Front 21" Tire Shortage

[Alex]

When I called in the morning, they had the tire, but would not mount it on the rim.

Did they say that because they thought the rim was damaged?

 

[Bill55]

Did they say that because they thought the rim was damaged?

No. Rim was fine. Discount tire only lists the Pirelli as approved for the car. They will not mount a tire that is not in their fitment guide for the vehicle.

 

[terrycs]

I'm running the Michelin 21s and on a recent road trip a day after hitting a pot hole the tire developed a leak right where the bead meets the side wall. I was able to pull off and get to a gas station. Tire was of course unrepairable. Near St Louis. Called Lucid and they sent a tow. Discount tire said they could get a Pirelli in 7-10 days. I told them I was running the Michelin. It was 5PM and they said they could have one in the morning. Car was towed to Discount tire. When I called in the morning, they had the tire, but would not mount it on the rim. Bought the tire, put it in the truck, arranged another tow and went to a local shop that had it mounted and balanced and me out the door in less than 30 minutes. 4 Pirelli side wall bubbles and 1 deflated Michelin in 27.5K miles on DE. No issues so far with the Sapphire Michelins at 4361 miles.
2 tires were from pot holes where it was enough of an event I checked the tire. The other 3 were from impacts that were not anything out of ordinary. No rim damage on any of these.

Why wouldn't Discount Tire mount them? They weren't the same size as OEM?

 

[Bill55]

Why wouldn't Discount Tire mount them? They weren't the same size as OEM?

Yes on size, but not listed in their fitment guide for the car.

 

[terrycs]

I'm running the Michelin 21s and on a recent road trip a day after hitting a pot hole the tire developed a leak right where the bead meets the side wall. I was able to pull off and get to a gas station. Tire was of course unrepairable. Near St Louis. Called Lucid and they sent a tow. Discount tire said they could get a Pirelli in 7-10 days. I told them I was running the Michelin. It was 5PM and they said they could have one in the morning. Car was towed to Discount tire. When I called in the morning, they had the tire, but would not mount it on the rim. Bought the tire, put it in the truck, arranged another tow and went to a local shop that had it mounted and balanced and me out the door in less than 30 minutes. 4 Pirelli side wall bubbles and 1 deflated Michelin in 27.5K miles on DE. No issues so far with the Sapphire Michelins at 4361 miles.
2 tires were from pot holes where it was enough of an event I checked the tire. The other 3 were from impacts that were not anything out of ordinary. No rim damage on any of these.

Why wouldn't Discount Tire mount them?

Yes on size, but not listed in their fitment guide for the car.

That's news to me. That implies Discount Tire will not do aftermarket wheel/tire setups where width or diameters are increased. Might be something unique with that specific location cuz I've gotten non-OEM size tires mounted by them in the past.

 

[Bill55]

Why wouldn't Discount Tire mount them?

That's news to me. That implies Discount Tire will not do aftermarket wheel/tire setups where width or diameters are increased. Might be something unique with that specific location cuz I've gotten non-OEM size tires mounted by them in the past.

It’s not about size. The Michelin is XL load rated and the Pirelli is an HL.

 

[OCDC]

It’s not about size. The Michelin is XL load rated and the Pirelli is an HL.

Can someone point me to an article or datasheet or white paper that is an apples to apples comparison of a given width, aspect ratio and rim diameter, with a fixed weight rated tire (i.e. "99"), in XL and HL designations? The weight rating number is clearly and universally defined. The statements regarding "HL" vs. "XL" I've found are ambiguous descriptions about handling higher loads that could be solved with a higher weight rating of the same tire size. Which then, why not call out a higher weight rating? It's a redundant spec as far as I can tell. Not trying to be argumentative, I genuinely want to know if there's something I'm missing. (New urgency to this because I've finally developed a bubble... )

 

[OCDC]

It sounds like the shortage is due to Pirelli releasing an updated design for the 21's in the coming weeks. Fingers crossed...

 

[Cosmo Cruz]

It's more than just the weight rating / speed rating. Lucid has said they worked with Pirelli to spec the tire just for the Lucid Air EV. Not just the (range and) weight and blinding speed, but the torque stresses need be considered. EVs have different demands on a tire.

Also, interesting that @Bill55 saw a failure on the 21" Michelin. As I suspected, the issue seems to be the low (35series) sidewall, not the manufacturer. Agree that it doesn't take much of a hit to get a failure on the 35 series tires.

 

[Tim-in-CA]

It sounds like the shortage is due to Pirelli releasing an updated design for the 21's in the coming weeks. Fingers crossed...

Source?

 

[OCDC]

As I suspected, the issue seems to be the low (35series) sidewall, not the manufacturer.

Agreed (mostly), and I knew that was a potential issue going into it. It's all engineering compromises. Ride quality vs. handling vs. noise vs. durability... the design requirements may have also had some conflicts built in that they couldn't fully resolve. Oh well. They've almost lasted through the warranty period, and it's not a catastrophic failure, so I can't complain.

 

[OCDC]

Source?

My service advisor at Costa Mesa, so take that with a bit of salt.

 

[Bishop555]

I received a full new Pirelli 21 inch set this morning, front tires have a lm2 marking on them and the rears have lm1. I don't recall if my old tires were all LM1's

 

[Tim-in-CA]

My local America's Tire now shows both front and rear available in 1-5 business days. Previously, fronts were unavailable

 

[mac26mac]

Has anyone found a suitable replacement or source? My independent tire guy (who is really good) can't seem to find one. And my lucid service rep is less than reliable (he has zero follow-through and doesn't seem to ever return calls or emails. Which stinks because the actual tech who does the work is great and super awesome!) I've got a sidewall bump on my front and need it replaced ASAP.

 

[Alex]

Has anyone found a suitable replacement or source? My independent tire guy (who is really good) can't seem to find one. And my lucid service rep is less than reliable (he has zero follow-through and doesn't seem to ever return calls or emails. Which stinks because the actual tech who does the work is great and super awesome!) I've got a sidewall bump on my front and need it replaced ASAP.

I was at my local Discount Tire and the discussion came up regarding the 21" Perrelli tires for Lucid. They were told by Perrelli that those tires are now only available at Lucid Service centers and Discount can no longer order them.

 

[Tim-in-CA]

I was at my local Discount Tire and the discussion came up regarding the 21" Perrelli tires for Lucid. They were told by Perrelli that those tires are now only available at Lucid Service centers and Discount can no longer order them.

I just checked Americas Tire, same company, and 21s can be ordered.

 

[borski]

I was at my local Discount Tire and the discussion came up regarding the 21" Perrelli tires for Lucid. They were told by Perrelli that those tires are now only available at Lucid Service centers and Discount can no longer order them.

This may be true for your local one, or they’re pulling your leg… but my local one can definitely still order them.

 

[mac26mac]

Well, the Discount Tire (America's Tire) site still ALLOWS you to order it, but I did so and my local store told me basically that I was SOL and they could not get any. Some stores out west have some, but there is no way to send them to me here in the flyover states.

 

[vpatrice]

I'm amending my previous statement. 245/35ZR21 99Y and 265/35ZR21 103Y Michelin Pilot Sport EV are available for order from Costco.

You are correct, I just had these Michelin tires installed at Costco. Although there are other tires this size available from Continental, Hankook, Bridgestone and others, the Pirelli and Michelin are the only ones that are HL (high load) rated to handle the weight of the Lucid Air. For some reason, Tire Rack only lists the Pirelli’s as compatible, but these Michelins are exactly the same specs including the High Load rating.