Hello everyone,<p>I'm sure the same question has appeared 10000 times, but here it is again. I have two options: 16" Pirelli Winter ICE tires or 4 15" Winter Ice mounted on black take-off steel rims from Audi dealer. And they are exactly the same price. Which one should I go with?

Exactly the same price, eh? Hmm... Well, for the most part, the 15" wheels/tires will be better in the snow, although I plan on purchasing 16" wheels/tires for snow use. I just can stand the looks of steel rims or 15" alloys, especially when compared to how nice the car looks w/16 or 17" alloys/tires! That's just me, though.<p>JT 99' 1.8Tqms

If I understand your question, You can either buy a set of 16" tires or a set of 15" wheels and tires for the same price. If that is the case, I would go for the 15" combo for the practicality. This would allow you to pay for the mounting and balancing one time and to mount the tires/wheels whenever you want versus having to have the 16" tires mounted when it starts to snow (most people seem to go in the day of the first snowstorm!), then having them removed in the spring. This expense, repeated over 3 or 4 years would probably equal or surpass the price of the wheels. And don't forget the wear and tear on your alloys from the sand, salt and grit.<p>Plus, the 15" combo would give you superior traction in snow compared with the 16"ers.<p>As far as looks go, they look like he**. See if the dealer will toss in a set of wheel covers. ;-)<p>And BTW, the question has only been asked 5,000 times...:)<p>Best regards<p>Steve<p>PS My 15" BBS/Michelin combo works great. It's hard to spin a tire on snow. We'll see how the ice goes...

Thanks for the info!! I think I'll go with the 15" package. For your Michelins, are they Artic Alpins? And also, do you mount your own wheels or let the dealer do it for you? I don't have the necessary equipment and I am not sure if my dealer will charge me for mounting the summer wheels back on when spring comes.

I put 16" Pirelli 210A's on a set of 16" sport wheels thatI purcahsed on this forum. Looks great and easy to switch back & forth. Everyone says better traction with !5" tires, but you can forgo a little snow performance here in the midwest for better dry action.<p>LouisE

My tires are Michelin XMS 250's, a tire that has been out of circulation for a couple of years. I bought 'em used from a fellow in the SF Bay area that used them to drive to Tahoe occasionally. Funny, they work pretty well for being "old tech".<p>As far as mounting them, you could use your jack to switch the tires one at a time. Every car has the necessary equipment to change tires, of course. I use a hydraulic jack to lift one side of the car at a time and switch 2 tires at once. Up to now, I've been using a manual wrench to tighten/loosen the bolts, but I put an impact wrench on the old Christmas list (horror of horrors!) We'll see if it materializes...<p>My dealer offers free rotation of tires. Maybe a seasonal switch isn't out of line?<p>Best of luck,<br>Steve

Two questions: 1.) Is there a jack point or pad on the A4 to position a floor jack so you can lift one side at a time to change wheels and 2.) I assume you need a air compressor to run a impact wrench, what kind do you recommend for basic work ie impact wrenchs, sanding, tire inflation etc.?<p>LouisE

I place a 12" piece of 2x4 between the car and the jack. If you peer under the side of your car, just below the back edge of the front door, you will see a long flat sill that the board sits nicely against. Raise the jack to contact the board with that area and lift. You may want to experiment and find the balance point so that both tires lift evenly.<p>(Insert legalese here) Remember, this is what I do to MY car. If you wish to do the same and drop the car on your pinky, or on Puff ;) , then I am in no way responsible. Be careful, in other words.<p>In terms of compressors, get the biggest one you can afford. Unless you need to carry it around, bigger is better, at least in this situation <smirk>. I use mine to fill my tires, blow out the sprinklers, fill the bike tires and soon to change the tires as well. Just be sure not to do what they do at your local tire emporium and torque the lug bolts down to 250 ft-lbs. I will still do the final torquing by hand until I establish that the wrench can do as good (and accurate) a job. At a minimum, get a wrench that will deliver enough air at 90psi to run your chosen wrench or that has a large enough tank to supply the wrench while you are using it. <p>If you can't afford that, check into a used compressor. By brother bought a comp with a huge tank for not much $$. Plus, used tools places can be cool places to hang out.<p>Feel free to email if you need more info.<p>Steve

Sounds ideal! Not only do you get better dry performance w/the 16"ers, but they are SO much better looking than 15" alloys, and especially 15" steel rims!<p>JT 99' 1.8Tqms