JoeMM18018

Expecting delivery of my Q5 early December. Was curious if anyone switches from the 19" wheels and all season tires to 17" wheels with winter tires.
How is the Q5 with the 19" wheels and all season tires in the snow?

soonerfan

My 2011 2.0T Q5 P+ had 19" wheels and all-season tires and performed very well in the snow. We had a freakish accumulation of 20" that Winter and the Q went through it like it wasn't there. Didn't do any serious hill climbing, but on the flat streets and the mild hills it performed as expected. Tulsa doesn't get a lot of snow every season, but if you live in snow-country, I'd at least invest in dedicated snow tires and swap tires for the Winter.

normp

The need for snow tires is really dependent on where you live. For most parts of the country you can get by with the all season 19 inchers, but if you see a lot of snow or drive into the mountains to ski then dedicated snow tires are the best choice. Where I live, coming down the hill on all season tires is just not good for the heart. Mine go on this week!

Parsec

Kind of late to be putting on snow tires up that way. A coworker of mine who lives in Bozeman said he already got 18" once this season.

GBadger

I replaced my wide 20" S-Line wheels and summer tires with 17" wheels and snow tires for the winter.
Around here (CO) it's well worth the money to get an extra set of wheels/tires for the snow. For S-Line, it's non-negotiable.

Telate

All this talk about winter and snow :P Its still sunny and relatively warm here (~14C). I'm in Vancouver, BC. We see a grand total of about 2 or 3 days a year of snow. Winter tires were great on my last car, but I don't think I'm going to get them this time around - will stick with the all-seasons at least for this year.

Jake-AudiUSAParts

As you see from most people that have responded, it depends on where you live. If you get snow and ice (ice is the killer) most winters then you should at least have snow/winter tires if not a full tire and wheel set. The best argument for a full, wheel and tire set is you don't damage your beautiful summer wheels driving through all of the junk that snow hides and the gravel that most states use for traction on the roads in snowy and icy conditions. One thing people either don't know or they just forget is temperature, all season and summer tires get hard and lose traction in temps below 45deg. So, even if you don't get much, if any, snow or ice, you do lose some traction in the winter months by not running winter tires. In conclusion, if you live somewhere that the temps do not drop below 45deg. for any extended period of time and obviously you don't get any snow or ice either, then you do not need anything beyond an all season tire. If the temps stay below 45deg. for an extended period of time and you have the possibility for snow and or ice, you need snow/winter tires. You can get by with all season tires, but they are not designed for use under 45deg. and your quattro and ABS will be working overtime to mask your lack of traction.

normp

Sure pick on the guy that's snowed in! We're had a couple of storms come through, maybe a little over a foot in total, but today it was 60 here. I find the hardest times to drive are the fall and the spring when things melt and then freeze again and everything gets icy. During the winter you're mostly on packed snow and that's controllable. Coming down our driveway can be a bit of an adventure as part of it is a 10% grade! That's reason enough to have winter tires.

Reggie

I went from 20" with Conti DWS (all-seasons) to 19" with snow tires after one season. The DWS never lost traction but never felt confident on ice and slick snow.