I have an AGT with 21" wheels on order; I tried to get the wheels swapped but that's no longer something Lucid is doing. I've read a lot on this forum about the tires not holding up well to potholes, and that they're both expensive and, sometimes, unavailable. But how bad are these tires really? Can they not withstand regular road surfaces, or are they only damaged by large potholes that would probably challenge any tire? Would I be safe driving them for the summer, or should I immediately buy 19" wheels upon delivery of the car?
Looking for opinions on the 21" wheels
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if you are diligent about avoiding potholes you should not have problems.
That said, it’s a bit of a numbers game, eventually you’ll hit one and I would say whereas another tire might survive that hit at speed, this tire is mostly not going to.
FWIW I’ve had to replace 1 21” tire due pothole bubble over 10k miles and that with me being careful.
I would budget some replacement $&, but it’s not unmanageable.
That said, it’s a bit of a numbers game, eventually you’ll hit one and I would say whereas another tire might survive that hit at speed, this tire is mostly not going to.
FWIW I’ve had to replace 1 21” tire due pothole bubble over 10k miles and that with me being careful.
I would budget some replacement $&, but it’s not unmanageable.
I have the 21" wheels. I have gone over several potholes, but only twice have they been the kind where is is a solid hit, the kind where you can tell the compression was at it's limit and the bump was almost bone-jarring, the kind that makes you cringe no matter what car you are driving. The first one caused the bubble in the tire. The second time did not have any bad implications as far as I can tell. Neither caused a flat, but I had to replace the tire that got the bubble. The one difference though was that the first time the inflation was the recommended 42 lb and the second time (three weeks ago) was with the tires inflated to 45 lbs. I have around 9k miles over almost two years.
They really are fine contrary to what reports you've seen on the forum or elsewhere. Yes, you need to be more careful to avoid potholes but that's with any low profile tire. Many owners have had no issues and others have had tons. I believe that's mainly due to driving styles. It also depends on where you live in the country. These summer compound tires are not made to be used in any weather below 45 degrees.
MJAir23TheGoat
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No issues with my 21’s thus far. Love the look better than the smaller tires because of the wheel gap.
I have a GT ordered with 19" A/S Pirellis for range. Last spring I installed the 21" Pirellis and love them. I just put them back on last week = love them. The ride is quieter and smoother. Performance is obvious. Roads are terrible = about as bad as you can get. Yes, I have a spare.
I think this car was designed for the 21" wheels/tires.
I think this car was designed for the 21" wheels/tires.
Quieter and smoother than the 19s?
Pothole damage likely occurs more often to those driving on non-familiar roads. Almost all of my driving is daily highway miles to and from work so I know where to be extra vigilant.
I think this might be also be another instance were we hear more about the "bad" experiences people tend to post about. There are surely many others that have been fine with the 21's such as myself.
There will always be risks out there so it depends on your use and road conditions.
Obvious tips from decades driving lowered cars on low profile tires ... a) stay far enough away from the vehicle in front of you so you can make evasive maneuvers if needed and b) don't change lanes from behind slow vehicles unless you are sure the next lane is clear.
Can echo what others have said - started out w/ 21" tires and put 10K miles on them without any issue but definitely paying attention while driving. My car was delivered with wrong size rims, I had ordered the 20" wheels so I could switch for fall/winter in the Northeast. Lucid exchanged my wheels in February and I have been on the 20's since without any problems - I do think the ride is a bit more comfortable and I am definitely less focused on avoiding road surface issues...
The excellent mobile tech that came to the house for the swap told me that he had seen plenty of flats and bubbles with the 21" wheels but had not seen any issues with the Michelin 20's! I also drive my tires in the 44-45 psi range.
For what it's worth - I loved the look of the 21" stealth wheels but think the 20" stealth without the aero covers look just as nice..
The excellent mobile tech that came to the house for the swap told me that he had seen plenty of flats and bubbles with the 21" wheels but had not seen any issues with the Michelin 20's! I also drive my tires in the 44-45 psi range.
For what it's worth - I loved the look of the 21" stealth wheels but think the 20" stealth without the aero covers look just as nice..
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Adding on here that I have had the 21” wheels and love them. I am ever-vigilant in this vehicle for potholes and shoddy road conditions, all worth it be wearing these badass 21” stealth wheels. I also ran these all winter, no issues and put air in them to over inflate a tad bit.
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I'm on 21's and haven't had an issue in 14 months of ownership. Keep the 21's on order and increase your psi to 45 from 42 and you should be good to go.
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My thoughts from a couple of months ago:
Post in thread 'Advice/Opinions wanted! 20" vs 21" OE wheels for summer driving' https://lucidowners.com/threads/adv...oe-wheels-for-summer-driving.7953/post-187618
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I've replaced two 19s and zero 21s. 
YMMV.
YMMV.
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I love the look of the 21" wheels much better than the 19" by far. The 20" wheels are also pretty good looking. I'm driving a loaner Touring with 19" wheels. The biggest Pro is the increased efficiency. I'm averaging right around 3.7 mi/kWh with the Touring 19" and my Dream 21" is around 3.2 mi/kWh. However the loaner has a governor at around 87 mph whereas my Dream just keeps on stepping out well into three figures without even breathing hard. Very noticeable when trying to pass (safely but very quickly) multiple cars on a two lane highway. Very disconcerting when you hit that governor on the loaner!! And as stated above the performance of the 21" wheels with the Pirelli summer tires is noticeably better than the All Season 19". But also as stated above I run my 21" tires at 45 psi. Maybe not quite as quiet as 42 psi but much better against road hazards in my opinion/experience.
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I replaced my 21s with 19s in the first several months after 4 bent rims one bubble and two blowouts. It’s just more problematic the further north you go with potholes. The 19s are not nearly as nice looking either in design or filling in the wheel well. That’s why the 20s seem to be a good compromise but alas they were not available the first year. I really don’t want to buy a third set of rims and tires just to find out.
Yeah I'm surprised at this too. But noticed it right away when I swapped them in last spring, and then again this past week when I put them back on. Perhaps the lower air pressure helps, and fewer sipes. Or, perhaps the suspension was tuned for the 21" tires/wheels ? I recall a Road and track article (decades ago) that tested different wheel sizes on a BMW. They found the 15" factory wheels got better lap times than the lower profile 16" wheels with the same tire. When consulted the BMW engineers were not surprised, "We designed the car for the 15" wheels
I run the 19" A/S Pirellis at 50 psi
21" summer Pirellis at 45 psi
All that said... were I to redo I might order the car with 20" A/S tires and be done with bi-annual swapping. It's just that ... summer rubber is awesome.
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I think you told me that the 21s ride better but it didn't sink in.
Historically I'm quite bad at avoiding potholes...wondering now if the 20s would be an acceptable compromise for warmer weather, and whether any performance difference would be noticeable enough to be worth the hassle...
You can always get the insurance with what ever tires you want and call it a day?
