Sobeit

Hi guys, Audi newbie here - am considering an '18 S4. How precarious do you think if I keep the 19" summer tire setup driving in winters? I am in north NJ. TIA for your inputs.

SYMAWD

Don't do it. Buy winter tires to use in the winter or a good set of all seasons for year-round like Continental Extreme Contact DWS06.

mikemis

Irresponsible, possibly deadly to yourself and others.

njspeedfreak

Seriously. This is not hyperbole. Do not even consider it. The car is a death trap in the snow with summer tires, that is assuming you are even able to get the car moving at all. In fact, it's not all that safe on dry roads once the daytime high temps start dipping into the low 40's.

I'm in Central Jersey myself. I usually run the summer tires until Thanksgiving weekend when I swap them out for my winter tires (on dedicated wheels). However a few years back we had an extended cold snap in mid November. I still had the summer tires on and was pulling out of the parking lot where I work. It was late and the roads were empty so as I sometimes do, I gave it a little extra gas in order to feel some of that sweet sweet acceleration that we all get addicted to. Next thing I know the car is pointed in the complete wrong direction. The rear end broke loose and before I even knew what happened I did a complete 180. Luckily I avoided hitting any curbs. This happened on a completely dry road. Summer performance tires have tread compounds that turn into the consistency of hockey pucks in cold weather. There is just no grip at all. Add a little rain or a light dusting of snow and you might as well be driving one of those red flying saucer sleds.

But here is the good news - winter performance tires are relatively cheap compared to summer tires. And they last a lot longer too. And every mile you put on your winter tires is a mile that you are not wearing down your summer ones. So while it seems like an extra expense to buy another set of tires just for a few months out of the year, it actually costs less in the long run. My current set of winters now have 5 seasons on them (and probably 30K miles) and still have plenty of tread life left. They basically outlasted the car I bought them for.

Sobeit

Thanks for confirming and the tire recommendation.

Sobeit

Agreed. That'd be foolishly reckless. Thanks.

Sobeit

True. Running two sets of tires - summer and winter sets - would extend overall tire life. Thank you.

jlarke

I live in MI and got caught out by an early snowstorm a couple years ago. I needed a couple things from the store and thought I could do the two and a half miles to the store without trouble. It was terrifying. If I didn't inch around the corners, I'd get oversteer, and I mean that five mph was about four too fast. Even with quattro, the car would slide around pulling away from a stop if I used first gear. I was as scared as I've even been behind the wheel.

Spartan-S5

Audi USA is honestly a bunch of clowns by not offering a all season 19" option for their 19" rims.

markcincinnati

What is inexplicable is why AoA or Audi AG would offer 19" tires that provide what amounts to a performance downgrade but a cosmetic difference.

The contact patch of the 19" tires is the same as for the 18" tires.

What Audi should do, since so many folks are willing to pay for a beauty upgrade that does not improve performance is offer a true performance improvement, not simply a cosmetic change. And, the unsprung weight of the wheels increases with the 19" upgrade, which adds insult to injury.

I would love for Audi to offer the look of the 19" wheels in the 18" size. Moreover, Audi should make the size of the 19" tires grow in size appropriately.

Of course they should offer Ultra High Performance A/S tires when "all season" tires are elected by the customer.

The manner in which they are not entirely forthcoming with their customers is disappointing.

Yet, to answer the OP's question, Summer Only tires are good at temperatures above 45, using them below that temperature is a fool's errand. If there is some reason that the OP does not want to swap tires, the alternative is to order the car with the GT H rated rubber and live with the downgrade of performance and the lowering of the top speed.