Be careful of new potholes in LA and SD!

[Genghis]

Hello SoCal owners! I just wanted warn you all to look for new potholes on the freeways and local streets from the recent rains. I spent the long President’s Day weekend in LA and SD with lots of driving. It felt like I was playing real life mine hunt dodging all the new potholes that have appeared. I avoided so many and hit a few all weekend, but unfortunately the last one on the 405 near my freeway exit got me and blew out my right side front 21” Pirelli.

Lucid roadside support couldn’t get a tow for 3 hours so I gave up on them and used my State Farm roadside assistance to get it towed at 1 AM within 40 minutes after reaching out to them. Lucid’s roadside assistance partner was great the previous two times but this time it was absolutely frustrating with no updates until I called them every hour.

Anyways, watch out for new potholes and if you do need a tow, just be prepared with a backup tow option with your insurance company or AAA as I think they have bigger network of local tow services than Lucid’s roadside assistance partner (forgot the name right now as I’m exhausted).

 

[Genghis]

Another blow out within 2 month. LA, fix the roads on the 405!!! This time in the middle lane and wasn’t even a pothole but road cracks on the freeway. These Pirelli 21” can’t tolerate these roads.

 

[californiaboy935]

Dang I’m scared now… @Denali_Dane and I need to get some serious tire insurance…

 

[sdlucid]

The roads are pretty bad after every rain in SD. This is why I don't take my Lucid for couple of days during or after rain. I take my SUV to assess the road condition along my commute and then prepare for the next day. For a pretty bad one, I reported it to the city for repair, they did some minor patch work and updated the status saying not enough funds. I wonder where are they spending all the money on!

 

[chucky0731]

I reported it to the city for repair, they did some minor patch work and updated the status saying not enough funds. I wonder where are they spending all the money on!

Well..same is happening in Los Angeles...1 BILLION Deficit.

I'll be shocked if ANY of the potholes will be repaired anytime soon.

 

[TahoeMichael]

These Pirelli 21” can’t tolerate these roads.

Oof, that sucks! I've never had a vehicle with such low profile tires, but this kind of story scares me away from them. I've been watching the threads debating different wheel size choices for the Gravity. My inclination is to get the base (smallest) wheel sizes and thus tires with taller sidewalls.

 

[californiaboy935]

LA county pothole got me today… fml. Luckily it didn’t damage the rims other than some rubber transfer. I mostly drive with 19s so this isn’t the norm on those tires. If the rims on the 19s looked better I feel like people would use them more often….

 

[Genghis]

LA county pothole got me today… fml. Luckily it didn’t damage the rims other than some rubber transfer. I mostly drive with 19s so this isn’t the norm on those tires. If the rims on the 19s looked better I feel like people would use them more often….

View attachment 27448
View attachment 27449

Man, sorry to see this. Yeah, it's bad out there and pothole/road repairs are going really slow this year. It's to the point now my GF does not want to go in the AGT anywhere. Definitely get the tire certs from America's Tire... they are so worth it given the current road conditions. I was speaking with my tow driver on the way and he told me 8/10 cars he's been towing recently have been are heavy EVs from pothole blowouts including Rivian, Mercedes, BMW, Tesla, and Lucid.

 

[Genghis]

Oof, that sucks! I've never had a vehicle with such low profile tires, but this kind of story scares me away from them. I've been watching the threads debating different wheel size choices for the Gravity. My inclination is to get the base (smallest) wheel sizes and thus tires with taller sidewalls.

90% of the time when the roads are good, the ride on the 21" low profiles is amazing, and they look great. But, I'm also now considering the 19" on my AGT because 4 blowouts in 2 years...not happy

 

[Cosmo Cruz]

To counter all the bad press: I use the 21" Pirelli P-Zero summer tires about 6-months / year. I run them at 44-45 psi.

Waiting for temps to stabilize above 40 degrees F so I can put them back on ... still on the factory set. (delivered Sept. 2022)

Fortunately, the roads in Pennsylvania are flawless. (/s)

By the way, for those wondering, the 21" summer Pirellis absolutely transform the car.

 

[californiaboy935]

To counter all the bad press: I use the 21" Pirelli P-Zero summer tires about 6-months / year. I run them at 44-45 psi.

Waiting for temps to stabilize above 40 degrees F so I can put them back on ... still on the factory set. (delivered Sept. 2022)

Fortunately, the roads in Pennsylvania are flawless. (/s)

By the way, for those wondering, the 21" summer Pirellis absolutely transform the car.

Completely agree, the car drives amazing on the low profile 21’s. But I do think if you use the 19s it’s a good balance of not breaking the bank by buying new shoes often on So Cal’s bad roads, and delivering a good road feel.

 

[RivAir]

FYI, in California freeways, you can submit a Damage Claim through Caltrans, specially if damage was cause by a pothole. Just throwing this info in the forum.

Submit Damage Claim | Caltrans

State of California

dot.ca.gov

 

[Amster]

LA county pothole got me today… fml. Luckily it didn’t damage the rims other than some rubber transfer. I mostly drive with 19s so this isn’t the norm on those tires. If the rims on the 19s looked better I feel like people would use them more often….

I feel like they should look better too. I'm still trying to find ways to do that with mine.

 

[californiaboy935]

I feel like they should look better too. I'm still trying to find ways to do that with mine.

I think @Denali_Dane is coming up with something, I’ll make sure and share it haha. I kinda want the sapphire single lock caps for it….

 

[HC_79]

FYI, in California freeways, you can submit a Damage Claim through Caltrans, specially if damage was cause by a pothole. Just throwing this info in the forum.

Submit Damage Claim | Caltrans

State of California

dot.ca.gov

I tried this and they wanted the longitude and latitude of the pothole (f'ing ridiculous!). Giving them the section of freeway wasn't enough. In other words, the process is so ridiculous it's our almost impossible to get them to pay out.

Your best bet is to find a pothole around town and then say your tire was damaged from that one. You've got more likelihood being paid out by the city vs the state.

 

[Denali_Dane]

LA county pothole got me today… fml. Luckily it didn’t damage the rims other than some rubber transfer. I mostly drive with 19s so this isn’t the norm on those tires. If the rims on the 19s looked better I feel like people would use them more often….

View attachment 27448
View attachment 27449

Ouch

 

[franks]

I tried this and they wanted the longitude and latitude of the pothole (f'ing ridiculous!). Giving them the section of freeway wasn't enough. In other words, the process is so ridiculous it's our almost impossible to get them to pay out.

Your best bet is to find a pothole around town and then say your tire was damaged from that one. You've got more likelihood being paid out by the city vs the state.

Yes, lying is a fine idea.

 

[californiaboy935]

Yes, lying is a fine idea.

I think the insurance industry would define it as "soft fraud" lol. But if you really need the payout just pull over and risk your life to take a picture and get a surveyor out to document the plat map and lat long... perhaps even a plaster of paris mould of the pothole to further document it.

 

[sdlucid]

I think the insurance industry would define it as "soft fraud" lol. But if you really need the payout just pull over and risk your life to take a picture and get a surveyor out to document the plat map and lat long... perhaps even a plaster of paris mould of the pothole to further document it.

A dashcam is a better solution.

 

[borski]

I think the insurance industry would define it as "soft fraud" lol. But if you really need the payout just pull over and risk your life to take a picture and get a surveyor out to document the plat map and lat long... perhaps even a plaster of paris mould of the pothole to further document it.

Or drop a pin on google maps. It’s not that hard lol.