Anyone know of a place (besides TireRack) that has good deals on winter tires & wheels for the PanAm? Looking for 20" for the 4S either new or "lightly" used....

 

I just bought a Porsche winter tire/wheel setup from CarlsenPorsche.com; the 18 inch setup was on sale for $2897 plus freight, which ran me $140 to central WA. I had originally wanted 20 inch myself, but after a lot on internet research it sounds like the narrower rims and tires of the 18 inch will work quite a bit better in snow. I spoke with Michael Evanchik in the parts department there, he was very prompt and professional. Oh, those 18 inch wheels will not work if you have the ceramic brakes, and they do not come with center caps. You can get some cool 4S center caps for $15 each, or just use the ones you have now.

 

I bought a Jeep to drive in the winter.

 

I drive my PTT w/ 20 inch SottoZero winter tires. I live in western PA and take the Panny when I go skiing on the weekends. Gets up and down the mountain with no problems

 

I'm sure a Jeep would be a great solution...but I did not buy this car to only drive 6 months out of the year! I have no idea what the winters are like in PA, and for that matter I really don't know how well the 20 inch SottoZero tires work (glad to hear they work well for ophtho). What I do know is that I've run both studs and Blizzaks here on 18 inch wheels (on previous cars) and there are days I cannot get out of my (steep) driveway! I'm a bit concerned about even the 18 inch tires I just ordered on the 4S, although I'm hoping four wheel drive will help (my previous cars have all been front wheel drive). Especially considering that Tire Rack rates the Blizzaks as the best! Well, winter will tell...all I can say is, if your winters are dicey, and you plan on driving your 4S like me, I'd think it would be worth the small tradeoff in looks to get the tire that will work the very best in snow. Btw, the 18 inch tires are cheaper too...

 

Western PA winters are a beast! I went up the mountain last night for dinner and when I came out it was snowing. Can't believe it, already! I was going to wait until Nov 1st but oh well....

 

Please call me if I can help.

 

You probably can buy a Jeep for the $6200 for the 20" wheels and snow tires that Porsche wants....

 

Do you have separate wheels? Or do you use the same wheels as your summer tires? Is there a disadvantage in taking the summer tires of the wheels repeatedly every winter & spring?

 

Good question. My answer would be yes. When I put on my Bridgestone tires this summer I developed a squeal when the wheel is turned almost to lock. Took it to the dealer twice and they couldn't figure out what the noise was. I hope it goes away when I put the winter tires on this week. Honestly, I won't be driving it that much this winter because I will be stealing the wifes Cayenne!

 

Porsche recommend using N0 marked tires. Eg. Pirellis and Contis have this. The rubber settles on the alloys and every time you change, the rubber changes position. You will get vibration in the long run, that will be hard or impossible to get rid of.