Ok so for the last week it has been 65-70 degrees here in Illinois and now we are supposed to have freezing rain and snow tonight and tomorrow. I have never lived in this weather before (California my whole life) and now it is coming here fast. I have been planning on putting some winter tires/wheels on my car in a couple weeks but now I am screwed and my baby is sitting on stock S-line 18" wheels with the summer tires.

So am I screwed if it snows tomorrow??? Should I even be driving on the summer tires if the temps are under 20*F (as i read in one of my searches). Thanks in advance for all your advice.

Paul

 

just be real careful quattro will get you through, but use your better judgement

 

No worries for the short-term, my man. It's been way too warm recently for there to be any significant accumulations of snow or ice....the ground is too warm. It'll take a couple weeks of consistenly cold temps before it becomes an issue.

Now that said...you're right, you don't want to roll around on summer tires during winter in the northeast/mid-west. Your tires are not meant to bite into snow, and you're right, the rubber gets a little funky when it's too cold. Your options are:

1) Spend a few hundred on a set of 15 or 16-inch alloys or steel wheels, wrapped with snow tires, and not have to spend another second worrying about it for the next 3 winters.

OR

2) Keep your summer tires on, be unable to drive your car in heavy snow and slush, be a nervous wreck when you do drive it, and risk an accident.

To me, option 1 is a no-brainer. You car will be a freakin TANK in the snow. Some people may say you can get through with summer rubber, but I personally think it's a horrible idea, ESPECIALLY if you've never driven in snow before. Your stopping distances will double, you'll spin your wheels getting started, your back-end will be loose as hell, etc......just not worth it.

Here are the tires on my list when I was shopping last year (they can all be found on Tirerack.com)

Bridgestone Blizzaks - pretty much the gold-standard of snow traction, but you only want these if you'll be in consistenly deep snow...they're very soft and wear quickly otherwise.
Dunlop Winter Sport M3 - a "performance winter"...you trade some traction for better handling.
Michelin X-Ice - a very solid all-around snow tire.
Firestone Winterforce - what I use, they were cheap and availible locally...I have no complaints.

Some people use a snow tire from a company called Nokian (not on tirerack)...their brand is called Hakkapalitanas...or some crazy spelling like that, you'll know them when you see them.

Good luck man! From a long-time winter warrior, snow can be a lot of fun once you know what you're doing. JUST TAKE IT EASY AT FIRST!

 

Thanks a lot for the advice, I agree the ground is pretty damn warm right now so I can see what you are saying about not accumulating. Well hopefully it isn't too bad around here and I can make it to work, otherwise I guess I get the day off

Another question I have then is what about having winter tires put on my stock 18" rims?? From what I understand our winters here are not too brutal, and when the snow falls it sticks around for only a day or two. Would this be a bad move, I do think my wheels are sexy and I don't want them screwed up by the salt on the roads.

Makes me wonder why I left Cali, oh wait maybe it was that fat paycheck that got me this sexy new Audi LOL. Thanks again for the advice, awesome.

 

You definitely can if you want to. The downside to that is, if you're swapping 2 sets of rubber on one set of wheels, you'll have to pay about 50-60 bucks twice a year to get the tires mounted and balanced. That's almost 120 bucks a year. A set of cheap steel wheels will be paid for after that. You can definitely find a set of cheap alloys in the classifieds, which will definitely look better than steelies. That's what I did.

You'll also have a HUGE convenience factor with 2 sets. If you go to the local tire place this weekend to buy some snow tires, guess what...EVERYONE and their brother will be there for the same thing. You'll probably have to drop your car off for the day, or plan on waiting around for awhile to get the work done. I took an hour this weekend in my driveway and zapped my winter rims on. Drank a couple beers, no fuss, no muss.

Also, since your 18-inch tire might be wider than a smaller tire would be, small-width tires do better in the snow. Since they're narrow, they "cut" through the snow better. But that probably doesn't need to be a huge consideration, just sayin

 

Summer tires on ice/snow=deathwish-quattro or not. The only difference is youll have 4 wheels that get no traction istead of just 2 when you hit the gas. Get some good all seasons if you dont want to worry about swapping rims or tires twice/year.

 

yeah, im in chicago too. i wouldnt worry too much. but there is snow and freezing rain comming. i dont see why you would be driving bad enough to crash into anything. quattro will help you out reguardless of your tires. good luck as i will be right there with ya, lol

 

Thanks a lot for your advice guys, I really appreciate it. While us So Cal people may know how to drive in traffic, snow is a mysterious beast to us. Your help is much appreciated, and I will definitely be getting a set of wheels/tires to swap for convenience. I'll update after tomorrow to let u know what I end up doing.

 

If you have zero experience driving in winter conditions and you're on summer tires, this is a BAD combination.

AWD will get you moving forward quicker than FWD or RWD... stopping will still be a challenge for you as it is for everyone else. If your temps drop to low 20's or high teens, your summer tires will become rock hard and NOT give you the NEEDED traction for these conditions as opposed to winter tires which will remain softer and allow you to grip the road better.

Good luck

 

I use an all-season performance tire (Im in Ohio)

Last year we got like 2 days with any snow accumulation.

So, maybe 1 day I had to drive in 2 inches of snow. And for that, the performance all-seasons worked great.

We get a lot of rain in the fall/spring/winter as well. So its worth it to have the all season tires for better traction in the wet.

I would say based on your loaction, you could get by with a decent all season, except for maybe 1 day out of the year.

Of course, for me, I have a 4x4 expedition in my driveway, so if it snows more than a few inches, I jump into that dude instead. The audi is pretty low to the ground, so I would leave it in the garage in that case.

I have continental conti-extremecontact all season? Something like that. I think they are a great tire, they handle very well in the dry, and faily well in the wet/snow. They slide around a little in the snow, but have the traction to keep you going except for the ultra-deep.