Is winter mode necessary?

[UnluckyRS5]

Afternoon all!
Searched And didn't find much. Have a '13 S4 on order with the stock 19's. wondering if you all believe a 18" winter set is a necessity? I know it depends on where you live and snow amount and all, the car will be in Salt Lake City.

So what are most of you finding who stay on the 19's through the winter? Are they capable winter tires in most locations?

Thanks

[dparm]

If they're the "summer/performance" tires, you cannot use those in the snow. Even when the pavement gets cold, they get very skittish and the ESP light will randomly come on.

If it's the all-season tires, you'll do fine in the winter, but snow tires make it far easier.

[Toecutter]

SLC? Heck yeah you want a winter setup. "Greatest snow on earth," and all.

[phillips2024]

i had comfortred all seasons on my last AWD car (19")... was no issue in the harsh NE winter conditions.

i have blizzaks winters (19") on my s4 now but have yet to really see how they perform; but i hear good things :)

[9Schnell]

If they're the "summer/performance" tires, you cannot use those in the snow. Even when the pavement gets cold, they get very skittish and the ESP light will randomly come on.

If it's the all-season tires, you'll do fine in the winter, but snow tires make it far easier.

/agree

The Continental 19in summers turn into rock hard slicks in the snow. They actually perform very well in rain & dry. I've been impressed.

I ordered some 18's & Blizzaks, set to arrive friday. Should get me to the mountains etc easily.

[dreaddontdie]

I was in your shoes last year around this time. I decided to run the stock 19s w/ Alpine PA3 this past winter - they performed great! great in snow but very good in dry too (dry performance was important for me since i live in a big city with lots of plows, etc) Of course 18s would be a little better in the snow, but for me, I maintain 19s in the winter for the looks...I dont like how 18s look on the s4. I will also have less clearance in the wheel wells this winter now that I'm lowered, but I'm sticking with 19s. Tires also get a little more expensive and you have fewer choices when looking at 19+ size tires.

good things though about a dedicated winter rim + tire:

- it is much easier to swap out winter/summer wheels when you want in your own garage/driveway with a jack + you save some money and time
- less potential for damage to your rim if you don't have to get tires remounted/balanced twice a year
-18s will be better than 19s in winter performance

you can also decide to just get some winter rubber for the stock 19s and decide next year...like I did. I plan to buy new summer rims and make the stock peelers the winter set.

like others said, don't run summers in the winter. not only bad for grip on the road, its bad for your confidence as a driver...and that's not why you bought this car. :)

[rcmas4]

Just picked up my 13 couple weeks ago and I'll keep my 19's shelved until Spring. Went with Michelin Alpin PA4 and some cheap MSW 14 wheels in 245-40-18.

[MailmanOdd]

Hey Unlucky,

I asked the same thing last winter (got my S4 last October). I live in MD so our weather is very unpredictable and could potentially have tons of snow. I (against better judgement) kept the summer tires on until December. They will not drive well in cold weather (40F or lower). You will lose traction and stopping ability and it can be quite scary because the S4 is not a light car. I ordered a set of Continental All-season performance tires from Tirerack and the difference was huge. I don't think you need to get 18's (I still ran 19's with A/S tires) but that's up to you.

-Adam

[DOCEVG]

Just picked up my 13 couple weeks ago and I'll keep my 19's shelved until Spring. Went with Michelin Alpin PA4 and some cheap MSW 14 wheels in 245-40-18.

This. You're in ski/snow country. Just took the 19s off my S4 and put on a set of 18" RS4 reps with Michelin Pilot Alpin PA4s. It snowed, and they worked.

[Toecutter]

This. You're in ski/snow country. Just took the 19s off my S4 and put on a set of 18" RS4 reps with Michelin Pilot Alpin PA4s. It snowed, and they worked.

Which RS4 reps did you get? Do you have any pics to show? My tire guy is coming over in about 2 hours to mount mine.

[Wusty]

I'm running 19" snow tires. Yesterday we got 1-6" of snow in the valley's and 3-4 feet in the mountains. The snow is here. If you have summers don't get all seasons, get winters. Winter tires rock even on the 19's.

[DOCEVG]

Which RS4 reps did you get? Do you have any pics to show? My tire guy is coming over in about 2 hours to mount mine.

VMRs; 708s I think, in gunmetal. Look really good, I think. Can take some pics and upload this weekend, which is probably too late for you. I think Hartmann has a similarly priced RS4 rep.

[b6onboost]

All Seasons + Quattro will be perfectly fine for most people. Combine those two and you have more traction than 99% of cars on the road. Only people will more are those running winter tires on AWD/4WD vehicles.

[DOCEVG]

http://i1352.photobucket.com/albums/q646/docevg/RS5/007.jpg

Toecutter: better late than never. Saw your RS4 reps on Epicski. Look good.

[Toecutter]

Lookin' good, Doc. Thanks for posting.

[weirded]

http://youtu.be/JGfvyPtYR0Y

I decided to go the dedicated winter route based on this video. Made a noticeable difference. In winter, I commute 120 miles in snow conditions every weekend. With the winter tires, I feel much more confident.

If you can find a good deal on rims, two sets of wheels are the way to go. No compromise in summer or winter.

I also found that 19" all seasons were almost as expensive as 18" winters + rims.

I recommend checking Craigslist, I found a set of OEM 18" wheels for $400. They had some scratches, but were good enough for winter.