klutes

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Rich

Ran them through the snow 'n ice all winter last year on the Nokian Hak 1's as described in yesterday's forum (w/ pic). I didn't want to make the tire performance any worse by going to a smaller size AND a softer tire, so I kept the stock 205/55/16 size in the Hak 1's. I thought it worked great with Quattro, within reason and various laws of physics, etc.<p>However, one reason that's compelling to me to have separate wheels for the snow tire set is that you don't want the tire bead stretched too much by repeated putting on/taking off snow tires so that it increases chance of failure. I'm planning on leaving the snows on the sport wheels in the spring and getting some nice 17" summer wheels anyway.<p>There was a lot of talk about scratching up the wheels, etc., by using them through a winter, and that's partially true, depending on how fanatical you are about scratches in your wheels. The wheels look fine, IMHO, after one winter, but not the same as new; I guess a little duller, but the scratches are pretty minimal, and the wheels still look nice after some waxing. I live in a heavy salt/sand/snow belt area, which definitely affects things.<p>The rather large openings between the spokes of the 5 & 7 spoke wheels allow snow/ice to enter the wheel (and also from the other side of the wheel), which sometimes caused vibration d/t the wheel being out of balance, until I could get to a self serve car wash to spray them down...cleaned the salt off the car that way anyway. Keep some quarters in the car. Hope this helps.<p>Rich<br>'98 2.8Q sport, gettin' ready for more * * * * *<br>

klutes

Rich, I live in Indianapolis, In. While it definitely is not snow central, we do occasionaly get snow which I would call more than a dusting. Probably average 5 or 6 snowfalls of over 2in a year, with occasional heavy snow. Do you think I would be O.K. with a tire like the Dunlop SP4000, in light of the relative little snowfall we have here? Thanks. <p>klutes 98.5 Silver A4 1.8TQMS w/ paint chips galore

spudman

Hey - so there is another Indy-based A4 driver out there! Where did you buy (Tom Wood?), and what are your impressions to date? I'm looking at different tires for this winter too & would be willing to trade experiences with you, depending on when you buy!<p><p>Later<p><p>Spud

Rich

Sounds like a good pair..<br>I've only been to Indy once in the winter, and it was without snow, but I think that the Dunlop 4000's are definitely better than the 2000/8000's, and probably a better compromise than going down to all seasons, since as you say, the snow isn't all that bad in Indy, and you're more often on dry & wet pavement. Just remember that it's a compromise, and you'll still have to be careful on snow even with Quattro and the 4000s, which are still Z rated. My only other concern in Indy would be about ice, which dedicated winter tires would be able to handle better than the others.<p>If you're going to be buying another set of tires anyway, I think I'd consider a dedicated winter tire despite the need to change over. Maybe the Dunlop winter sport M2, Pirelli Asimetrico (non-ice version), or Nokian NRW.<p>If you really don't want to do that and are willing to live with the compromise, I'd consider the Toyo Proxes Z1 (www.toyo.com), which I think are excellent tires for your application. I used them on my old Jetta and was really impressed by them overall. They won't dig you out of deep snow, (they're still Z rated) but then again, the Jetta was lighter and without Quattro. Plus, they're great the rest of the year--I think they were really ahead of their time, as I see elements of their tread design in several tires that have come out since.<p>Hope this helps.<p>Rich<br>'98 2.8Q sport, winter #2 and a cross-country drive to Seattle on deck

Dave S

Yep, I live in the Indy area (Noblesville) bought my A4 at Tom Wood. I have the sport package on my car and I have also been looking into changing out my tires for the winter. I am thinking about a good all season tire rather than a snow and ice tire. Last year was so mild, and winters have not really been that bad in recent years. I am thinking about the Brigstone Potenza 930 or 940. Not final on that but what I have read about the tires seem positive.<p>Did you buy your A4 at Tom Wood? My first experience with them was terrible. Couldn't get the time of day from any sales people. Second trip and a new sales person was a different story, much better. Let me drive the car several times and was very patient and never pushed the care as a buy now or else. After I bought the car I had a little problem with a scratch on the front bumper (did not notice it when I picked up the car) The dealership took care of it in a couple of days and paid for a loaner car while mine was in the shop. The service from the shop was excelent!! The lady I turned my car over to called me every day with an update on my car. They even needed to keep the car an extra day but since she kept me informed as to the status of the car I did not feel overly put out. I just hated to drive a rental rather than my A4. Sorry this is so long. <p>Dave s. <br>98.5 2.8QTS Silver<p>