hey guys, pricing replacement tires here in Toronto for an XLS, for the 18" everyone is $200+ per tire. For that price, I can do a 16" or 17" WITH rims for each tire, meaning it's a much less expensive swap every spring and fall. Any issues (beyond the lack of the TPMS and the annoying warning each time you start the car) with going with a slightly smaller (say 17") rim for the winter tires?

Thanks for any input you may have!

Dave

 

you can go with a 16. The non-XLS versions come with 16s standard. I run 16 summers on the stock rims for summer and have a dedicated set of 16s for winter use. Yup, TPMS is retarded, but the benefits of winters far outweighs the annoyance.

 

Hey Dave, go with 215 70 16, thats the reg for 16" ES version. I just bought a set of Motormaster WT Truck/SUV Tires for $111 a pop at Crappy Tire (On sale for %25 off)...its a great price for a truck winter tire... graba set of steelies from them too if you want basic rims...

Ill actually take some pics once installed and give you some feedback once I tget snow and Ice (London so not far from you)

 

thanks for the input so far guys! any reason not to go with 17s? i'm a tire noobie, so no idea what the differences really equate to, just figuring th 17 is closer to the stock XLS 18.

i'll go with the steel rims from Cdn. Tire, sounds like the easy way to go...

dave

 

usually, the smaller the rim size, the cheaper your tire will be.
I'm sure there's a lot more demand out there for 16" rims than 17" rims

 

I picked up some 215 70 R16 Michelin Latitude X-Ice's on steel rims for this winter. They are definitly more noisy than the stock 18 inch but that is to be expected in this warm weather we're having now.

They'll be more expensive than the Motomasters, but it's up to you. The guy I bought them from suggested them over Blizzacks since he felt they will last longer. It sucks you have to put the money out up front, but it extends the life of your summer set which at 18" will be much more to replace.

The outer diameter of the tires is roughly the same as the 18" because the sidewalls are wider. No speedometer differences.

You'll need new lug nuts!
The ones that come with the alloy rims have washers on them for mating with the alloys. They do have a slightly acorned/bevelled mating surface - which I think is for the temporary doughnut which is on steel rims. I purchased proper closed end acorn lug nuts at $40 for the set of 20.

Also search for hub rings or hub centric to learn about issues with multifit steel rims. The centre bore size of the rim should be 67.1mm - a good tire shop will get you the right sized rims. Canadian Tire may or may not depending on the installer. I don't know if hub rings are actually needed, I think it just helps to centre the wheel and for balancing.

Cheers,
CN