how wide tires could you fit in a gw tesla?

[alcatraz]

Did some initial testing (below 30km/h) and it rides fine. I like how i can drop the tire pressure and ride faster over uneven sections.

Initially I heard some scraping but by the time I was going back it was 99% silent so hopefully it'll stay that way.

I bought my tesla 2nd hand and the rim was bent in several locations. I had to work on the rim with a hammer for an hour to straighten it laterally. Radially it's still screwed but that doesn't seem to influence it.

When mounting a tire I always check for radial roundness. I noticed that some rims get beat up so bad that looking at the rim/tire interface alone is pretty useless. Anyway, it helps to clear the shell if the tire is centered accurately. I use talcum powder to help everything seat the way I want it. It allows for small adjustments that are then "locked" when you raise the tire pressure to normal. The result is a perfectly round mounted tire that remains stable at speed. With the rim at least laterally true it doesn't bulge in any place looking all weird and being unbalanced.

[alcatraz]

I'd call the CST C-1488 a good tire for anyone to try when you want to try and sqeeze in a larger tire. Even new the tread isn't very thick. It's quite grippy but doesn't wear out very fast (I don't know how). Your results may vary, I'm only 65kg.

For anyone interested in using the C-1488 I can inform you that the difference in radius along the centerline when going 2.125 to 2.5 with this particular tire model it's around 4-5mm (both sizes are the same tire model C-1488). When taking wear into account expect the increase to be 5.0-5.5mm.

This can help someone that considers upgrading.

[alcatraz]

First real ride has been done. First cautiously but after 1-2h I was hitting the tiltback confidently (albeit only 30km/h).

I rode on long sections of cobblestones, boardwalks, dozens of uneven manhole covers and speedbumps. Went up a 300m tall hill too. I leaned into corners at speed trying to flex the shell to scrape the tire. 99% it's silent. Still seems to be improving as a matter of fact.

The thing is stable enough for me.

Now to the benefits. Drop that pressure! I've never gone over cobbles this fast before. Feels great. Even 10cm curbs this rides up without even paying much attention.

On a hard pumped 2.125 tire you really need to unweigh the pedals to get over a 10cm curb but with this low pressure 2.5 tire it just swallows the curb like a speedbump.

It's a good upgrade. If you dont ride very fast it's worth a try. My guess is it's fine even at higher speeds. I don't ride offroad. The small clearance could be a problem then but I'm hoping the space on the sides can still allow pebbles and stuff clear without getting wedged.

[zeroSIXzero]

Alcatraz....... do you have a link to the tire you got?
You think lifting the shell would allow 3.0" tire?
One more question.... how thick would you say teh rubber on the tire is... would it allow for self mounting spikes/studs you think?
You now these you can screw on yourself for winteruse.

My replacemant controllerborad came yesterday, and I really want to do the mods I need for winter and offroad use ASAP

 

[alcatraz]

You can fit a 3 inch I think but you will need to raise and grind+insulate the case at 9 & 3 o' clock (front and back). In order to raise it you need to find a solution for the LED strip and its plastic cover. It goes under the pedals. Maybe if you use a dremel and cut the cover in half there and route the led strip as far down as possible, touching the pedal mount.

It's a CST C-1488, searh for a cst seller and ask for that model number. It's one of the cheapest tires. They have bulkier versions with more puncture protection, but those have thicker tread. If you want that extra 2 mm or so of clearance you need the c-1488. If you want to grind and raise then you can pick any tire if clearance allows it.

I'm tempted by 3in too. I'm going to put some more km on the tesla before I invest more time.

With a 2.5in you can't fit any studs. With a 2.125in c-1488 tire you have 6-7mm clearance. If you can fit studs within that then yes.

Edited February 15, 2020 by alcatraz

[euccommuter]

I'm interested in this mod.

@alcatraz any downsides of using the 2.5 instead of the 2.125 tire?

Is there any reason for using the CST brand? There are also Kenda tires in 16x2.5

Maybe a stupid question but are you using a 16x2.5 inner tube or are you still using the stock 16x2.125?

[alcatraz]

I'm not a high speed rider. I go 30-35km/h max. The 2.5in without modification is after 2 rides practically silent in the dry. In the wet occasional debris creates some noise. I don't feel anything so I don't think it's dangerous.

The reason 2.5in has been rejected by so many teslariders is because most tires require the shell to be modified. I've found that you can install a CST C-1488 without doing that. So it's a slightly thinner 2.5in tire. Don't assume other models to be as thin. They won't be.

The time it takes to take a tesla apart is rather frustrating. If you have fixed a flat before sure go ahead. If you haven't maybe this mod is for when you get the next flat or wear out the current tire. For you I'd recommend just to get the tire and have it ready.

It's not 100% straightforward and fool proof. The tire needs to be center and if your rim is all bent and screwed up it might affect the result. (Mine is bent but I straightened it).

I got the tire with a cst angled valve inner tube but it was useless. I couldn't get it to work. It's not enough to have an angled valve. It needs to be pointing in the tube's direction. Mine didn't so I had to use the old tube. I ordered cst tubes before and they worked on my V8. I suspect there may be a material change between the different sizes. Seems the newer 2.5in wasn't made of rubber but some harder material. Not very flexible. If you run a CST C-1488 2.5in I think you can get away with a 2.125 tube. Haven't had any problem myself...

[alcatraz]

Here it is... the one that didn't work. Notice the angle.

[euccommuter]

@alcatraz I started getting interested in this mod since you said that no shell modification is needed (because my Tesla is still under warranty). Also because I'm interested in a better all-purpose wheel as I commute daily on and off road, and the stock 2.125 tire lacks a little grip when off-roading. Would you say that this mod is better in every aspect (ignoring the occasional noise) for every terrain (including when raining)?

@alcatraz I'm still confused whether you use the 2.125 inner tube or a 2.5 inner tube (with a valve in a better angle) with a 2.5 tire Could you please clarify?

Apparently with this mod the Tesla will go a little bit faster as the larger the tire the slower it rotates, so the EUC will push harder in order to register the same rotations than with a stock tire. Here is the original discussion about this side effect:

 

[alcatraz]

I'm using the previous 2.125in tube.

No downsides. You can still raise the pressure if you want mobility, and lower it to get comfort. I had to drop my pressure by quite a bit (~30% lower) for the tire swap and I can still go lower without damaging the rim.

I've not ridden the wheel on loose terrain yet. I suspect that if you do and you go into a wet patch you could start packing the wheel well which is going to stay noisy until you come home and wash it out.

I don't think it will be dangerous. Just noisy.

If you do hear noise for lets say a few hundred km it would be a good idea to open up the case and do an inspection that you don't have any holes or cracks in the wheel well. Just to be on the safe side.

[alcatraz]

I'm excited to see how the tire performs after a mm of tread has worn off. I guess it'll be pretty damn brilliant.

[euccommuter]

Personally I'm not worried about the water as I put gorilla tape on the inside (not easy thing to do) and I've had 0 issues with water since 5 months ago. Not that I had issues before but I am a prevention-guy

6 hours ago, alcatraz said:

I had to drop my pressure by quite a bit (~30% lower) for the tire swap and I can still go lower without damaging the rim.

According to what I read here, and my experience (I weight around 85kg geared-up), the ideal pressure is 30-35 PSI, but I'm quite curious to know if your pressure is even less than 25 PSI. Do you mind sharing the PSI (or bars) you are using?

I'm almost ready to pull the trigger on this CST: https://www.ebay.com/itm/352867679554

But I am a little afraid of ordering a tire that won't fit after waiting for 1 month to receive it, paying customs, and go through the pain of sending it back

@alcatraz are there any specific questions I can ask the seller to know that I'll receive the same tire as you? Thanks!

[alcatraz]

I paid 33cny for the tire. That's like 5.5usd.

That's what it costs domestically here in China including shipping.

The pressure gauge on my pump isn't accurate. All I know is that I put 30% less now in the 2.5in than in the 2.125. It's possible I pumped the old tire to hard. Looking at the rim all bent like shit didn't inspire me to drop the pressure.

[euccommuter]

2 minutes ago, alcatraz said:

That's like 5.5usd

Damn man, and that one on Ebay was the cheapest I found

I couldn't find anything on Aliexpress either... Maybe I should move to China instead of Switzerland

[alcatraz]

The purpose of the post is not to compare d__k size but to let you know if you're getting cheated by that seller. Of course international shipping will be more costly but some sellers maybe try to scam you.

You don't need to find the model number. Just search cst 16 inch tires on aliexpress and look for the tread pattern in the picture. The C-1488 has a typical pattern. Ask if what's sent is in fact a 1488. You can also ignore the pic and just ask for a 1488. The tire is cheaper than ANY other cst tire so the seller might be happy to provide the cheaper tire without changing the price. 

[euccommuter]

Well, as far as I know we are indeed comparing sizes in this thread, t__e width specifically, as we all seem to agree that wider is better

Joking aside, I just wanted to know if there was some kind of measurement or something special other than the CST C-1488 tag that I could ask the seller to be sure I'd be getting the right tire because I kinda have only one shot for ordering the right tire before changing to a country with more expensive shipping and tougher customs.

A quick google shows that "standard" C-1488 refers to 16 x 3.0 tires: https://www.cst-reifen.com/reifenarten/c-1488 and https://whattyre.com/products/cst-c-1488/

But after digging a bit more it seems that these 16x3.0 are 75-305 (or 76-305), and the 16x2.5 are 64-305. So I should ask about CST C-1488 64-305 to the Ebay/Aliexpress sellers.

PS: Apparently Maxxis Tyres may be the same as CST tires because they are subsidiaries of the same company: Cheng Shin Rubber

[alcatraz]

The model number comes in different sizes. Normally a 16x2.5 is a 64-305 but this C-1488 2.5in is unconventionally stamped 62-305.

There aren't a thousand different kinds of C-1488. To my knowledge there are three. 2.125 + 2.5 + 3.0. My tesla came with the first and I upgraded to the second.

Hey if you feel you're making a big investment maybe the cost isn't worth the risk. You will need to ride the wheel on pavement slowly for a few km before you can take it offroading. Swapping tires is also a labersome process. Still I'd give it a try if the cost isn't so high. I would think that if you find a good source you can maybe get it customs free if the value is below the customs threshold.

[euccommuter]

6 hours ago, alcatraz said:

Normally a 16x2.5 is a 64-305 but this C-1488 2.5in is unconventionally stamped 62-305.

I see that in this thread you already asked about the differences between 62-305 and 64-305 before ordering the tire. As nobody had both tires to determine their differences the question is still there. Did you try a 64-305 on your Tesla or is the 62-305 the only one that fits?

6 hours ago, alcatraz said:

You will need to ride the wheel on pavement slowly for a few km before you can take it offroading

Offroading is not my main goal as I use my Tesla almost exclusively for commuting on the road, about 30% or less of my daily commute is off-road (basically a shortcut through a park). My goal is to gain a little bit more of stability and grip to make my commute safer (and more comfortable) as I recently crashed due to a crack on the road I didn't see (my fault). Still I believe that this 2.5 tire (and less pressure) would have saved me from the wobble of death I experienced.

[zeroSIXzero]

On 2/16/2020 at 2:07 AM, alcatraz said:

Here it is... the one that didn't work. Notice the angle.

I think this will work but turn it 180 deg around. Then the valve will be paralell with the wheel, and not pointing 90 deg out.

 

So turn the innertire 180 deg around and force the valve thru the same hole in the rim. Then the vave will be correct angled.
 

Edited February 19, 2020 by zeroSIXzero

[alcatraz]

This inner tube is not as flexible like the older ones. It's quite hard. 

You can't even twist the valve to point straight with the travel direction. Even if you could, pumping it up would stress the valve and i'm guessing it would fail pretty fast.

[mrelwood]

11 hours ago, zeroSIXzero said:

I think this will work but turn it 180 deg around. Then the valve will be paralell with the wheel, and not pointing 90 deg out.

I’ve had an inner tube with a valve like that, and installing it in the opposite direction doesn’t work at all well. The motor will force a 45 degree twist in the inner tube, and even a bit more when you fill the tire. The inner tube is forced to be all crumbled.

I didn’t even get the outer tire to run straight, so I didn’t even try to ride it, and patched my old tube instead.

[euccommuter]

Can @alcatraz or somebody who also attempted this mod confirm me if the 62-305 and 64-305 tires are exactly the same model? Thank you

[mrelwood]

14 hours ago, euccommuter said:

Can @alcatraz or somebody who also attempted this mod confirm me if the 62-305 and 64-305 tires are exactly the same model? Thank you

They don’t make the same tire in both 62-305 and 64-305. That would be just a 2mm difference in width.

What was pointed out earlier was that 16” x 2.5” tires are usually 64-305, but the CST C-1488 in question is instead a 62-305. If someone is selling a 64-305 C-1488, it is most probably a typo.

It could also be a different manufacturer, but 2mm is close enough that even the manufacturers may use the numberings interchangeably. There are often much larger differences between same size tires from different manufacturers, despite having the same size designation.

[alcatraz]

Don't trust those numbers. They are chosen by the manufacturer.

The "62" is the hint that the tire is slightly narrower than a regular 2.5in. However you can't expect any 62-305 to fit the tesla. I'm just confirming that the CST C-1488 2.5in that happens to be marked 62-305 does fit the tesla with almost zero rub in the dry.

mrelwood is right. There is no 64-305 C-1488. That perticular model in 2.5in is stamped with the odd number 62-305.

I've only ever seen differences like these with some 2.125 and 1.95in wide tires that are both stamped with 54-305. Usually 2.125 is 57-305.

Edited February 21, 2020 by alcatraz

[alcatraz]

For anyone interested in seeing the clearance after about 50-100km.

I know it's hard to see. It's around 2-3mm in the middle. I didn't measure it, just eyeballing.

The outer cover is not the tightest clearance. It's to the inner body.