snowy

We are looking at winter tire options since the snow will fly soon! Yes I have searched for this topic but thought an update might be in order since there are updates to winter tires of late.

Any suggestions for options? Rims seem expensive but with $120-150 per year for change overs they might make sense?

The new "all weather" tires that are starting to come out are interesting but I have not seen enough testing to see how they really work in winter. Not having to change tires is nice though.

Any thoughts on winter tires and rims? Also does anyone know what rims share the same bolt pattern?

Cheers!

PS any good deals out there? I missed out on a good end of season sale on Hakk R2 SUVs on one of the online retailers last spring!

SteveCraig

Many options available for Winter tires. A lot of it depends on your local weather.
I keep away from "all weather" as they might be good but not great in all conditions.
We run a set of Blizzaks on all of our cars. Mounted on spare rims makes it much easier to do the seasonal change.
Many options on rims too. Your manual might say what the bolt pattern & spacing is. Most Toyota SUV & light truck rims should fit.

Nanook

I went with stock Lexus wheels and Hakkapallita SUV8 studded...vrooom (actually got them for daughters rides too)

snowy

Thanks! I knew I could count on the Canadians to offer advice on winter tires! We go to Quebec and have to have winter (snowflake rated) tires to visit in the winter.

I was hoping for a cheaper setup than OEM wheels but then again maybe I can find some used ones somewhere. I suspect that other Toyota 18inch rims will fit too but hard to know!

Nanook

These wheels were actually offered as winter options from the dealer and faily reasonable priced..with the CDN $ I'd travel to Quebec and purchase a set of Hakks
There are plenty of wheel options on ebay too :thumbs or tirerack for that matter
The hassle is with the tpms..you need them and the dealer needs to re-set every season change as the vehicle doesn't remember two sets of tpms ( a few tire shops can perform the reset)

snowy

Maybe we will just "have" to make a trip to Montreal!

For the TPMS on our Prius I fix it with some black electrical tape (I hate seeing the warning light!). As long as I swap things out on my own there is no problem here. Shops cannot "disable a safety system" so will not swap rims without TPMS.

Is Canadian Tire the shop of choice there?

Nanook

I think only Kal Tire sells Haks..in Alberta at least..Canadian Tire is okay as is Costco

vlad_a

I got a wheel and tire set from Tirerack. They do mounting and balancing for free when you order both.
Went with 255-55R18, which was less expensive than the 235 equivalent. I do like the wider tire better for the dry weather. Michelin XIce XI2 has served me well for multiple on multiple vehicles, so I keep buying these. They wear much better than Bridgestone Blizzaks or any other performance winter tire for that matter.

No TPMS for me. I can check the tire pressure myself just fine. The warning light wasn't a big bother. Same as it used to be on our Prius. I'm sure the warning bulb can be cut off, but I never bothered with it.

MerlinT

Another vote for the Nokian set! I attached some pictures so you can see why I really appreciate them ! It's my 2nd set, and I got the studless one.


Good luck




My driveway in summer.




My driveway in winter.




My driveway in winter.




My driveway in winter.

snowy

Wow that sure is the workout for winter! Looks beautiful!

snowy

Thanks that is a good tip! I will see about pricing those!

diverchris

FYI if you are thinking about winter tires consider coming to Canada as the exchange rate is very good for American visitors

netcbc

For a 2015 RX350, would 235/65/17x6.5 fit?

RealWing

I'm going to use Toyota 17" steel rims p/n 42611-0R020-SW I believe they are from a RAV4. I used them on my wife's Venza and have done a trial fit on my new RX350 and they fit fine. (The Parts Manager at my dealer siad they would not fit and wanted to sell me a $2500 package!!!) You can get the hub center cap 4260B-0R010 if you want.

I'm going to get a set of 235/65R-17 Michelin latitude X-ice 2 which have the same rolling radius as my stock P235/55-R19 tires.
I've used BLizzaks and found them very noisy as compared to the X-ice 2. However the Blizzaks are better in deeper snow conditions.

2015 RX350 F Sport, Claret Mica
2013 Toyota Venza, Touring, AWD
1970 Plymouth Superbird , 440-6bbl
1969 Plymouth Barracuda, 340 Formula S Fastback
1969 Barracuda convertible (conversion i/p with a 6.1 L Hemi transplant)
2015 BMW K1600 GTL

RealWing

Yes - that is the correct size to match the original size diameter.
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2015 RX350 F Sport, Claret Mica
2013 Toyota Venza, Touring, AWD
1970 Plymouth Superbird , 440-6bbl
1969 Plymouth Barracuda, 340 Formula S Fastback
1969 Barracuda convertible (conversion i/p with a 6.1 L Hemi transplant)
2015 BMW K1600 GTL