Tesla Model 3 – 19” Tire Replacement and Efficiency
I have the Continental ProContact RX OEM tires on my mid-range model 3 RWD. Overall, I have been happy with the tires – rotated once at around 20K and at 43K the fronts are at the wear bars and the rears have about 3mm tread left. You have to push hard to get those tires to squeal on the freeway on ramps – so grip is good in the dry – no issues in the wet – don’t have snow in my area. Steering feel was OK - but that is as much the Tesla steering rack and suspension as it is the tire – no BMW level of steering here. Overall efficiency was 237 wh/m and 232 wh/m in last 16K miles (as expected the efficiency improves a bit as the tires wear). Noise is not great on worn tires, it was probably better with new – but I don’t have specific measurements for that. With my DB meter, I’m currently measuring about 55db on the freeway (concrete) at 70 MPH – and to benchmark that – I get about 50db on my Range Rover Sport. The other area I would ding the Contis is in rim protection - or lack there of.
Now time to replace – so I was looking for something that provides similar efficiency (understanding that new tires will see a drop versus worn – discussion on that below), better noise and ride comfort, OK to trade off a little in dry handling for that since I don’t push the car to the limits, but maintaining same level of steering feel or better would be good – wet/snow handling is not a huge concern in Nor Cal, and maybe a tire that even lasts a little longer. The Contis do a pretty good job trading off all of these factors – so can we do better?
On the 19” rims, there are a few choices – those that I considered:
Conti ProContact RX T1 – OEM tire – rated 400 A A . Most expensive.
Conti ProContact LS – rated 700 A A – so should last a little longer. Less expensive. Online reviews say noise is a little worse, but similar efficiency to OEM.
Goodyear Eagle Electric GT - 500 A A - Some good reviews. Tirerack tested and gets a marginal efficiency hit versus new OEM - mileage warranty is less. Could be a good option.
Vredstein Quad Pro - 400 A A – good reviews, “mileage similar to OEM”. Less expensive.
Pirelli P7 AS – 800 A A – Tested Poorly
Bridgestone Potenza Sport AS – 500 AA A – Costco option – but probably has significant efficiency drop due to being sticker sport tire and less ride comfort. More Expensive
Michelin Pilot Sport AS4 – 540AA A – Costco Option – Probably best sportier tire option, but would expect efficiency drop and less ride comfort. More Expensive
Bridgestone Turanza EV – 500 A A - Mixed reviews and poor efficiency versus OEM. Expensive
Hankook Ion – not available in 19” size at tirerack – but I think it might be available at Walmart. Gets great reviews for efficiency.
And finally
Goodyear Assurance ComfortDrive – 700 A A - Gets good reviews overall, but not many reviews on the Tesla Model 3. I found a couple of guys on Reddit that had put these on, claimed similar efficiency, better noise/ride (maybe somewhat dependent on the surface), while still having “good” handling.
So, I’m rolling the dice and going to try the Goodyear Assurance’s from Tirerack – will report back on my experience with those.
And a quick note on efficiency. (A lot of this data came from nap.nationalacademies.org – tires and passenger vehicle fuel economy report) While the UTOG ratings are not that scientific (vendor tested), in general a lower number tire will have higher rolling resistance (more grip) and an AA rated tire will also have higher rolling resistance (more grip) versus an A rated. A higher speed rated tire (Y versus V for example) will also have higher rolling resistance.
A new tire also has more tread depth, and hence higher rolling resistance, versus a worn tire – and due to more tread, has larger diameter and the revs per mile will be less – so if you are just using the Tesla’s odometer to observe wh/m – you will see a 2-3% hit (that is not real – on the worn tire you will actually have travelled less distance for the same “miles” reported – so less wh/m just because of that). The tread depth can have a significant effect on rolling resistance – and the Conti OEM tires have less tread to start with when new – to report better EPA mileage. As the new tire wears – this will eventually catch up. Could be as much as 2-4% delta.
Heavier tires will take more energy to “spin up” so have worse efficiency in stop/go traffic – this will be less pronounced on the freeway. The OEM Contis are one of the lightest options here.
The tire’s tread and sidewall design will also have an effect on rolling resistance – for example – how much it flexes as you drive (this is one reason higher tire pressure helps rolling resistance) – some energy is lost to heat into the tire as it flexes.
And finally, the rubber compound also has an effect, manufacturers add silica, soy oil and other materials to reduce rolling resistance.
If you are going to measure the actual wh/m – maybe best way to do that is not from the wh/m reading in the car – but to drive the same route at same temp/conditions – and look at battery charge % at start and end – which is hard to do exactly unless you have 2 identical cars – but I will try to approximate that the best I can (heat and AC off). Note that rain and wind will have a significant effect.
Initial Impressions
First 15 miles – Tires are quiet and ride comfortably (even at slightly higher pressure the shop set it to). I didn’t measure with my sound meter yet. Rim protection is better than the contis. Steering feel has not changed (tirerack test digned these on “on center” feel – but I didn’t notice a change). Didn’t push it on the corners yet. Efficiency seems to be within 5% (indicated) which means within 2% or so actual – but I need to do more miles to confirm that. So far, very good, and giving me what I expected!
I have the Continental ProContact RX OEM tires on my mid-range model 3 RWD. Overall, I have been happy with the tires – rotated once at around 20K and at 43K the fronts are at the wear bars and the rears have about 3mm tread left. You have to push hard to get those tires to squeal on the freeway on ramps – so grip is good in the dry – no issues in the wet – don’t have snow in my area. Steering feel was OK - but that is as much the Tesla steering rack and suspension as it is the tire – no BMW level of steering here. Overall efficiency was 237 wh/m and 232 wh/m in last 16K miles (as expected the efficiency improves a bit as the tires wear). Noise is not great on worn tires, it was probably better with new – but I don’t have specific measurements for that. With my DB meter, I’m currently measuring about 55db on the freeway (concrete) at 70 MPH – and to benchmark that – I get about 50db on my Range Rover Sport. The other area I would ding the Contis is in rim protection - or lack there of.
Now time to replace – so I was looking for something that provides similar efficiency (understanding that new tires will see a drop versus worn – discussion on that below), better noise and ride comfort, OK to trade off a little in dry handling for that since I don’t push the car to the limits, but maintaining same level of steering feel or better would be good – wet/snow handling is not a huge concern in Nor Cal, and maybe a tire that even lasts a little longer. The Contis do a pretty good job trading off all of these factors – so can we do better?
On the 19” rims, there are a few choices – those that I considered:
Conti ProContact RX T1 – OEM tire – rated 400 A A . Most expensive.
Conti ProContact LS – rated 700 A A – so should last a little longer. Less expensive. Online reviews say noise is a little worse, but similar efficiency to OEM.
Goodyear Eagle Electric GT - 500 A A - Some good reviews. Tirerack tested and gets a marginal efficiency hit versus new OEM - mileage warranty is less. Could be a good option.
Vredstein Quad Pro - 400 A A – good reviews, “mileage similar to OEM”. Less expensive.
Pirelli P7 AS – 800 A A – Tested Poorly
Bridgestone Potenza Sport AS – 500 AA A – Costco option – but probably has significant efficiency drop due to being sticker sport tire and less ride comfort. More Expensive
Michelin Pilot Sport AS4 – 540AA A – Costco Option – Probably best sportier tire option, but would expect efficiency drop and less ride comfort. More Expensive
Bridgestone Turanza EV – 500 A A - Mixed reviews and poor efficiency versus OEM. Expensive
Hankook Ion – not available in 19” size at tirerack – but I think it might be available at Walmart. Gets great reviews for efficiency.
And finally
Goodyear Assurance ComfortDrive – 700 A A - Gets good reviews overall, but not many reviews on the Tesla Model 3. I found a couple of guys on Reddit that had put these on, claimed similar efficiency, better noise/ride (maybe somewhat dependent on the surface), while still having “good” handling.
So, I’m rolling the dice and going to try the Goodyear Assurance’s from Tirerack – will report back on my experience with those.
And a quick note on efficiency. (A lot of this data came from nap.nationalacademies.org – tires and passenger vehicle fuel economy report) While the UTOG ratings are not that scientific (vendor tested), in general a lower number tire will have higher rolling resistance (more grip) and an AA rated tire will also have higher rolling resistance (more grip) versus an A rated. A higher speed rated tire (Y versus V for example) will also have higher rolling resistance.
A new tire also has more tread depth, and hence higher rolling resistance, versus a worn tire – and due to more tread, has larger diameter and the revs per mile will be less – so if you are just using the Tesla’s odometer to observe wh/m – you will see a 2-3% hit (that is not real – on the worn tire you will actually have travelled less distance for the same “miles” reported – so less wh/m just because of that). The tread depth can have a significant effect on rolling resistance – and the Conti OEM tires have less tread to start with when new – to report better EPA mileage. As the new tire wears – this will eventually catch up. Could be as much as 2-4% delta.
Heavier tires will take more energy to “spin up” so have worse efficiency in stop/go traffic – this will be less pronounced on the freeway. The OEM Contis are one of the lightest options here.
The tire’s tread and sidewall design will also have an effect on rolling resistance – for example – how much it flexes as you drive (this is one reason higher tire pressure helps rolling resistance) – some energy is lost to heat into the tire as it flexes.
And finally, the rubber compound also has an effect, manufacturers add silica, soy oil and other materials to reduce rolling resistance.
If you are going to measure the actual wh/m – maybe best way to do that is not from the wh/m reading in the car – but to drive the same route at same temp/conditions – and look at battery charge % at start and end – which is hard to do exactly unless you have 2 identical cars – but I will try to approximate that the best I can (heat and AC off). Note that rain and wind will have a significant effect.
Initial Impressions
First 15 miles – Tires are quiet and ride comfortably (even at slightly higher pressure the shop set it to). I didn’t measure with my sound meter yet. Rim protection is better than the contis. Steering feel has not changed (tirerack test digned these on “on center” feel – but I didn’t notice a change). Didn’t push it on the corners yet. Efficiency seems to be within 5% (indicated) which means within 2% or so actual – but I need to do more miles to confirm that. So far, very good, and giving me what I expected!
