medpete

Hi,

Just got our new SQ5 -- what a great car! It is supposed to be my wife's new car, but I keep finding myself driving it -- it's a lot of fun.

As a welcome present, the climate around us has welcomed our new car with lots of snow. I was always considering getting snows to replace the OEM 20" summers on the car, but initially thought about just getting a 20" snow tire to replace it. In looking at this more, including searches on this forum, it seems like downsizing to a 19" rim has plenty of benefits, and some have gone that route. Two quick questions that I haven't found answers to.

#1 - Tire size...have people who are running 19" snows on an SQ5 been using a 255/50 tire or something smaller? Tirerack says a 245/50 can be an alternate, but achtuning states that 235/55 is the suggested alternate for 19". Seems like the narrow tire is usually the way to go in the snow. Any recommendations on the right tire width? I'm hoping to go with a Hartmann rim for the winter set.

#2 - All-seasons - I assume using an all season is not the way to go, but I run all seasons on my BMW 335xi and have been pretty happy with those, albeit at a smaller diameter than required by the SQ5. There isn't a lot of talk about an all-season on the SQ5, so I guess it isn't something people like. However, seems like the continental extremecontact DWS were very well rated by TireRack (which are available in a 20" match for the OEM rim), and I've been happy with both bridgestones and continentals on my 335 previously. Any thoughts on running an all-season on the OEM 20" wheels? Do all-seasons suffer from degraded performance at a larger wheel size compared to sedan wheel sizes?

Thanks for any input.
- Peter

Transfer

I use 255/50/19 winters and personally will never go with all seasons again on any car that expects to see snow at times. The 235/55/19 is probably better for serious snow use but that gives up dry traction and aesthetics which are things I care about. Definitely coordinate size and availability of wheels and tires with Achtuning. There are slim pickings for both.

acadianbob

What is important is the circumference of the tire. It needs to be as close to the original stock tire as possible. When going through the expense of snows, it makes sense to go to a higher aspect ratio and a narrower width. The purpose of this approach is to allow the tire to cut through the snow and to reach the surface of the street. Wider tires have a tougher time doing this.

Coolieman1220

Down size to an 18 or 19" rim. go with a 235 width. keep the summers for summer fun. keep the winters for winter performance.

medpete

Thanks for the replies. Sounds like the downsize makes sense for the rims. I agree about the tough availability so calling Achtuning seems to be the right move. I guess I was just trying to realize how thinner tires fit to the profile of the rim. Agree that the outer diameter has to be as close to original as possible.

I found a set of local S5 takeoff/peelers, which are 19x8.5 but are stated to be +43 offsets. Is there an easy way to figure out if those fit the SQ5 or do you have to do a test fit? The rim isn't listed on the chart of SQ comparison rims going around this board with the OEM and Hartmann comparisons.

Transfer

I would probably stay away from those. I'm not sure if they would fit but I would guess they don't clear the front caliper. Also, they will be more inset and look kind of goofy. Spacers can fix those issues but from my experience they're more of a hassle than they're worth if you can get a wheel with the proper offset (25-35).

spijun

A small correction SQ5 use offset ET33-37 - factory

gtwagon941

I went with 19" x 9" ET33 Peelers with 245/55/19 Blizzak DM-V1s.