Winter Tires

[Dutch]

Here's a topic I am generally unfamiliar with that maybe some of our winter snow drivers can help me with.

I need to get winter tires for my car. I currently have 17" wide/low-profile tires. Is it okay to go to a 16" wheel/rim for winter tires or should I stick with 17" wheel/rims?

The reason I ask is because I don't know if you can do that, but it does seem cheaper, and seems to be an option at www.tirerack.com.

Any advice/help would be appreciated.

BTW, I have an '02 Jetta GLX VR6 with 225/45/17 tires now.

[FrogMan]

it is very much okay to do that, in fact I've done it with both our cars, although from 16" summer/all season tires to 15" tire/wheels for the winter tires solely because it was indeed much cheaper to get smaller ones.

Also, if you plan on driving in a lot of snow, try to get tires which are a bit "thinner", meaning with not as wide of a sole. They cut through snow better than wider tires...

[FrogMan]

dola, also make sure you get the right size of tires so as to not throw your odometer and speedometer off.

There's a pretty usefull thing at http://www.dsm.org/tools/tiresize.htm

One other thing why it's probably better t get 16" is that your 45 series tires are pretty low profile kind of tires and you could bump on some ice this winter and dent your wheels...

FM

[Raven Hawk]

It is actually better to go with 16" rims for the winter. Just make sure that you get the correct prophile tire for the new rims. Winter tires are usually not made in the lower prophile sizes.

Try to find a Jetta forum and they would probably be able to tell you what actual tire size you'd need to put on the 16" rims. Also when you get the new rims, make sure that you get the correct width and offset for the car/tires.

I'd guess your current rims are probably around 17x7.5 with a 42-45mm offset. When you get 16 inch rims, you probably won't be able to find them at 16x7.5, so you'll need to go 16x6.5 or so and keep the same offset if at all possible. My best guess would be you'd be looking at 205/55/16 or 205/60/16 with the 16" rims.

[Dutch]

Great, thanks for the info. Buying 4 new tires and 4 new rims and having them shipped is kind of expensive. I might be better suited to just go on the German economy to find this stuff.

I'll investigate that this weekend hopefully.

205/55/16's are probably best suited for my purposes. Thanks for the info to both of you, I feel much more confident in this pursuit now.

[HomerSimpson]

Also, if you plan on driving in a lot of snow, try to get tires which are a bit "thinner", meaning with not as wide of a sole. They cut through snow better than wider tires...
"Where's your sign...." You know your idiot sign? This is the 100% WRONG!!!!


For winter driving conditions on snow, ice, or any other slick surface you want to put as much tire on the road as you can. For better traction you always want as big of a footprint as you can get on the road. The wider the tire the better the traction.

Alright, that concludes my idiot alert for the day.:D

[johnnyshaka]

"Where's your sign...." You know your idiot sign? This is the 100% WRONG!!!!


For winter driving conditions on snow, ice, or any other slick surface you want to put as much tire on the road as you can. For better traction you always want as big of a footprint as you can get on the road. The wider the tire the better the traction.

Alright, that concludes my idiot alert for the day.:D

Well...I'll turn my idiot alert on for the day, too!! :D

He said driving "in a lot of snow" and not on slick surfaces...and for those purposes, narrower tires are preferred.

http://www.consumersearch.com/www/automotive/snow-tires/fullstory.html

"Although many drivers are doing this for cosmetic reasons -- a larger wheel and narrower tire has a sportier look -- reviews say plus-sizing is a bad idea for winter tires. That's because wider tires must carve a wider path through snow; that means more resistance and drag. Instead, experts recommend using a narrow winter tire. Narrower tires can more easily cut a path through snow and slush. You can also "minus size" your original tire size by selecting a narrower tread and smaller wheel size. This can also save you some money, since narrower tires and smaller wheels are usually cheaper than wider tires with larger wheels."

[3ric]

"Where's your sign...." You know your idiot sign? This is the 100% WRONG!!!!


For winter driving conditions on snow, ice, or any other slick surface you want to put as much tire on the road as you can. For better traction you always want as big of a footprint as you can get on the road. The wider the tire the better the traction.

Alright, that concludes my idiot alert for the day.:D

I'm sorry, sir, but you're the one in the wrong. And this comes from someone who lives even farther up north than FrogMan. Johnny's quoted text explains it very well.

[Dutch]

Homer had an out if he had just said, "Doh."

Opportunity missed.... :)

[sterlingice]

Not to threadjack too much but I just saw this thread and I've been trying to make a similar decision. I'm trying to get some tires that are "better" ( I realize nothing is great on it) on ice since Kansas seems to be about the perfect latitude for ice. Now, my Corolla isn't the most surefooted car on a normal day but if you put something on the road, it really has issues. I've been told that if you want to get good traction, the best bet is winter tires or something a little more moderate like the Michelin HydroEdge. However, another problem I have is that I drive about 5000 miles per month so anything with too "broken" a tread will get worn down pretty quick. Any thoughts?

SI