For those in snow country - are you getting winter tires and/or wheels?

[Dave T]

(Pls refrain from voting if snow isn’t a concern for you where you live.)

Winter tires have been discussed elsewhere, but I thought I'd start a poll. I'm torn as to whether or not to get them. Coming to the AWD Taycan from my RWD BMW, I'm expecting better handling in snow out of the gate. But do I still need snows? And I'd hate giving up my Mission E wheels, but I know narrower wheels would be better in snow. Plus the sand and gravel on the roads in winter wouldn't be great for the Mission E's.

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[PanameraFrank]

I personally think winter tires are an easy and cheap investment if you anticipate driving on snow or ice at all. You're extending the life of your normal tires so you're really just paying for the install.

A new set of wheels for them is a nice luxury and if I was on 21"s I'd probably do it. You'd help offset the cold weather range loss as well.

 

[KensingtonPark]

At least for the five years that I have lived in the New York area, it just does not snow that much. If it snows enough, I will just not drive the Taycan. Of course, now that I have said that, this will be a year of record snowfall with a constant 3 inch coating of snow on the roads...

 

[louv]

My snows go on next week. It probably won’t actually snow here until November... but that’s ok.

 

[SwissTaycan]

Getting winter tires and dedicated wheels. Although snow in the Zurich area is not that common anymore :-(

I do head up to ski areas and plan to do so in the Tayacn. But the most pressing reason to have them in Switzerland is: if you have an accident on summer tires whilst driving in a snow storm, your insurance will not fully cover you and if another vehicle is involved they might go after you as well!

 

[wmras]

No snow tires yet - that job is for our Macan Turbo with Michelin Alpine tires (and air suspension).

 

[Mouse House]

I'm in Switzerland as well and will be heading up to the mountains at weekends where there will hopefully be lots of snow soon.

My car was delivered on Pirelli P Zero WInter Elect tyres on the 20in Turbo wheels. I was pleasantly surprised to see there's an EV version of the tyres.

 

[Dlurker20]

I’ve never had snow tires so I don’t know the difference. I am staying with all season for now. Having just driven through an 8 inch dumping over here, I can say the car is very good but it still slides around in corners. It’s better than any AWD car I’ve had before, but still slides in the “no season” tires. To @svp6 and my other Minnesotan (and Canadian?) inhabitants, after this unseasonable dumping, did you have winter tires and if so how did you do vs. the ignorant like me?

 

[svp6]

I’ve never had snow tires so I don’t know the difference. I am staying with all season for now. Having just driven through an 8 inch dumping over here, I can say the car is very good but it still slides around in corners. It’s better than any AWD car I’ve had before, but still slides in the “no season” tires. To @svp6 and my other Minnesotan (and Canadian?) inhabitants, after this unseasonable dumping, did you have winter tires and if so how did you do vs. the ignorant like me?

We had a little less snow - perhaps 3-4 inches. I had the P zero winters on - liked them. Pushed a little bit in the corners, felt they gripped very well. It was very slushy, no ice, will see how they go later on.

My wife and I used winter wheels and tires on all vehicles we had over last 15 years - lots of them, we usually lease. All our cars were AWD sedans (not SUV fans) delivered with all-seasons. On couple of occasions snow hit before I got the chance to swap for winter tires; on each occasion, the before (all seasons AWD) vs after (winter tires AWD) felt like it was worth the investment. After all, it is just an added layer of safety.

 

[Christian J]

trying not to derail this thread but is anyone worried about getting perfect balancing with snow tires? I have 20" summer tires and theres no vibration at all. I've never had new tires run smooth like they do on a new car.

 

[wmras]

trying not to derail this thread but is anyone worried about getting perfect balancing with snow tires? I have 20" summer tires and theres no vibration at all. I've never had new tires run smooth like they do on a new car.

it is tough to get tires as well balanced as factory tires. One of our local shops, Matrix, does it for us by balancing them twice. My wife is very sensitive to unbalanced tires (princess and pea).

 

[Arno]

I speak from own experience, and in my opinion there is no such thing as real ‘all season tires’. Those are something in between summer and winter. The problem I encountered, is that they are way to soft for summer and a bit to hard for winter conditions - which can be dangerous in both seasons. This make this type of wheels only average, which if you want full drivers feeling with this type of vehicle, does not justify what the Taycan demand.

I’ve had a couple of really close calls during the years with all season tires, so after those near death feelings I personally swear to correct tires for correct conditions at all times. I think the 21’’ E-mission wheels are cool, but for snow and ice it’s actually better to step down to 20’’. The tire dimension is somewhat still a little to wide, as narrower undoubtably gives a better grip. Snow and ice will also more easily fill up those open space on E-mission wheels around the brake system, compared to more closes type 20’’. Further more salt, sand and dirt will probably tear down glossy finish on those nice E-mission summer wheels.

The only conditions I would recommend ‘all season tires’ are areas where the climate is somewhat in between summer and winter most of the year (wherever that is?). In the rest of world and in perfect settings one could argument for up to 3 sets of tires, but that’s a little bit overkill I guess. Some of you might disagree with me on a few statements in this post, so I only reminding I’m not entitled to any correct fasit.

Personal conclusion: On such an expensive car as Porsche, I would never take a chance on nothing but the best tires to enhance the driving experience, and more importantly the safety. At least that’s my view and reference. Lastly, I think it’s so joyful springtime to put on a nicer set of summer wheels, and dismount the little more boring winter tires. That is to me the beginning of summer - the real Porsche season

 

[KensingtonPark]

By the way, do Taycans actually come with All-Season tires? I have 20" wheels and my car came with Michelin Pilot Sport 4 summer tires.

 

[Sonic]

I'm in the south of England so definitely not a "snow country" - but will definitely be getting separate winter wheels and tyres. They make a remarkable difference during the winter months in every condition and whenever used as they're simply better suited to the conditions.

I also couldnt bare to slowly glide the 2.3T behemoth into another vehicle, or into a ditch in slow-motion, on summer rubber and unable to do anything

 

[Vim Schrotnock]

I speak from own experience, and in my opinion there is no such thing as real ‘all season tires’. Those are something in between summer and winter. The problem I encountered, is that they are way to soft for summer and a bit to hard for winter conditions - which can be dangerous in both seasons. This make this type of wheels only average, which if you want full drivers feeling with this type of vehicle, does not justify what the Taycan demand.

I’ve had a couple of really close calls during the years with all season tires, so after those near death feelings I personally swear to correct tires for correct conditions at all times. I think the 21’’ E-mission wheels are cool, but for snow and ice it’s actually better to step down to 20’’. The tire dimension is somewhat still a little to wide, as narrower undoubtably gives a better grip. Snow and ice will also more easily fill up those open space on E-mission wheels around the brake system, compared to more closes type 20’’. Further more salt, sand and dirt will probably tear down glossy finish on those nice E-mission summer wheels.

The only conditions I would recommend ‘all season tires’ are areas where the climate is somewhat in between summer and winter most of the year (wherever that is?). In the rest of world and in perfect settings one could argument for up to 3 sets of tires, but that’s a little bit overkill I guess. Some of you might disagree with me on a few statements in this post, so I only reminding I’m not entitled to any correct fasit.

Personal conclusion: On such an expensive car as Porsche, I would never take a chance on nothing but the best tires to enhance the driving experience, and more importantly the safety. At least that’s my view and reference. Lastly, I think it’s so joyful springtime to put on a nicer set of summer wheels, and dismount the little more boring winter tires. That is to me the beginning of summer - the real Porsche season

I agree completely (ok, maybe not with the 3-sets of tires, I mean, this isn't formula 1). But the difference between summer and winter tires is really all about the compound and how it reacts to hot/cold temperatures. Summer tires are WAY better than all-seasons with temperatures over 40 deg F. Winter tires need to be considered essential if the temperature drops much below 30 deg F. You can warm up summer tires a bit, but if it's really cold out, even with no snow or ice on the road, they will be like driving on ice. As we say in racing school - there is nothing on the car more important than the tires. If you lose the tires, nothing else really matters.

If you're paying this kind of money for the car, why wouldn't you spend a bit extra for the most important part?

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