winter tires

Heard that A4 Sport package tires suck in winter. Dealer says that go with the std package or go with sport and winter tires. I want sport, but living in Toronto - I'm worried I'll be sliding around, even with quatro drive. Any winter drivers with sport packs?

There's lots of info in the archives on this subject. Here's a brief summary of my experiences:

The SP 8000's are not good winter tires but they're very good in the dry and wet. They're also pretty noisy. I took delivery of my car late last December so I decided to try to get through the remainder of the winter without winter tires. The Dunlops were okay, but we wound up having a very mild Spring. Personally, I wouldn't try to get through a whole winter on them, especially a Northeastern winter.

This year I changed my strategy. I run the Ronal 17" package for summer and I bought a set of 15" R-26's with Pirelli 210's for winter. I just put on the winter wheels and they do make a difference, although we have not yet had enough snow to really test them. I have the storage space and prefer changing over to winter tires (we do it with all 3 of our cars, although the other two use the original wheels and Yoko Guardex's). If you can't do this a number of folks have sold the SP 8000's and switched to an all season tire with good snow rating. The 8000's are a good tire and a good value, you could probably sell them pretty fast in the classifieds. Good luck,

Andy

Andy - I'd appreciate any comments (snow/dry handling) you have on your 210A's. I have the SP8000s, but am not going to try to get through the winter with them, so the 210A's look good.



Thanks!



Spud

Andy:

I plan to put on 16" 210As and I was wondering where you purchased yours. The best price I have found is Tire Rack although they are back ordered. By the way what size did you put on and was there any particular reason. Thanks.

LouisE

Sorry, I posted it to the wrong forum I guess. If you plan to be in any snow at all, I really think it's essential to have snow tires with the Dunlop Z's as summer tires. In my first experience in the snow with them, I almost slid off the highway several times in just a couple of inches of snow, and then was passed by a Buick LeSabre with those nice all season tires they have--the ultimate humiliation for any Quattro driver! Check out my post in the regular forum tonight, 11-4.

Happy (winter) trails..

Rich
'98 2.8 Q sport.

Hi Greg, I too live in Toronto and was wondering about the SP8000 performance in winter. Could you let me know what you decide on getting and what price you ended up paying? I will do the same if I happen to get something first....my email is brara@nortel.ca.

Thanks...
-Ash 98.75 Silver 1.8TQMS

I've had mine on for a few days now. While I don't have any snow time on them yet, I can comment on wet/dry handling. Compared to the SP8000, they feel softer, even with the same psi (36). They're not as squishy as an "ice" tire, though. I put Yoko Guardex on my wife's Integra and it's no fun on dry pavement; they squirm everywhere. The Pirellis grip well in the wet and dry and I expect it to be a nice compromise between an all-season tire and an ice tire.

CraigB

I also live in Canada and recently purchased snows for my not-yet-delivered 1999 1.8T qMS. During visits to several tire stores, I recorded the following prices.

Michelin Alpin XM-S $142
Dunlop Graspic $130
Nokian Hakk 1 $130
Pirelli Winter Ice 210 $119
Pirelli 210A $153
Yokohama Guardex $139

I decided to go with the Yokohama Guardex and actually got them for $129 per tire. Currently, they are sitting in my garage but I would rather be safe than sorry.

Hope this helps.

TGB 1.8T qMS (almost in port)