Downsizing winter tires better? - Toyota GR86, 86, FR-S and Subaru BRZ Forum & Owners Community

allowe · 11-10-2016, 10:20 AM

Hey sorry if this has been posted somewhere else.
Today I was talking to a fellow frs owner I met at Timmies and he said that smaller winter tires (16") are better in snow than 17". To me that makes no sense but I'm finding a lot of people here get 16 inch winters.

Question is, which one is the safest ?/ is there any difference

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humfrz · 11-10-2016, 10:51 AM

It's my understanding that the diameter of the rim doesn't make any difference.

However, some say that a narrower tire helps cut through the snow better, thus increasing traction.

I think the tread compound and tread pattern makes the most difference.

humfrz

Tcoat · 11-10-2016, 10:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by allowe

Hey sorry if this has been posted somewhere else.
Today I was talking to a fellow frs owner I met at Timmies and he said that smaller winter tires (16") are better in snow than 17". To me that makes no sense but I'm finding a lot of people here get 16 inch winters.

Question is, which one is the safest ?/ is there any difference

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I have 16s. The outer diameter is the same size as the 17 inch tires but since the wheel is smaller you get an inch deeper sidewall. The deeper side wall gives you that little bit more tire depth to dig through the snow. I also went with steel wheels instead of anything spoked so they can dig through easier and don't get chunks of ice built up in them that make you bounce down the road.
I highly recommend that set up (and it its cheaper!).

jvincent · 11-10-2016, 11:11 AM

What @Tcoat said, except for the steelies part.

Can't have your ride look ugly in the winter. Get some cheap 16" alloys.

Tcoat · 11-10-2016, 11:20 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jvincent

What @Tcoat said, except for the steelies part.

Can't have your ride look ugly in the winter. Get some cheap 16" alloys.

Hey I like the monster truck look! I used to use alloys on my other cars and got sick of slush building up in there and freezing. Boy does it throw off the balance. May be less of an issue for people that don't spend as much time on the highway as I do but was a pain in the ass for me. Don't really care how it looks in the winter anyway.
My wife got me some "nice" hubcaps for Christmas a couple of years ago that look OK at a glance. Last year however I "forgot" to put them on. Still have "forgot" so far this year.

unhappymeal · 11-10-2016, 11:27 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tcoat

Hey I like the monster truck look! I used to use alloys on my other cars and got sick of slush building up in there and freezing. Boy does it throw off the balance. May be less of an issue for people that don't spend as much time on the highway as I do but was a pain in the ass for me. Don't really care how it looks in the winter anyway.
My wife got me some "nice" hubcaps for Christmas a couple of years ago that look OK at a glance. Last year however I "forgot" to put them on. Still have "forgot" so far this year.

Plus there are the functional benefits that steelies are more durable and provide a bit of extra weight for digging into the snow.

allowe · 11-10-2016, 11:34 AM

But what will have more grip on the road? I don't mind paying the extra.i do live in Canada haha

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Tcoat · 11-10-2016, 11:39 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by allowe

But what will have more grip on the road? I don't mind paying the extra.i do live in Canada haha

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As Hum said the grip is dependent on the tread not wheel size. The smaller wheel with the wider sidewall tire just lets you get that tread/grip to the road better.

DatsunDimer · 11-10-2016, 11:40 AM

Agree with Tcoat on the Steelies. One of my favorite set of wheels were 16" spare wheels from a Forester (see attached).

Guide for choosing a winter setup I think could be helpful.
http://www.tirerack.com/winter/tech/...jsp?techid=126

gramicci101 · 11-10-2016, 12:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tcoat

My wife got me some "nice" hubcaps for Christmas a couple of years ago that look OK at a glance.

Do they spin? Because if you're going to have hubcaps, you may as well go all out.

Tcoat · 11-10-2016, 12:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gramicci101

Do they spin? Because if you're going to have hubcaps, you may as well go all out.

Well, just before Christmas I jokingly pointed some spinners out at the auto store and said "that is what I need for the winter". I then noticed her expression and very quickly qualified that I was joking and did not want spinners. if I hadn't I would be Dubbing all over town now.

Shark_Bait88 · 11-10-2016, 12:27 PM

Pick up a used set of bugeye WRX wheels. They'll cost you about the same as steelies, but will look better and be hubcentric. (This is coming from someone who actually likes the look of steelies, btw)

ichitaka05 · 11-10-2016, 01:49 PM

I'll be the odd one here. I put winter tires on my stock wheels (17's). Local tire shop had 17's winter tires on sale, so I went with that. Two winter in the snow without an issue.

If they didn't have sale, I'll prob did same with with others and went with 16's, cuz it's cheaper.

Sosa · 11-10-2016, 02:54 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ichitaka05

I'll be the odd one here. I put winter tires on my stock wheels (17's).

I'm in the odd club as well:

11-10-2016, 10:20 AM	#1
allowe Senior Member Join Date: Sep 2016 Drives: FR-S Location: mississauga Posts: 576 Thanks: 227 Thanked 122 Times in 89 Posts Mentioned: 7 Post(s) Tagged: 0 Thread(s)	Downsizing winter tires better? Hey sorry if this has been posted somewhere else. Today I was talking to a fellow frs owner I met at Timmies and he said that smaller winter tires (16") are better in snow than 17". To me that makes no sense but I'm finding a lot of people here get 16 inch winters. Question is, which one is the safest ?/ is there any difference Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

11-10-2016, 11:34 AM	#7
allowe Senior Member Join Date: Sep 2016 Drives: FR-S Location: mississauga Posts: 576 Thanks: 227 Thanked 122 Times in 89 Posts Mentioned: 7 Post(s) Tagged: 0 Thread(s)	Downsizing winter tires better? But what will have more grip on the road? I don't mind paying the extra.i do live in Canada haha Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

11-10-2016, 11:40 AM	#9
DatsunDimer Member Join Date: May 2016 Drives: Datsun 510 Location: WI Posts: 89 Thanks: 100 Thanked 77 Times in 39 Posts Mentioned: 0 Post(s) Tagged: 0 Thread(s)	Agree with Tcoat on the Steelies. One of my favorite set of wheels were 16" spare wheels from a Forester (see attached). Guide for choosing a winter setup I think could be helpful. http://www.tirerack.com/winter/tech/...jsp?techid=126 Attached Images

11-10-2016, 12:27 PM	#12
Shark_Bait88 Senior Member Join Date: Jun 2014 Drives: 2013 Firestorm FR-S Location: Midwest Posts: 1,348 Thanks: 1,670 Thanked 862 Times in 480 Posts Mentioned: 12 Post(s) Tagged: 2 Thread(s)	Pick up a used set of bugeye WRX wheels. They'll cost you about the same as steelies, but will look better and be hubcentric. (This is coming from someone who actually likes the look of steelies, btw) __________________ "Shark_Bait88, the man who’s spent the most money modding his stock FR-S and it’s still stock." -@jdnguyen

11-10-2016, 01:49 PM	#13
ichitaka05 Site Moderator Join Date: Oct 2009 Drives: ichi 86 Project Location: Middle of No where Posts: 20,965 Thanks: 7,663 Thanked 19,051 Times in 8,326 Posts Mentioned: 677 Post(s) Tagged: 27 Thread(s)	I'll be the odd one here. I put winter tires on my stock wheels (17's). Local tire shop had 17's winter tires on sale, so I went with that. Two winter in the snow without an issue. If they didn't have sale, I'll prob did same with with others and went with 16's, cuz it's cheaper. Attached Images __________________

11-10-2016, 10:51 AM	#2
humfrz Senior Member Join Date: May 2013 Drives: 2013 FR-S, white, MT Location: Puyallup, WA Posts: 29,866 Thanks: 28,787 Thanked 31,813 Times in 16,424 Posts Mentioned: 708 Post(s) Tagged: 2 Thread(s)	It's my understanding that the diameter of the rim doesn't make any difference. However, some say that a narrower tire helps cut through the snow better, thus increasing traction. I think the tread compound and tread pattern makes the most difference. humfrz

11-10-2016, 11:11 AM	#4
jvincent Senior Member Join Date: Sep 2013 Drives: 2022 WRB BRZ Sport-Tech Location: Ottawa, Canada Posts: 1,746 Thanks: 131 Thanked 1,410 Times in 715 Posts Mentioned: 25 Post(s) Tagged: 2 Thread(s)	What @Tcoat said, except for the steelies part. Can't have your ride look ugly in the winter. Get some cheap 16" alloys.

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