Winter tire advice

[dani190]

Hey guys,

Looking for some advice on winter tires for my model 3.
So far I am trying to choose between the Continental WinterContact SI tires or the Nokian Hakkapeliitta R3’s.

I keep hearing good things about the R3’s but based on consumers reports, they aren’t as good as the Continentals. Consumer reports says they are lower on handling, ride comfort and noise.

Any advise is appreciated.

Thanks

 

[skitown]

Just bought a set of R3s today actually to run on my Model 3. Have had Continentals on a WRX in the past and liked them, but always wanted to try Nokians as I've perceived them as the best of the best for snow country like where we live.

 

[Goosby]

I voted for R3s, but I am still trying to decide if they’re the tire I’ll ultimately settle on. Right now I’m torn between Pilot Alpin Pa4, R3, or Blizzaks. My biggest concern with the R3s is the lack of reviews, especially for cold, dry pavement driving which is 95% of what I do in the winter. My friend has R2s on his STI and absolutely loves them, but I recall them having quite a bit of road noise. On my previous vehicle I ran Xice3 and they were insanely good in snow/icy conditions, but felt squirley and floaty during my normal cold, dry road commute; still much better than my dumbass driving on summer tires in the winter the year before!

 

[moridin2002]

Is there a reason you have not included Michelin X-Ice Xi3s on the list?

 

[mikevbf]

I voted for R3s, but I am still trying to decide if they’re the tire I’ll ultimately settle on. Right now I’m torn between Pilot Alpin Pa4, R3, or Blizzaks. My biggest concern with the R3s is the lack of reviews, especially for cold, dry pavement driving which is 95% of what I do in the winter. My friend has R2s on his STI and absolutely loves them, but I recall them having quite a bit of road noise. On my previous vehicle I ran Xice3 and they were insanely good in snow/icy conditions, but felt squirley and floaty during my normal cold, dry road commute; still much better than my dumbass driving on summer tires in the winter the year before!

I have the R2's on my MX and they are just as good as Xice3 which I have also owned, but you are right they are little loud as most winter tires are. They are also soft which is what winter tires are supposed to be, but it does take a hit on handling on warmer days compared to even an all season.

Have you considered Nokian WR G4's or G3's? A lot of people on these forums who are not in snow all the time in the winter have had great luck with them. Nokian calls them "All-Weather" as opposed to "All-Season". The difference is they are fully winter rated which the all seasons are not. I believe they will perform better especially on dry and/warmer winter days than a winter tire like the R2's. You could do a search in the Model S or X forums to see what people have to say.

 

[Goosby]

I have the R2's on my MX and they are just as good as Xice3 which I have also owned, but you are right they are little loud as most winter tires are. They are also soft which is what winter tires are supposed to be, but it does take a hit on handling on warmer days compared to even an all season.

Have you considered Nokian WR G4's or G3's? A lot of people on these forums who are not in snow all the time in the winter have had great luck with them. Nokian calls them "All-Weather" as opposed to "All-Season". The difference is they are fully winter rated which the all seasons are not. I believe they will perform better especially on dry and/warmer winter days than a winter tire like the R2's. You could do a search in the Model S or X forums to see what people have to say.

I honestly hadn’t considered them, but I’ll definitely take a look! Thanks for the suggestion.

 

[RyanT]

Wouldn’t a reason to get Xice3‘s be range? When I was looking it was the only eco friendly winter tire I saw that fit the rim.

 

[willa1975]

Nokian if you have to drive through any significant accumulated snow.

If you are not likely to encounter any deep snow e.g. city driving on streets that have been plowed but still have a few inches or less on them, I have had very good experience with Michelin Pilot Alpin and Dunlop Wintersports.

 

[dani190]

Is there a reason you have not included Michelin X-Ice Xi3s on the list?

No specific reason but now that you mention it, they are right in between the Continentals and R3’s... I can add them into the vote.

EDIT - scratch that... don’t think I can edit the poll.

 

[Ejl80]

I'd get X-Ice or WS80s

 

[RyanT]

I thought the Michelin X-Ice tires were great on my model S. With the nice grip, road noise, and efficiency I almost wanted to keep them on in the summer.

 

[jsmay311]

No love for the Pirelli's sold by Tesla, huh?

I guess being a "performance" winter tire, it's less geared toward severe winter driving conditions with snow and ice and more towards plowed/snowless winter streets. We get our fair share of snow in Chicago, but the vast majority of my winter driving will be on dry/wet/plowed streets without significant snow accumulation.

Is anyone getting non-Pirelli tires and mounting them on a separate set of 18" aero wheels? If so, where do you get the rims, and for how much?

 

[Goosby]

Nokian if you have to drive through any significant accumulated snow.

If you are not likely to encounter any deep snow e.g. city driving on streets that have been plowed but still have a few inches or less on them, I have had very good experience with Michelin Pilot Alpin and Dunlop Wintersports.

This is kinda what I’ve been thinking/reading as well, and I have a gut feeling I’ll ultimately end up with Pilot Alpins (though I am looking into the all weather Nokians mentioned above) since I am in the city; some reviews have summed the Alpins up as a winter version of Pilot Sport 4s - basically all I want in a winter tire. Ugh, choices!

 

[Ejl80]

No love for the Pirelli's sold by Tesla, huh?

I guess being a "performance" winter tire, it's less geared toward severe winter driving conditions with snow and ice and more towards plowed/snowless winter streets. We get our fair share of snow in Chicago, but the vast majority of my winter driving will be on dry/wet/plowed streets without significant snow accumulation.

Is anyone getting non-Pirelli tires and mounting them on a separate set of 18" aero wheels? If so, where do you get the rims, and for how much?

I bought my extra aeros off eBay.

 

[dani190]

No love for the Pirelli's sold by Tesla, huh?

I guess being a "performance" winter tire, it's less geared toward severe winter driving conditions with snow and ice and more towards plowed/snowless winter streets. We get our fair share of snow in Chicago, but the vast majority of my winter driving will be on dry/wet/plowed streets without significant snow accumulation.

Is anyone getting non-Pirelli tires and mounting them on a separate set of 18" aero wheels? If so, where do you get the rims, and for how much?

I just placed an order for the 18" aero wheels from my local Tesla SC along with the TPMS sensors. No idea on timing but wheels were $250 each and TPMS are 89 each Canadian. I opted not to get the aero wheel covers and instead to get the aero wheel caps.

 

[dani190]

I think after seeing the responses and doing some further reading I am going to go with the Nokian R3's. I keep hearing very good things about them and don't think I will be going wrong by getting them.

 

[Krash]

Hakkas are amazing in the snow. Blizzaks were good but Hakkas are better.

 

[MountainPass]

I think after seeing the responses and doing some further reading I am going to go with the Nokian R3's. I keep hearing very good things about them and don't think I will be going wrong by getting them.

Do you live in Downtown Toronto or somewhere in the GTA? That would affect my decision about choosing winter tires that excel at wet/cold/icy pavement performance or tires made for full snow coverage.

 

[willa1975]

This is kinda what I’ve been thinking/reading as well, and I have a gut feeling I’ll ultimately end up with Pilot Alpins (though I am looking into the all weather Nokians mentioned above) since I am in the city; some reviews have summed the Alpins up as a winter version of Pilot Sport 4s - basically all I want in a winter tire. Ugh, choices!

Alpins are great for the city.

 

[Jard]

If you want a true do-it-all tire then the Nokian WRs fit that bill exactly. I run them on my Sienna minivan and have had them on lots of Subarus. The only thing I don't know is how they will affect range on a Tesla, but I would expect they will be as good or better than other true winter options.

I would recommend the WRs in a place that gets occasional snow or where snow clearing is very efficient - we only get occasional snow here in Maryland in the USA but I also drive to the mountains in Pennsylvania in the winter.

For frequent deep snow I would look at R2s or R3s.

For ice, you really need studs. The best studless we've found are the Blizzaks (we use them for snow and ice racing).