I just got a new 2009 GTS -- with "performance summer tires". Despite it's almost March, Mother Nature will toss a bunch of snow in a couple of days, and the real spring is out of sight here in New England. And, despite the Al Gore inspired "Global Warming" we will definitely have another winter quite soon. So, to be comfortable, I by all means need a set of winter wheels. So far, I had quite good experience with Pirelli Scorpions Ice and Snow (I had them both on my previous Cayenne S, and on ML500 I still drive while in Russia). But Tire Rack don't have normal I&S in stock, only runflat type, which are 10 pounds heavier. The other oprion -- Michelin Lattitude Alpin are both available, but the runflats are on sale, and normal are not... So I can't make up my mind, which tires should I pick. The first question -- between the same model, are runflats much worse on the road (10 extra pounds a lot, IMHO), and noisier? And, second, are Michelins any good on ice and snow?

I will use 18" rims -- I think anything larger is just an overkill for the winter.

 

runflat snows - never heard of anyone using them. my hunch is that the michein's are a good tire. i have them on the LR3 and like them.

18" scorp's on the GTS.

i think the decision to go 18" is smart and more important overall than the tire make.

 

Runflats are awful tyres. I know they are great for that whole novelty of being able to drive 50 miles on a flat but outside of that they just present all negatives. They are heavier (which hurts all performance catagories), much stiffer (awful bounce and rebounding off of bumpy surfaces) and cannot be repaired once flat in relation to a normal tyre. They also tend to be an extra $100 per. I am not sure where you are located in New England, but if you are in the Boston metro west region, pm me and I can see what I can find in normal snows for you outside of Tirerack.

Hope this helps.

 

Thanks TCM,

That's what I thought... Indeed, driving various SUVs (2 MLs and CS) on the both sides of The Pond, in 11 years I never had a "real" flat. Once in Dallas I got a screw -- just pumped the tire, and drove to the shop to fix it (it was about $25 including mounting and balancing). In Moscow (Russia) I got a nail -- and drove with it a couple hundred miles, pumping air twice a day. In both cases repair took less than an hour, and tires were as good as new.

No doubts they discount the runflats...

TireRack is convenient because they do the whole wheel, TPCS included. Just plug and play. My local Town Fair Tire is great and reasonable, but they don't have Porsche TPCS in stock, so they want me to get it (I can get it from my Porsche dealer -- but for much more tham TireRack sells -- and I'm greedy like hell), then they can probably find the suitable rims and rubber, and put everything together -- but it will cost me some time. TR just ships the wheels right to my door, where I can put them on the car myself in less than 30 minutes. Maybe, it's time for TR to discount all their stock of winter rubber, so the guys like me will empty their warehouses

However, any reasonable alternatives are welcome. I'm in So NH, close to Manchester.

 

I understand your position. Especially about the convenience factor of having them shipped to your door. Town Fair is great to work with. What you can do is order the wheels and TPMS from TR and see if Town Fair can source the normal snows for you. If they give you a hassle on that, let me know as I work with them all the time and can get that done for you. I hardly ever see GTS's in this region, great truck,

 

I'm running 18" I&S Runflats on an 08 GTS. I do a lot of driving through the rural mountains and without a full spare, I wanted some mental security of a run-flat. I believe mine were $199ea, so they weren't astronomical by any means.

The ride is actually pretty nice and better on dry roads than imagined. They don't handle as well as the summer 21"s but thats expected. I wish I could say that I've driven both the original and the run-flats to compare, but I haven't.