Calculating Winter/Snow Tire sizes

[ned23]

I did a little reserch and found a good snow tire calculator for people to use at this merchant:http://www.tirerack.com/index_w.jspGenerally, this particular vendor recommends the same size tire and offers a replacement model for the stock rims, including the 17" rims for the 245/45-17 tires. It looks like the Michilen X-ice Xi2 has promise and was rated well in a couple of other auto forums I got via google. However, locally, I could not find many tires of this size, so it is probably a geographical thing. This particualar local vendor only had alternate sizes that required a smaller rim:http://www.discounttire.com/dt...43215They recommended these sizes:215/55-16 225/50-16 I assume most people could "special order" the '45-17' snow tires. The manufacturer recommends installing replacing all 4 tires.

[Mavrik]

I use the ones in this thread all the time.http://forums.genvibe.com/zerothread?id=1066

[ned23]

Quote, originally posted by Mavrik »I use the ones in this thread all the time.http://forums.genvibe.com/zerothread?id=1066Thanks. It takes a while to open, for me but I like that it allows you to compare two sizes. Also, the reason I posted the one above was because I wanted to see what kind of "Winter Size" recommendations might go with the stock sizes. I've had difficulty finding winter tires in narrow profiles locally, but it looks like they're still available - just in more severe climates.

[Sublimewind]

It's all about negative sizing, rather than plus sizing that people usually do when they buy bigger wheels and tires... Low profile snow are "ok" but, another point to them is to slightly slow the steering reactions also.. It's when things happen fast in the snow, that people get into trouble... you want slower, more deliberate reactions in the snow, not quick jerky motions.. Once things start to slide, there isn't a heck of a lot of control... slower reactions(and less overcompensation) less slide..

[ned23]

snows are noisy too.