All Season or Winter Tires for 996TT
Posted: Wed Oct 30, 2019 11:06 am
So, the HTR ZIII tires that the prior owner of my car had put on the car right before I bought it 4 years ago are about shot. Well, at least the rears. The fronts have about half the tread left. I'll star another thread on available summer replacement tires, but want to discuss All Season and Winter tire options here.
I drive my car through the winter, albeit only in dry weather, unless I get caught by surprise. In the past 4 winters, I'd basically take the car out about once a week and just drive really carefully - no "spirited driving". Basically, drive it to Saturday morning PCA breakfast and maybe cars and coffee. So, even though it might be below freezing, I figured driving very deliberately was OK. As I was reading up on replacement tires, however, I saw warnings that said driving a summer tire during cold weather was bad not only for the lack of traction, but also that flexing the tires in cold weather actually damages the tire. Hmm, learn something new every day.
I'd like to keep my routine of driving through the winter - I think that's better for the car than just letting it sit for 4 months straight. But, to do that, I'll need tires built for cold weather. Since I don't plan to drive in the snow, and we really don't get much snow in KC anyway, All Season tires are probably the way to go. The main compromise would be a minor loss of grip/handling over the summer tires (but much better of the same in the cold weather), and I will have to go to a non-Porsche recommended size, which is narrower (hence not as cool looking). On my previous 996, a '99 C4, I ran All Seasons year round and they were plenty good enough for my driving skills and non-track events. For the 996TT, I would just buy a set of All Seasons for winter use and mount them on my current wheels (18"x8" front, 18"x10" rears). Then, next spring, I'd buy a new set of wheels and summer tires. I've been thinking about getting a new set of wheels anyway.
After doing a bit of research, I don't see any winter or All Season tires in the OEM Porsche recommended sizes (225/40-18 fronts and 295/30-18 rears). They are available for the fronts, it's the rear tires that are the problem. There are no winter or All Season tires in 295/30-18.
On searching the tire sites and the other forums, I see 2 sets of recommendations for sizes for winter or All Season tires. For 8" wide front wheels and 10" wide rear wheels (like my car), the recommendations are for 225/40-18 fronts and 265/35-18 rears (supposedly the Porsche recommendation for snow tires, but I'm too lazy to verify that). For wider fronts and rears (8.5" front and 10.5" or 11" rears), then go to 235/40-18 and 275/35-18. I think you can use the 235/275 combo on the 8" and 10" wheels, but you'll need the 275 width in the rears for the 11" wheels as the 265 just gets stretched too much. To clarify, this is the advice I've seen after doing a couple of hours of research - I don't have personal experience.
Supposedly, the 235/275 combo offers more selection as well. When searching for the tires I'm most interested in, they come in either size, though. The top two choices for me are the General GMax AS-05 and the Yokohama Advan Sport AS. On the 225/265 combo, the Generals are $570 for the set on Tirerack.com, and the Yokohamas are $644. However, my local Discounttire.com retailer will sell me the Yokohamas for $566 for the set. Bumping up to the 235/40-18 and 275/35-18, the Yokohamas are $662 for the set on Discounttire.com, but the Generals aren't available on either Tirerack or Discounttire in the 275/35-18 size.
I haven't decided for sure what I'm doing, but interested in thoughts of the rest of you.
I drive my car through the winter, albeit only in dry weather, unless I get caught by surprise. In the past 4 winters, I'd basically take the car out about once a week and just drive really carefully - no "spirited driving". Basically, drive it to Saturday morning PCA breakfast and maybe cars and coffee. So, even though it might be below freezing, I figured driving very deliberately was OK. As I was reading up on replacement tires, however, I saw warnings that said driving a summer tire during cold weather was bad not only for the lack of traction, but also that flexing the tires in cold weather actually damages the tire. Hmm, learn something new every day.
I'd like to keep my routine of driving through the winter - I think that's better for the car than just letting it sit for 4 months straight. But, to do that, I'll need tires built for cold weather. Since I don't plan to drive in the snow, and we really don't get much snow in KC anyway, All Season tires are probably the way to go. The main compromise would be a minor loss of grip/handling over the summer tires (but much better of the same in the cold weather), and I will have to go to a non-Porsche recommended size, which is narrower (hence not as cool looking). On my previous 996, a '99 C4, I ran All Seasons year round and they were plenty good enough for my driving skills and non-track events. For the 996TT, I would just buy a set of All Seasons for winter use and mount them on my current wheels (18"x8" front, 18"x10" rears). Then, next spring, I'd buy a new set of wheels and summer tires. I've been thinking about getting a new set of wheels anyway.
After doing a bit of research, I don't see any winter or All Season tires in the OEM Porsche recommended sizes (225/40-18 fronts and 295/30-18 rears). They are available for the fronts, it's the rear tires that are the problem. There are no winter or All Season tires in 295/30-18.
On searching the tire sites and the other forums, I see 2 sets of recommendations for sizes for winter or All Season tires. For 8" wide front wheels and 10" wide rear wheels (like my car), the recommendations are for 225/40-18 fronts and 265/35-18 rears (supposedly the Porsche recommendation for snow tires, but I'm too lazy to verify that). For wider fronts and rears (8.5" front and 10.5" or 11" rears), then go to 235/40-18 and 275/35-18. I think you can use the 235/275 combo on the 8" and 10" wheels, but you'll need the 275 width in the rears for the 11" wheels as the 265 just gets stretched too much. To clarify, this is the advice I've seen after doing a couple of hours of research - I don't have personal experience.
Supposedly, the 235/275 combo offers more selection as well. When searching for the tires I'm most interested in, they come in either size, though. The top two choices for me are the General GMax AS-05 and the Yokohama Advan Sport AS. On the 225/265 combo, the Generals are $570 for the set on Tirerack.com, and the Yokohamas are $644. However, my local Discounttire.com retailer will sell me the Yokohamas for $566 for the set. Bumping up to the 235/40-18 and 275/35-18, the Yokohamas are $662 for the set on Discounttire.com, but the Generals aren't available on either Tirerack or Discounttire in the 275/35-18 size.
I haven't decided for sure what I'm doing, but interested in thoughts of the rest of you.