rs691919

I had the all-season's on my 2011 A5, and I didn't think they fared too well during the winter. On the S5, they were gonna charge me $1000 to swap out the summer tires for the all-season, so I figured it would be worth it to get dedicated winter tires and have the performance tires in the spring/summer/fall.

rs691919

Have not looked at the classifieds yet but will do so today!

rs691919

So, I've done a bit more research on winter tires. For my 255/35 19, it was suggested to go down 245/40/18 and to get the studless tires. My question would be: if I decided to go with the "winter performance" tires in 255/35/19, would I be losing a lot? Or perhaps the better question is: if I do the studless tires in a small diameter, is it overkill? I used the all-season stock tires on my A5 for four winters and while it wasn't great, it wasn't horrible. Winter in St. Louis is cold, but there have not been a huge number of snow days. Any advice?

DHS

As a rural Mainer with close to 550,000 year round miles on Audis over the past 15 years I have a pretty good idea how these cars run in snow. Pretty damn well, I would say. But with dedicated snow tires. On my current ride - '09 S5 (131k trouble free miles - 30k miles py +/-) I have run a few sets of Dunlop M3 and Hak R performance snows. I downsized to 245/40/18 on dedicated rims to save the OEM rims. I did a similar downsize on my B5 S4 and A4 as well. I found both to be a pretty good compromise between snow and dry performance. I drive, snow or shine, 110 miles round trip to work every day on "secondary" roads, which may mean something different here in Maine than elsewhere. My driveway is 2/10 of a mile, and mostly up from the house. I have plowed that that road with my Audis more times than I care to remember. Nothing like that plume of snow like a frosty white cap breaking over the hood and roof. Of course, the most important factor in deep snow driving, in my experience, is under carriage clearance. I don't care how capable your tires are if the snow packed under the car glues you to the road. I have also run Hakkapeliitta studded snows on our BMW 530xi wagon,which has been our weekend ski shuttle. Absolutely brilliant traction but a compromised ride which I would not tolerate on my Audi. I believe that the Dunlop performance winter tire has been replaced by a D4 model for which I have no experience. All of that being said, I pulled the trigger today on a set of Blizzak W80's. It is their latest generation and gets great reviews at Tire Rack. This will be the first full on snow tire I have run on the S5 and am interested to see how it compares with the "performance" version from other makers. Seems to me that if you do not face the kind of conditions I do on a regular basis, you may do well with the hybrid iteration of winter tire. My biggest gripe with tires, whether summer or winter is how Audis eat them for lunch. Tires on all three of mine (B5 A4, B5 S4, S5) develop cupping, predominately on the front which limits their life to no more than 15k-20k miles - at most. I have just become relegated to buying a set of new snows and summer rubber every year. Just part of the price of admission. Hope this helps.

eric strauss

… Having owned eight Audis through many winters in New England (now in LA however), I echo the advice of the folks above. I always had a separate set of winter wheels and tires. That way, you can go one inch diameter smaller (18") and have a bit more sidewall to flex and absorb the inevitable winter potholes and ice. Full severe service snows (mountain and snowflake stamp on the sidewall) are the way to go - they are just so good in cold weather. Micro-siping (the tiny cuts in the tread) and self adjusting rubber compounds based on remaining tread have made the miserable winter tires of yore a thing of the past. They just get soft above 50 degrees F or so. The Tire Rack has been my go-to for over 20 years.

The funny part is that now I am in California and the mountain roads are so intoxicating, my wife and I have 150 mile dashes through the canyons at least once a weekend. Our summer tires are lasting under 10K for each car. Oh well, no winter tires, just lots of performance rubber.

Enjoy your your new S5. I was born in St Luis and there are some great roads in your area as well as an active Audi Club.

Eric

jeff968

If you plan to keep the car for a while I would recommend a set of winter tires and wheels. That is what I do for my Audi's. With the quattro and a true snow tire you will be in good shape for whatever winter throws your way. When spring comes, you just switch back and your summer rims stay in great shape in the basement over the winter.

fstr n u

RS691919: you can get a decent set of 18" aluminum rims (no TPMS needed) with a good set of rubber for under $2k. I am not a mechanic and can swap out my wheels in under an hour with a jack and a torque wrench.

One of the best non-studded winter tires you can buy are the Michelin X-Ice. I've tried Hankook Ice Bears, Yokohama IG, Pirelli Scorpions (aweful tire btw), and a few others.

I purchased a set of Nokian Hakkapelita 8's this past year and almost soiled my drawers at how incredible these tires are. minimal road noise and grip like no other tire i've driven on. These were matched with the only rim that KalTire could get to match up with our bolt pattern and offset and i have to say, for a winter rim/rubber combo it looks very German

Here is the link to pics of my car with the wheels when i installed them last year. I plan to outfit my wife's Lexus with these tires they are so fantastic

Sold the Volvo and got back into a sports coupe...so happy! - Fbody Generations

dmbcrew36

I bought dedicated winter wheels + Michelin Alpin PA4 tires for my '13 S5. I did a fair amount of reading before selecting the tires and I have to say I am very happy. The car is a beast in Buffalo snow on these tires. The wheels I bought direct from Audi and while they are nice, it was expensive as hell. If I did it again I would probably just buy 3rd party wheels.

redaudi

Also looking at this for my 2012 A5. I live in Dutchess County NY. Has anyone gone down to 17 in wheels?