Speed4Life

Hey everyone, I live next to Chicago IL and we got some crazy snow here so i was wonder what is the cheapest way to change tries, so I don't crash my car. Should I buy some new/used cheap wheels and put snow tires on it and use it for only winter, then in the summer have another set of wheels with summer tires? Or should I just have one set of wheel and just switch tries every summer/winter?

terrasmak

iTrader: (8)

OEM wheels work great for that

RandyK1

iTrader: (9)

Check out Chicagoz.com they sometimes have wheels and snow tires for sale in your area

bluelineshooter

Buy the time you drop the cash for a set of tires and wheels, you could just buy a cheap 4x4 or front wheel drive.

RUNWDVL

iTrader: (10)

Get a second car, especially in Chicago. I have one and I'm 300 miles south of ya.

SQuaLZ

I actually did both. Last year I bought a used set of snow tires on oem touring wheels for $200 and this summer I bought a 93 Sentra.

I think both options are great and it is really about what deal you can get.

Wheels are an investment, a second car yields more bills (insurance)

I got my Sentra to park at the train station because I don't want to leave my Z in a lot everyday for that long. If it was only about snow, I would probably just go for a set of wheels. Why create more bills for something that happens maybe 5-10 days out of the year (and when it is super bad nobody drives anyways)

VMRWheels

+1

Just use some OEM wheels for the snow.

Speed4Life

Thanks for answering guys! I think I might just buy a set of wheels for now. Might buy another car next year. So where can I buy some OEM wheels for cheap? Also when I'm done using the snow tires, I will put them in my garage but will anything happen to the tries? Lose of balance?

I have a 2004 Nissan 350z Enthusiast, I think its 17' wheels?

VMRWheels

I'd check Craigslist to see if anything comes up in your area. As long as the wheels hold air until the next time you use them I don't think you'll need to rebalance them.

When they're off the car you should check the pressure on them periodically.

Speed4Life

What about the tire pressure sensor, will it still work?

terrasmak

iTrader: (8)

You can only have 1 set registered to the car at a time. Dealer has to set them to the car. Just run without them in your winter wheels.

Speed4Life

So when I'm done using the snow tires, and put the summer tires back on the tire pressure senor will work like before? No setups?

VQdriver

iTrader: (1)

Alright, I'm updating my oldschool post so I don't have to remake a new one. I bought a set of these Federals in 215/55-17 to go on my base Z33 wheels. Since I had 2 sets of those wheels for my winters and old drift wheels I decided to use 4 of the rear 17x8, 30mm offset wheels so I can rotate them over a few seasons.

I've had them on for 2 days and so far I've only been able to use them in rainy 38deg F weather. Overall they feel great as far as sidewall stiffness and steering response. Ride is nice and plush. The car feels like it accelerates quicker due to far lesser unsprung weight. Traction on rainy pavement is another thing. I'm able to break the rears going straight relatively easily. With less than half throttle the traction control is activated. That is something I never experienced with my old 235mm rear Blizzak LM-22s. They obviously make more noise than ordinary street tires, but I can hear more additional noise on throttle coming from the rear which leads me to believe that the compound is soft and the siping is deep and plentiful. I'm not sure if the traction loss is due to the compound or running an ultra narrow 215mm tire on a heavy car with 240hp (ish). Btw, tire psi is set to 36psi all around. Stay tuned for the real winter test which may include a winter trek to Vermont and a few day trips for Pocono skiing...

Spike100

^^ Interestingly, my studless snow tires (they are mounted on 17” wheels) run more quietly and comfortably than my summer performance tires.

--Spike

VQdriver

iTrader: (1)

Yep, 17s are definitely more comfortable, but my current set of Federal Himalaya WS2 studdable tires make a noise on acceleration which leads me to believe the tread is very deep and soft. I'll have to update once I run these things on snow. I think if I'm gonna get another set of snow tires they will be at least 225mm treadwidth as these 215s just break free too easily. It's not like Jersey sees a ton of snow consistently. Hopefully these tires pay off when it really dumps and freezes...

terrasmak

iTrader: (8)

Correct, so have your primary wheels with TPMS then your other set without. When your primary wheels are on, you will not have the light on. I used to do it all the time with my street/tracl setup.

marine in a Z

I just bought a set of cheap wheels and tires from tirerack. I used to have LM22's but this is their fifth season and they're not going to work. I went with WS70s this time.

My question is: I got 225/50r17 up front (same as lm22s) and 225/55r17 in the back.

Is this going to cause my traction control to mess up? It was the recommended size on tirerack.

I don't have VDC.

Spike100

You made good choices in tire sizes; you won't have any problems with ABS, TCS, or any Nissan safety features.

--Spike

marine in a Z

Thanks for your quick reply.

I read this thread:

https://my350z.com/forum/wheels-and-...read-here.html

There, I found out that the ECU can tolerate a difference from around 0-6% difference in tire size from front to rear.

I'm not sure if that applies to my 2004 Enthusiast however.

I went to the calculator and my stock tires have a difference of 1.5%. My new setup will have a difference of 3.4%. Based on the thread I linked, I should be fine, but I'm still a bit worried. My stock tires didn't have a difference of 2.7% like the poster in that thread had, but only 1.5%. I'm going up to 3.4% which is a fair difference...

Still think I'll be okay?

Spike100

^^ Yes... You're good. You won't have any trouble with the tire sizes you are using.
--Spike