Winter tires and rims

[Hockster]

Can't blame them though. Someone probably did something stupid, blamed the tire shop, and got a lawyer to threaten legal action. Effing lawyers have ruined society.

 

[Sushi]

My local tire shop down right refused to mount my 225/40/19 snow tires on the OEM rear 8.5 wheels. He said it's against company policy to stretch tires. I said thank you and will take my business somewhere else

Sounds like they are a good business and doing their job properly. I'm not well verse in tire stretching but aren't you compromising the safety of your car by stretching the tire beyond it's stated size?

 

[celwin]

Sounds like they are a good business and doing their job properly. I'm not well verse in tire stretching but aren't you compromising the safety of your car by stretching the tire beyond it's stated size?

No because these tires are speced to fit on a wheel up to 9". I fully understand why they refused.

 

[Sushi]

Oh if that is the case then that's odd. Were they aware of that fact? It could as hockster said and they had a bad prior experience with another client. At least there are lots of other garages you can go to.

 

[MerlintheMad]

Half an inch is nothing to get worried about. A whole inch wider is okay: even beneficial to handling (wider wheels keep the tread more planted; that's what stretching the sidewall does: but some people don't like the "stretched look", at all). I've been running OE summer tires and the PS4S replacements in the same tire size, on wheels that are 8.5" wide in front and 9.5" wide in the back.

 

[Gtecko]

225/40 on my 19inch OEM rims, a little narrow on the rear but that is a good thing for winter ! .

 

[MerlintheMad]

225/40 on my 19inch OEM rims, a little narrow on the rear but that is a good thing for winter ! .

This is the first closeup of the 225/40 on the OE rear rim that I have seen. It's only a half inch wider wheel but the stretch is quite noticeable. And, acceptable for a winter setup, imho. Be extra careful backing up against curbs, though!

 

[Gtecko]

This is the first closeup of the 225/40 on the OE rear rim that I have seen. It's only a half inch wider wheel but the stretch is quite noticeable. And, acceptable for a winter setup, imho. Be extra careful backing up against curbs, though!

it is stretch a bit but for the winter, even Kia, recommended to go 225/40 for the rear.
that 360 camera will come handy but I cant deny that those rims will probably take a beating in the winter

 

[MerlintheMad]

it is stretch a bit but for the winter, even Kia, recommended to go 225/40 for the rear.
that 360 camera will come handy but I cant deny that those rims will probably take a beating in the winter

I didn't know that Kia had a recommendation of that tire size. Where did you learn that?

 

[Gtecko]

I didn't know that Kia had a recommendation of that tire size. Where did you learn that?

I asked my Parts Manager and he said that if I wanted a squared set up I would need to match the front specs all around, so I went with 225/40 all around

 

[Dwayne]

So the FastWheels Switch wheels are junk. Just installed these 18s from a 2010 Soul. Painted them black.

Edit: 10mm spacers on the front wheels.

 

[NS_Stinger]

So the FastWheels Switch wheels are junk. Just installed these 18s from a 2010 Soul. Painted them black.

Edit: 10mm spacers on the front wheels.

What happened to your Fastwheels? Did they bend or something?

 

[Dwayne]

What happened to your Fastwheels? Did they crack or something?

Cracked a wheel in 2 places. I honestly can't recall hitting anything that would have done that.

 

[GRStinger]

Half an inch is nothing to get worried about. A whole inch wider is okay: even beneficial to handling (wider wheels keep the tread more planted; that's what stretching the sidewall does: but some people don't like the "stretched look", at all). I've been running OE summer tires and the PS4S replacements in the same tire size, on wheels that are 8.5" wide in front and 9.5" wide in the back.

Gotta partially disagree with you there, Merl. In my experience, narrower tires are generally better in the snow. They penetrate and give better linear traction. Now, there are many different types of snow and snow driving: light/wet snow on cold roads, or on warm roads; heavy dry snow on different temp / pavement, and on and on.... I think wider tires are better on hard-packed snow, but they kind-of "float" over heavier snow. That said, most good winter tires with the right rubber compound, adequate sipes, and good tread-void will be much better than any good A/S tire. My $0.02

 

[DiCenzo]

I've just ordered these wheels and tires. A necessity here in NL. Downsized to 18s with same wheels/tires all round. $1500 all in.
I am thinking of getting the same wheels and tires.
Would you recommend these winter sets?

 

[DiCenzo]

I've just ordered these wheels and tires. A necessity here in NL. Downsized to 18s with same wheels/tires all round. $1500 all in.

I’m thinking of getting the same wheels abs tires.
Would you recommend these both?

 

[razor_ro]

I’m downsizing to 18’s also for my 2020 Kia Stinger GT Limited ... the question for me is which tires... I can get a good deal on Hercules Cooper Avalanche RT Winter Tires 235/55R18’s all around (or 235/50R18’s, can’t remember) ... I heard they are a little noisey but overall good tire, well rated, and cheap ($450 ALL IN CASH AND TAXES/FEES AND INSTALLATION + $200 TPMS = $650 total)

OR

for almost 2x the price grab Blizzak’s WS90’s 225/45/R18’s all around from Costco ($1095 with installation/fees + tax = $1237 and I get a $100 Costco Gift Card)

Also side question, what is the typical TPMS fee? Costco says $4 per tire, does that include sensor? Confused

 

[Marlene]

recently purchased an extra set of stock wheels (8" front, 8.5" rear) and tpms for winter. Sensors were around $40 each and wheels were around $1800 total + tax. Ordered online from KiaParts.

Tried Sottozero3 last winter, but had some unpleasant experiences. They handle great while driving at -15 degrees, but turned out they are prone to sidewall damage. Living in an area with roadworks around and unfortunately potholes happen. Long story short, I had 3 out of 4 having sidewall bulge after 15K winter miles and didn't want to purchase the same thing again.

Not too much option when going with 19" staggered stock setup for winter. I read great comments for Michelin Pilot Alpin PA4, but couldn't find in local stores to order. Finally just asked it to the tire center when I was in Costco and they immediately said they can get it and I received the set shorter than a week's time. Brought the wheels and tpms, have them install and balance and nitrogen service. Looking forward to try it out...

 

[Revvdmedia]

I’m downsizing to 18’s also for my 2020 Kia Stinger GT Limited ... the question for me is which tires... I can get a good deal on Hercules Cooper Avalanche RT Winter Tires 235/55R18’s all around (or 235/50R18’s, can’t remember) ... I heard they are a little noisey but overall good tire, well rated, and cheap ($450 ALL IN CASH AND TAXES/FEES AND INSTALLATION + $200 TPMS = $650 total)

OR

for almost 2x the price grab Blizzak’s WS90’s 225/45/R18’s all around from Costco ($1095 with installation/fees + tax = $1237 and I get a $100 Costco Gift Card)

Also side question, what is the typical TPMS fee? Costco says $4 per tire, does that include sensor? Confused

So they are not cheap, but I've run Nokian Hakkapellitta (R2, then R3) on 2 cars and I would say they're easily the best all around winter tire I have used. You can only get them from Kal Tire in Canada, but prices are comparable to Michelin X-Ice which I'd call #2. Not sure if this has changed in the last 5 years, but Blizzaks have been known to wear out REALLY fast, moreso if you install them a little to early or take them off a little too late with warmer roads. The wear on my Nokians felt more than reasonable all things considered. I would have changed them at year 4 on the Mustang had I kept them, they still had tread but I could tell they didn't bite like new. 4 years might not sound long, but keep in mind that car was a powerful RWD so there was a lot of tire spinning going on, and quite a bit in late fall and early spring on dry roads which probably wore them out lol.

 

[Alphazone]

I’m downsizing to 18’s also for my 2020 Kia Stinger GT Limited ... the question for me is which tires... I can get a good deal on Hercules Cooper Avalanche RT Winter Tires 235/55R18’s all around (or 235/50R18’s, can’t remember) ... I heard they are a little noisey but overall good tire, well rated, and cheap ($450 ALL IN CASH AND TAXES/FEES AND INSTALLATION + $200 TPMS = $650 total)

OR

for almost 2x the price grab Blizzak’s WS90’s 225/45/R18’s all around from Costco ($1095 with installation/fees + tax = $1237 and I get a $100 Costco Gift Card)

Also side question, what is the typical TPMS fee? Costco says $4 per tire, does that include sensor? Confused

I have the WS90's on my setup (225/45-18) and no complaints from me at least. Compared to x-ice3, the ws90 grip so much better, but yet to see how long they last me, my moms venza has the ws80 and it's done at least 3-4 winter seasons and is still holding up (she doesn't really drive much)

Regarding TPMS, as long as you supply them to costco you don't need them to reprogram anything since the car will be able to pick it up itself after driving for a bit. The fee costco mentions is for if the TPMS needs to be reset before the car can connect to it, something like that.