Lifestyle
Tesla “Loaner Wheels” program and Tire Hazard Protection saved the day
This winter Los Angeles has received an enormous amount of rainfall, sorely needed, as the Governor comes close to finally declaring the drought “finished.” One negative effect of the large rainfall is the huge number of potholes that now need fixing across the Los Angeles basin.
My Flat Tire
On January 25, 2017, I experienced the issue first hand: on the way back home from Montebello, CA, I hit a pothole that was about 1.5 feet wide and 5 inches deep. The “thump” noise sounded enormous when my left rear tire hit the pothole. My tire immediately went flat. The onboard alert immediately told me that I had to stop. I had hit a double whammy: the pothole and a large nail. I was quite fortunate that a Shell station was near where I found enough space to park safely.
Tire Damage due to pothole
Next I called the Tesla Roadside Assistance toll free number 877-79-TESLA. This service is available during the first 4 years or 50,000 miles, whichever occurs first for vehicles covered by the New or Pre-Owned Vehicle Limited Warranty at the time of the occurrence.
In all markets, Tesla will arrange for your vehicle to be transported to the nearest Tesla Service Center. Tesla will cover up to 50 miles for a trained tow provider to assist you with a flat tire.
Notice that wheel and tire damage is not covered by the New or Pre-Owned Vehicle Limited Warranty.
In some markets, and that includes the Los Angeles area, Tesla has contracted with trained tow providers that carry a limited number of loaner wheels to quickly exchange for the damaged wheel so one can continue his or her journey.
After about 5 minutes of muzak, I was finally connected with a Tesla Roadside Assistance representative that immediately offered me the “loaner wheel” service. After about a 45-minute wait, a small van showed up, which had inside an entire set of all available tires for Tesla Model S and X, all mounted on wheels. My flat tire was a MICHELIN PILOT SPORT PS2 XL, 265/35ZR-21. The tow provider took no more than 15 minutes to do the tire and wheel swap, and put the damaged tire, still mounted on my 21” Turbine grey wheels, inside a large plastic bag and then in my trunk. In less than an hour I was back on the road.
The tow provider told me that he was also servicing Mercedes, Lexus and other luxury cars, but Tesla was the only one providing the loaner wheels.
My next steps were to simply arrange with my local Tesla Service Center a good time to drop in within a few days to exchange the loaner wheel for a new original wheel. I e-mailed my service center in Torrance, CA that I already had purchased a new replacement tire and was able to get an appointment for the next day at the opening time of the center.
Looking at several messages in the official Tesla forum, the “loaner wheel” service is not available in all markets, so you may want to call your local Tesla Service Center and inquire if your area is covered by the program.
TIRE RACK
In case of a flat tire, if you have not purchased a tire yourself, Tesla will sell you the tire at the time you get you flat tire replaced. There are two issues with that transaction. First, Tesla will sell you the tire at a relatively high price ($440 in the case of the MICHELIN PILOT SPORT PS2 XL, 265/35ZR-21 that I needed replaced), but more importantly tires purchased from a Tesla Service Center do not come with any “hazard warranty”, just the basic OEM warranty (from Michelin in this instance) that does not cover any type of road hazards.
When I purchased my Tesla Model S P90D I wanted to have at least one spare tire ready for each of my staggered tires and I found tirerack.com to offer OEM tires for all Tesla models at discounted prices, and provided “Tire Road Hazard protection”.
For example the MICHELIN PILOT SPORT PS2 XL, 265/35ZR-21 that I needed to replace is available from TIRE RACK for $344, a 22% discount on Tesla’s price.
Michelin Pilot Sport PS2 “staggered” tires
According to TIRE RACK (emphasis added), “road hazard damage is damage that occurs when a tire fails as a result of a puncture, bruise or impact break incurred during the course of normal driving on a maintained road. Nails, glass and potholes are the most common examples of road hazards. These types of road hazards are not typically covered under tire manufacturers’ warranties.”
During the year that I owned my Tesla Model S, I had experienced a flat from both nails and potholes, and this time I was going to test the TIRE RACK program.
I called TIRE RACK prior to my visit to the Tesla Service Center and was told that:
- Tires are covered for 24 months from the date of purchase or until 2/32″ or less of tread remains, whichever occurs first;
- Repairs are reimbursed up to $25 per tire per occurrence;
- During the 24 month benefit period, I would be reimbursed for 100% of the original cost of the tire covered by the Tire Road Hazard Protection, if the tire could not be repaired;
- To demonstrate that the tire could not be repaired, I could either send pictures or alternatively have the Tesla Service center call them with the details. In the first case, TIRE RACK could ask to have the tire returned to them, at their expense;
- I would have to first purchase a replacement tire from TIRE RACK and/or pay for the repair.
Since I always wanted to keep a spare around, I went ahead and purchased a new tire from TIRE RACK.
I then went to the Tesla Service Center, where they took back the wheel loaner, and for $50 installed my replacement Michelin tire. They also called TIRE RACK and confirmed that my tire could not be repaired. Incidentally, I was told at the Tesla Service Center that when the “loaner wheel” program was started, waiting times used to be in 2-3 hours range, which made quite a few Tesla owners upset, but lately the wait time was less than an hour and comparable to the wait time when using AAA roadside service.
TIRE RACK accepted my claim and sent me a check for the full price of the original tire plus shipping.
In the end my whole experience of having a flat tire was the best I ever had in probably 40+ years of driving. Between the Tesla “wheel loaner” and the TIRE RACK “Road Hazard Protection,” I had spent just about 2 hours of my life on the issue and no money at all. Not a bad deal.
Elon Musk
Tesla ditches India after years of broken promises
Tesla has ditched its plans to build a factory in India after years of failed negotiations.
Tesla’s long-running effort to establish a manufacturing presence in India is officially over. India’s Minister of Heavy Industries H.D. Kumaraswamy confirmed on May 19, 2026 that Tesla has informed authorities it will not proceed with a manufacturing facility in the country.
Tesla first signaled serious interest in India around 2021, when it began hiring local staff and lobbying the Indian government for lower import tariffs. The ask was straightforward: reduce duties enough for Tesla to test the market with imported vehicles before committing capital to a local factory. India’s position was equally firm, with an ask of Tesla to commit to manufacturing first, then receive tariff relief. Neither side moved, and the talks quietly collapsed.
Tesla to open first India experience center in Mumbai on July 15
India had offered a policy that would reduce import duties from 110% down to 15% on EVs priced above $35,000, provided companies committed at least $500 million toward local manufacturing investment within three years. Tesla declined to participate. The tariff standoff was only part of the problem. Analysts pointed to significant gaps in India’s local supply chain, inadequate industrial infrastructure, and a mismatch between Tesla’s premium pricing and the purchasing power of India’s automotive market as additional factors that made the investment difficult to justify.
First signs of an unraveling relationship came in April 2024, when Musk abruptly cancelled a planned trip to India where he was set to meet Prime Minister Modi and announce Tesla’s market entry. By July 2024, Fortune reported that Tesla executives had stopped contacting Indian government officials entirely. The government at that point understood Tesla had capital constraints and no plans to invest.
The more fundamental issue is that Tesla’s existing factories are currently operating at approximately 60% capacity, making a commitment to building new manufacturing capacity in a new market difficult to defend to investors. Tesla will continue selling imported Model Y vehicles through its existing showrooms in Mumbai, Delhi, Gurugram, and Bengaluru, but local production is no longer part of the plan.
Elon Musk
Trump’s invite for Elon just reshuffled Tesla’s big Signature Delivery Event
Tesla rescheduled its final Model S farewell to May 20 after Musk joined Trump in China.
Tesla has rescheduled its Model S and Model X Signature Edition delivery event to Wednesday, May 20, 2026, after abruptly calling off the original May 12 celebration. The event will take place at Tesla’s factory at 45500 Fremont Boulevard in Fremont, California, the same location where the Model S first rolled off the line in 2012. Invitees received a follow-up email asking them to reconfirm attendance and download a new QR code ticket, with Tesla noting that all travel and accommodation expenses remain the buyer’s responsibility.
The reason behind the original cancellation came into focus the same day it was announced. President Trump invited Elon Musk, Apple’s Tim Cook, BlackRock’s Larry Fink, Boeing’s Kelly Ortberg, and executives from Goldman Sachs, Blackstone, Citigroup, and Meta to join his trip to China this week for a summit with President Xi Jinping. The agenda covers trade, artificial intelligence, export controls, Taiwan, and the Iran war, following weeks of escalating friction between Washington and Beijing over AI technology, sanctions, and rare earth exports. Trump wrote on Truth Social, “I am very much looking forward to my trip to China, an amazing Country, with a Leader, President Xi, respected by all.”
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The vehicles at the center of all this are the last Model S and Model X units Tesla will ever build. Priced at $159,420 each, the 250 Model S and 100 Model X Signature Edition units come finished in Garnet Red with a one-year no-resale agreement, giving Tesla right of first refusal if the owner decides to sell. As Teslarati reported, the Model S defined Tesla’s early identity as a serious luxury automaker, and the Fremont factory line that built it is now being converted to manufacture Optimus humanoid robots.
Musk’s inclusion in the China delegation drew attention given his very public relationship with Trump, and the invitation signals the two have moved past and past grievances. Trump originally brought Musk on to lead the Department of Government Efficiency following his inauguration, and despite a sharp public dispute in mid-2025, the two have appeared together repeatedly in recent months. A seat on the China trip, the most diplomatically consequential visit of Trump’s current term, puts Musk back at the table on U.S. economic policy at a moment when Tesla’s China revenue remains one of the company’s most important financial pillars.
Lifestyle
Tesla Semi hauls fresh Cybercab batch as Robotaxi era takes hold
A Tesla Semi was filmed hauling Cybercab units out of Giga Texas for the first time.
A Tesla Semi loaded with Cybercab units was recently filmed leaving Gigafactory Texas, marking what appears to be the first documented delivery run of Tesla’s autonomous two-seater. The footage shows multiple Cybercabs secured on a flatbed trailer being hauled by a production Tesla Semi, a truck rated for a gross combination weight of 82,000 lbs. The location is consistent with Giga Texas in Austin, where Cybercab production has been ramping since February 2026.
The sighting follows a wave of Cybercab activity at the Austin facility. In late April, drone operator Joe Tegtmeyer spotted approximately 60 Cybercabs parked in two organized groups in the factory’s outbound lot, the largest concentration observed to date. Units being staged in an outbound lot is a standard pre-delivery step, and the Semi footage is the logical next frame in that sequence.
En route with @tesla_semi pic.twitter.com/ZfuOjaeLH1
— Tesla Robotaxi (@robotaxi) May 7, 2026
This is not the first time Tesla has used its own Semi to move Tesla products. When the Semi was unveiled in 2017, Musk noted it would be used for Tesla’s own operations, and over the years Semi prototypes were spotted carrying cargo ranging from concrete weights to Tesla vehicles being delivered to consumers. In 2023, a Semi was photographed transporting a Cybertruck on a trailer ahead of that vehicle’s delivery launch.
The Cybercab itself was first revealed publicly at Tesla’s “We, Robot” event on October 10, 2024, at Warner Bros. Studios in Burbank, where 20 pre-production units gave attendees rides around the studio lot. Musk stated at the event that Tesla intends to produce the Cybercab before 2027. The first production unit rolled off the Giga Texas line on February 17, 2026, with Musk posting on X: “Congratulations to the Tesla team on making the first production Cybercab.”
Tesla’s annual production goal is 2 million Cybercabs per year once multiple factories reach full design capacity, with the company targeting a price under $30,000 per unit. Tesla has confirmed plans to expand its robotaxi service to seven cities in the first half of 2026, including Dallas, Houston, Phoenix, Miami, Orlando, Tampa, and Las Vegas, building on the unsupervised service already running in Austin. Musk has said he expects robotaxis to cover between a quarter and half of the United States by end of year.
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