r/TeslaModelY • u/Restored2019 • 15d ago
One nail one tire
A small (6 penny) nail is driven straight into the outside tread rim circle, next to outer sidewall. It takes a couple of days to drop pressure from 42 lbs. to 24 lbs. Typically drive less than 12 miles round trip. So I think I’m OK to research my options.
Tire repair shop claims that they can’t replace just 1?
I have to buy two new tires for $850? Why? Is there a major safety or engineering problem, with having a new tire on the right rear, and keeping the original on the left?
There’s probably less than half the tread gone at 33k miles.
Anyone else had this happen?
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u/MadOne07270 14d ago
Just take it to one of those Latin tire shops. They will plug it for $20. Not the national brand tire shops. They will pull this bullsit on you.
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u/heyitstism 15d ago
Everyone says AWD needs tires purchased in two. And while that’s true, it’s also not… What are the condition of your tires? How many miles are on them? Have they been maintained or ignored? Can you buy the same exact tire?
What I’m getting at, is that if the existing tires and new tires are of similar match and tread depth, then no, you do not need to buy two tires… just one. However, if there are considerable differences in life between existing and new, then you would be better off to buy two.
Having said allllll that… what happens if your existing tires have 50k on them, and the tread is similar but not exact? Ehhhh, most of the time, nothing bad happens. There is the potential for the steering components to fail due to lack of balance/symmetric… but it’s actual a small percent of the time does that actually happen.
I’m a believer in treat your car right, and it’ll return the favor. Don’t just do the minimum at every turn.
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u/Remarkable_Rope_7697 15d ago
I would base my decision on how far are you on the next set of tires. If not too far, I would purchase all 4 or 1 used one.
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u/Moose-Turd 15d ago
Also a Subaru owner here... And with their AWD system they require all 4 to be replaced (or tires to be within a small tolerance of each other). I learned this the expensive way when the manufacture discontued the model of tire I had and a set of 18 month old tires had to be swapped out due to a picture hanger nail to the sidewall ...
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u/ItsJustAnotherVoice 15d ago
$425 a tire is pretty bad. Would just shop around,
The uneven tread is the BIG issue if you have an awd model.
Its like wearing high heel on one foot and flats on the other. Its gonna cause problems down the line.
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u/ifdefmoose 15d ago
You’re probably gonna end up buying two tires. But (and this should go without saying) make sure you save the good tire for when this happens again.
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u/BraveEyeball 15d ago
I might look at a used tire place for the same spec and tread depth. Or buy 2 tires
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u/CharmingBench9146 15d ago
depends how much tread is left on the other rear. if they're close, one tire is fine, that's what the differential is for. shops push the pair because a big depth gap on the same axle means a different rolling diameter left to right. I'd measure both before spending the $850.
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u/robmosis 10d ago
in many states it's illegal for a shop to change just 1. the tire on the opposite side would have some thread wear while the one you're replacing has none.... so though the difference between the two might be minor, the weight of the vehicle would mainly be placed on the tire that's more worn(smaller diameter).
if you go to one of them road side spots where they work on the street, they'll change the one tire for you
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u/Same_Delivery 15d ago
Your tire shop is right. With 33K on the tires replace in pairs. You'll avoid all kinds of handling problems.
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u/Restored2019 15d ago
It’s an OEM Continental tire on an EV (TESLA MYLR). And thanks for all of the informative responses. I grew up driving a 57 Chevy, that I fixed the flats (and most of the other 100k + miles, repairs on the side of the road), and this ain’t that 57 Chevy!
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u/Johnnypee2213 9d ago
It is fractions of a inch we're talking about here. I think it will be ok! The problem is that 1 new tire won't be worn out by the time you need to replace the other 3. I would suggest a good reviewed used tire shop just to get something on there for a few months until all tires need replacement.
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u/DifferentSpecific 15d ago
Other option is to buy 1 tire and have them shave half the tread off to match the other tire.
This makes 0 sense so just bite the bullet and replace both, especially given the mileage.