just mounted my winter 21" sport plus wheels with pirelli's. i will post pics later. really happy with the look.

do i have to get any of the fluids changed or prepare the cayenne for cold weather in Canada? (obviously window washer fluid)
i purchased vehicle earlier this year from texas and i assume it has never touched sub zero temps.

thanks in advance
mt

 

I would change the antifreeze to a cold climate mix, other than that make sure your belts and hoses look in good condtion

 

Please remember that winter tires don't save you. You are in a VERY heavy vehicle and it will NOT stop on ice or snow just because you have winter tires. On 21's your cross sectional area is all wrong for deep snow, be safe.

 

thx mud man. i dont plan on speed racing in the snow and plan to drive cautiously! i have seen many idiots driving SUVs with snow tires thinking handling is the same as on dry roads.

 

Sorry if this is off topic, but i thought of posting here as well cos i have the same concern. So my question is.. Is it a MUST to have snow tires installed? This is my first winter with my 09 GTS and im still on stock tires. I live in Vancouver btw.

This has been bugging me cos my local dealer called me the other day and reminded me to get snow tires. He was really pushing to sell those to me.

 

I am from Vancouver but moved to Calgary now. If you are doing city driving you will not need them. I don't think it would be justified for the few snow days. Just drive cautiously. Vancouver is a warm climate in comparison to the rest of Canada and when it does snow it is only a few days with temperatures around 0 Celsius.

However I would recommend a set of snows if you drive to Whistler or the local mountains. also if you live in the north shore as they tend to get more snow.

IMO the stealer is just trying to make some $s in this tough economy if they are phoning!

 

Yeah i live in downtown and i also drive on the main roads so i expect the road to be clear of snow. I knew my dealer was just trying to make the sale to me haha!

I do plan to drive to whistler on the end of the month though.. but when i went there December last year the roads were clear of snow

 

are you nuts? the GTS 21" are summer tires and will not function in the cold temperatures. your dealer is doing you a favour.

get some 19" and snows for Van.

 

depends what tires he has on the GTS. are they dedicated summer tire or an all-season?
Vancouver temperatures do not get cold enough to warrant winter tires for everyday driving unless you are traveling up to the mountains often.

you will end up burning through a set very fast because they are soft and the car is already heavy on tires.

 

Ok that's a wake-up call. I do realize I am using summer tires. Where's the best place to buy snow tires for my 21" other than the dealer? I dont want to buy a set of 19s just to have snow tires.

 

sorry for confusion. didn't know you had dedicated summer tire on when i recommended driving in snow!

check out tirerack. they have all in shipped price from states incl duties etc.
most likely significantly cheaper than the stealership. pirelli is the only manufacturer making this size. it just became available this year.

order soon as they probably have limited availability
http://www.tirerack.com/tires/Compar...er=21&x=14&y=7
$1650 US all in

 

Just for clarity

When the Cayenne came out in 03 dealers knew nothing about winter driving in a 3 ton truck !

Many bought S and TT (no V6's yet) with 20 inch Sport Techno with summer rubber. I am sure if you do a search you will find loads of pictures of crashed Cayenne attached to posts from people complaining that the 4 wheel drive system and traction management system on the Cayenne sucked and the truck was therefore a POC.

Dealers were getting hammered all over the US to the point that they even (in some cases) gave away sets of 18's with Scorpion I&S to disgruntled "good" ie repeat customers.

We poor folk with 18's could not understand the problem as we (on all seasons) were having a blast tooling around parking lots with 24inches of snow and PSM turned off. I never had a problem but I even witnessed a really nice black TT slide into a 996 on the lot of my dealler after taking the corner way to fast for safety, then getting out and cursing Porsche for building such a useless 4 wheel drive.

Summer rubber is useless on sleat / snow / ice

Large wheels have almost no sidewall strength to offset the hidden dangers underneath the snow, curbs and potholes and debris, so rims get bent.

Your ideal wheel for far northern Cayenne would be a 17 but that will not fit, so 18's are your best bet.

IMHO

 

mattjtaylor50, thanks for the link. I noticed u have a thread about the scorpion snow and ice on your 21s. That's the exact same tires you are using right?

mudman2, thanks for the info. Im definitely getting a set of winter tires. Although im minimizing my expenditures so I wont be buying a new set of wheels. Ill stick with the 21 winter tires

 

yes i just put them on last weekend
i will let everyone know how they are after first snow fall

obviously they wont be as good as 18" snow tires due to sidewall/surface area but i was willing to sacrifice some look for performance.

i previously had a RWD AMG mercedes so anything will be better in the snow!

 

Before i order this, would it be compatible with my built-in Tire Pressure Monitor? Im not sure how the tire pressure monitor works and is it as simple as changing tires?