19" vs 21" Tires: Ride Quality/Range Difference

Speaking of tires, I have an AT reserved with the 20-inch Aero Lite wheels, which I know come with summer tires much to my dismay given that I live in a cold climate (NJ). I just find them more aesthetically pleasing, but have been going back and forth on whether to change to the 19-inch wheels instead. However, are there options to replace the tires themselves to a more all-season 20 inch or 21 inch tire (for those of you that have 21s) rather than having to purchase the 19s for winter time?

Also, those 19s without the aero covers and the silver "Lucid" disc look phenomenal!

After many weeks of consideration, I decided the 21" wheels were for me. Today, I saw 19" wheels without the aero cover and now I'm totally undecided again.

Ksa23 said:

After many weeks of consideration, I decided the 21" wheels were for me. Today, I saw 19" wheels without the aero cover and now I'm totally undecided again.

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Take a look at https://lucidowners.com/threads/19-vs-21-tires-ride-quality-range-difference.1164/post-36771, where someone not only took off the aero covers, but got a custom end-cap and black lug-nut covers. They look phenomenal, I have zero regrets at all about going 19" and fully intend to do that to mine.

LucidDropkick said:

Take a look at https://lucidowners.com/threads/19-vs-21-tires-ride-quality-range-difference.1164/post-36771, where someone not only took off the aero covers, but got a custom end-cap and black lug-nut covers. They look phenomenal, I have zero regrets at all about going 19" and fully intend to do that to mine.

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Yep, that's the exact photo that has me re-thinking!

Ksa23 said:

Yep, that's the exact photo that has me re-thinking!

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Yes same here. I sent my DA the part numbers of those two parts that she posted. I had originally wanted the 20” but since they keep moving the date I changed to 19”.

Ksa23 said:

After many weeks of consideration, I decided the 21" wheels were for me. Today, I saw 19" wheels without the aero cover and now I'm totally undecided again.

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I went back and forth and decided on the 19" wheels, despite their much shorter stopping distance and less precise cornering characteristics. Also, many reports of sidewall failures (bubbles) on the 21" Pirelli tires, the 21" wheels are cast, not forged and weigh over 36 lbs, a bit heavy for that size wheel IMO. I will get the lug nut covers and center cap as described above for the 19" wheels. I plan to order the 20" wheels and tires when they are available later this year, assuming that I have my March 29, 2022, confirmed order-AGT by then.

victoryroad said:

. . . the 21" wheels are cast, not forged and weigh over 36 lbs, a bit heavy for that size wheel IMO.

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All the Lucid wheels are cast except for the 21" Dream Edition wheels, which are forged. A couple of years ago I was told at a Design Studio that all their wheels were forged, which I know not to be the case. I suspect the confusion arose from some marketing terms in the wheel industry, such as "forge casting" or "flow forming", which refer to various forms of pressure casting which produce some of the strength of forging over the traditional gravity casting methods used on cheaper wheels.

A Swedish company, The New Aero, makes forged 21" aero wheels for Tesla which will also fit the Lucid Air. However, those wheels also weigh over 35 pounds. I agree that is heavy, and that is for a true forged wheel. I'm wondering if these wheels are beefier for a given size in order to cope with the high weight of EVs?

victoryroad said:

I went back and forth and decided on the 19" wheels, despite their much shorter stopping distance and less precise cornering characteristics.

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I think most of the increased stopping distance on 19" wheels is due to the all-season tires they are fitted with. Keeping the 19's but switching tires to a summer-only variety from the Pilot Sport family will make a big difference in traction - and cut your range by 10% or so. Speaking from data from Tesla Model 3 owners.

DeaneG said:

I think most of the increased stopping distance on 19" wheels is due to the all-season tires they are fitted with. Keeping the 19's but switching tires to a summer-only variety from the Pilot Sport family will make a big difference in traction - and cut your range by 10% or so. Speaking from data from Tesla Model 3 owners.

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I’ll be swapping out my OEM GT wheels at 36 lbs per corner for custom forged HRE’s at about 23 lbs per corner but they won’t be specifically aero-designed. Keeping the exact same tires and the same 21 inch size so very curious what the impact on my range will be.

Demosthenes said:

I’ll be swapping out my OEM GT wheels at 36 lbs per corner for custom forged HRE’s at about 23 lbs per corner but they won’t be specifically aero-designed. Keeping the exact same tires and the same 21 inch size so very curious what the impact on my range will be.

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Have you checked the load rating for those HRE wheels? The Air weighs almost 1,500 pounds more than a similarly-sized Mercedes E class.

hmp10 said:

Have you checked the load rating for those HRE wheels? The Air weighs almost 1,500 pounds more than a similarly-sized Mercedes E class.

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Yes I did bring that issue up with them and they claim to have taken that into account. I figured a specialty wheel company like HRE would know what they're doing since each set of wheels is custom forged for each specific vehicle but I didn't ask for a specific load rating - maybe I should triple check that just in case!

Demosthenes said:

Yes I did bring that issue up with them and they claim to have taken that into account. I figured a specialty wheel company like HRE would know what they're doing since each set of wheels is custom forged for each specific vehicle but I didn't ask for a specific load rating - maybe I should triple check that just in case!

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Good luck. HRE makes some nice-looking wheels.

Demosthenes said:

I’ll be swapping out my OEM GT wheels at 36 lbs per corner for custom forged HRE’s at about 23 lbs per corner but they won’t be specifically aero-designed. Keeping the exact same tires and the same 21 inch size so very curious what the impact on my range will be.

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would love to see the pics of that once you have them installed.

DeaneG said:

I think most of the increased stopping distance on 19" wheels is due to the all-season tires they are fitted with. Keeping the 19's but switching tires to a summer-only variety from the Pilot Sport family will make a big difference in traction - and cut your range by 10% or so. Speaking from data from Tesla Model 3 owners.

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The increase in stopping distance with the 19" tire is due in large part to the smaller area of contact with the ground, less friction equals longer stopping distances than the 21" tires.

hellolucid said:

would love to see the pics of that once you have them installed.

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Same! I'm falling down the rabbit hole of custom wheels and would love to see more pics.

I saw this tire-related video and am now very worried.

whywar said:

The increase in stopping distance with the 19" tire is due in large part to the smaller area of contact with the ground, less friction equals longer stopping distances than the 21" tires.

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Some of the difference maybe, but summer-only performance tires have much greater traction than all-seasons in wet or dry, even for equal sizes.

whywar said:

The increase in stopping distance with the 19" tire is due in large part to the smaller area of contact with the ground, less friction equals longer stopping distances than the 21" tires.

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The 19" and 21" tires on the Air have virtually the same rolling diameter (It's the sidewall heights that differ), and the front tires are the same width (245mm) on either size wheel, thus yielding virtually the same size contact patch on the front 19" or 21" wheels. Only the back tires are wider on the 21" wheels, and only by 20mm. Also, due to forward weight shift during braking, it's the front tires that do more of the braking.

The tread configuration and rubber compound have far more to do with differences in braking distances than does tire width with the Lucid Air.

There's a reason that race cars don't drive on 21" wheels, not even NASCAR. Large wheels give sharper, more direct steering feel. Other than that, and fashion, everything else about them is a minus: wheel cost, tire cost and availability, driving efficiency, ride quality, susceptibility to pothole damage. Practically speaking it's a trade-off of looks vs everything else.

There have been tests done where a Tesla Model 3 with 18" wheels accelerated faster 0-60 than the same car with 20" wheels using the same tire type, rolling diameter, and section width.

DeaneG said:

There have been tests done where a Tesla Model 3 with 18" wheels accelerated faster 0-60 than the same car with 20" wheels using the same tire type, rolling diameter, and section width.

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When I ordered our 2015 Tesla Model S P90D, I opted for the 19" wheels for just this reason after doing extensive reading on the topic. I also thought the 19" wheels Tesla was using at the time were the best-looking wheels in their lineup.

The primary reason I opted for the 21" wheels on the Air was because I didn't like the look of the 19's (although I now have to admit the 19's look pretty good with the aero blades removed and the black lug nuts as pictured elsewhere on this forum).