov 29, 2015

I live in Texas and that is the biggest problem we have had with our Tesla P85+...TIRES! I finally took the car to discount tire and had all new rims and tires. This has held my husband's sanity for quite a few months now!! I put on 245/40 ZR 20's with FK Rims...Now if someone can tell me how to get the rear door handle to go back in flush with the car before my husband wakes up from a nap I'll be all set.

kirkbauer · Nov 29, 2015

tomas said:
The 21s on a tesla are very susceptible to pothole blowouts. I had 2. Then bought some 20" wheels I like, and trouble free since. I suspect that weight of car just not good with +2 wheels/tires. If you can fix cheap, go for it. But if you diagnose you need new wheel(s) spend an hour on tirerack.com and see if there are 19s or 20s you like. I predict this won't be the last time you lose a 21.

Let me look into the 20" options. What is the difference in tire cost and longetivity for 21" vs 20"?

- - - Updated - - -

jerry33 said:
Bear in mind that the number one way to prevent pothole damage is to keep some [expletive deleted] air in your tires. With the cooler temperatures, tire pressure is reduced so you must add air to compensate. You can't rely on the TMPS to warn you because it's there to warn of significantly low pressure. (If you have the new style that shows the actual pressures be sure to look at it frequently.) Use the vehicle placard pressure a a minimum that you never want to go below.

Good reminder, though not an issue in this case... I recently filled them and it wasn't too cold out (65F)...

- - - Updated - - -

Navyguy said:
I watched the vid, THAT took out your tires and did that?? I have hit pot holes in cars before that really felt nasty and nothing was done. I would be mad. I doubt the city will do anything even though you have video although I would still try. they need to fix that crap. especially since it was in a place that could have caused an accident (very little room in lane) and on the on ramp. DEF bad.

Yeah, I'll definitely complain... But I don't live close enough to go back there so I doubt I'll get anywhere

Pothole took out two of my tires, what to expect next?

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