Why? Because I think you can find better ANDDDD cheaper rims elsewhere. 😉
Ugh, I hate saying this. Because they were so nice to me on the phone. Answered my emails, answered my silly questions. Ya know what, let me backup a little bit and start off with why you SHOULD buy TSportline wheels for your Tesla.
REASON #1 – You like how they look.
I don’t know if you do or don’t but I assume that if you buy them, you love how they look. Most of their wheel designs aren’t unique IMO, you can find elsewhere. But their turbine styles are not as common. If you really really like those, buying from TSportline would make sense.
REASON #2 – They are 100% compatible with your Tesla.
Buying aftermarket wheels is really tough if you don’t know what the heck you’re doing. You have to get the right size…and then decide if you want the same exact EXACT size as stock tires or if you want more aggressive wider ones or staggered setup (where back ones are wider than front), etc. Then you have to get the right offset, which is really confusing because there’s both positive AND negative offset.
All in all, if you want to be safe…just buy your wheels from TSportline since they are 100% guaranteed a perfect fit for your Tesla.
Why NOT to buy wheels from TSportline
Ok, now back to my original thought….
REASON #1 – you want better wheels
TSportline is not the best. “Flow-forged” is not as strong and as light as “Fully forged”. But it is a nice/cheap middle ground between FULLY FORGED wheels and CAST wheels. I won’t go over all the science but basically, it’s this:
- CAST – cheapest, heaviest and weakest (usually what stock wheels are)
- FLOW-FORGED / FLOW-FORMED – middlepoint for cost, weight, strength. (I do think there’s lots of variance in this middleground.)
- FULLY-FORGED – most costly, lightest and strongest.
- To learn more, read: The Strength Difference Between Cast, Flow-Formed and Forged Wheels
So anyway, don’t get caught up with their “FLOW-FORGED” labels. It’s what most of the aftermarket industry is doing right now and there isn’t anything special about it.
Btw, in case it isn’t obvious…strength DOES matter. On the track, I imagine you want strong wheels to handle more force at high speeds, high temperatures, and angled turns without bending. On the street, you want strong wheels to resist breaking or bending when you hit potholes or accidentally drive off curbs.
TSportline wheels ARE better than the stock ones (lighter and stronger), but I want you to learn and pick even better options for yourself.
REASON #2 – you want better performance (more power, more mileage)
As I’ve explained before (how to improve Tesla range), performance comes from weight. Reducing every 1 LB of wheel weight equals 10 LBS of sprung weight. Even if one wheel was only 5 LBS lighter than the other, you’d save 20 LBS of rotational off the whole set, equaling 200 LBS of sprung weight. Which is pretty much a solid 5-7% increase in range and probably 6-9% increase in acceleration power.
Yes, it makes that big of a difference. You can read up on all the science about it!
REASON #3 – you want different styles
Tesla and TSportline wheels do have a nice stock look. Or maybe some of you may consider it a “generic” look. But if you look out there, there are so many more cool styles and ones that show off your performance brakes better if you want.
REASON #4 – you want cheaper wheels
Tesla, TSportline, and other companies are overpricing their wheels to cater to the Tesla demographic, who don’t know much about cars. You can actually get better wheels for cheaper if you know how to look up their fitment with your vehicle. The good news is most of these wheel companies will tell you which ones fit exactly like stock and which ones don’t. They’ll do all the hard work for you.
Where to buy other wheels/rims:
- Wheel and tire shops online. Like Fitment Industries, they also have a huge Youtube channel with many helpful videos.
- Also check out local car-enthusiast and custom/mod shops.
REASON #5 – you want wheels made by an actual wheel manufacturer
Maybe you don’t care about these things but I love buying products from specialized manufacturers. I think they’re made better, perform better, look better, and run by true enthusiasts rather than businessmen.
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