Well I finally got a winter wheel and tire package. I ended up with motegi 17" wheels with blizzack 225 50 R17. So after a week of frustration and my new 8 sitting there waiting for me to come and get it I finally get to pick it up from the dealership next Wednesday.

 

What do you think of this wheel on a blue 8?

 

I think it will look great. They are similar wheels to mine... mine are seven spoke and the same size (with the same size bridgestones). I think you made a fine choice!

 

I guess I couldn't pass up the deal. They were only 119 per wheel. For winter wheels they are plenty good.

 

I've been looking .
Where did you get the package and how much.
My rx 8 is just terrible in snow even a light 1" fall. I've already slid it off my driveway. No damage.

Peter

 

geffyHow
much did you pay for the tires and where did you get your winter package?

 

Really? Why hasn't anyone ever mentioned that the stock tires weren't any good in the snow!

 

The stock RX-8 tires, and these are the same ones that are stock on the 350Z, are pretty hard. From what I have heard, changing the tires to a couple of different brands makes all the difference in snow and under normal driving conditions. Bottom line: The stock tires are not the best in any weather.

But this is just chatter from a few guys in the office that own 350Zs.

I found out very quickly that the stock tires are stinky in the cold...got my attention real fast the other day when driving to work.

Hard tires need heat to work well (ask any F1 driver)...and these stock ones are hard. If the weather won't allow the tires to get up to a good temperature then you better watch out.

 

I got the tires through the mazda dealer they are blizzack. I paid 535 for them. Then I got the wheels through a friend for 119 a piece plus tax and lug nuts. So the package was cheap but it was definately worth it. I can't believe how great the car handles in snow. It is just amazing to me.

 

Seems like everyone goes with a 17" wheel for winter tires.

Why is this?
I have stock 18" wheels and am considering 18" snows. Any reason not to?

 

17" wheels are cheaper than 18" wheels. 17" tires are cheaper than 18" tires. 17" winter tires are available in narrower width than 18" winter tires (for equivalent to stock diameter), ie 215/55-17 size instead of 225/45-18. (Many 17" winter tire buyers have got great results with 225/50-17 size also).

Mostly, it's the cheaper cost for a 17" winter setup. If you keep your car longer than 3 or 4 winters, then buying a separate set of 17" wheels for 17" winter tires is actually cheaper than buying 18" winter tires and paying to have them swapped and re-balanced twice a year. If you don't mind the higher costs of 18" wheels and 18" winter tires, then there's nothing wrong with using 18" winter tires. Try to stick to the 225 width, though, as it will perform better in winter conditions than a 235 or 245.

Regards,
Gordon

 

You're lucky. I cannot seem to find any website or vendor locally that has snow tires in stock in 17" 's or 18" 's. Fred's tire is a month wait as are a few other places, and by then the winter weater in MN will be mostly over.

I bought my 8 a week before x-mas here in MN, and the dealership at the time didn't have any snow tires and at the time I was ok with that after plunking down the $$ for the GT package on the Blue machine, I didn't have alot of extra cash, and we didn't have any snow at that time.

I should have started to look sooner, shame on me, I should know better especially living in this tundra. We got a good helping of snow over the weekend 14" roughly and I went out looking for snow tires since my machine won't go anywhere in the snow, even with the roads hardpacked or just plowed.

I've hit a wall and I still cannot find any place on-line or locally that has anything in stock. I even talked with the Yoka rep. since they have a 225/45 -18 snow tire, and he told me that a few new models this year came out with the same size rim and tire on the car and most of the big name tire makers underestimated the demand so they are short this year. I don't know if this is really true, but that's what I got out of him. He told me the vendors in MN, NoDak, SoDak, Wis and parts of Canada have been out since Nov. and Oct. and dealerships are still calling looking for tires for the new cars on their lots, and the tire mfg can't meet the demand.

Anyone got any leads or know of anyone that has stuff in stock without month long lead times?

Todd

 

Hey Vortex,
www.tirerack.com is showing Pirelli Winter 210 Snow Sport tires 225/50HR17 in stock.

dag

 

Also check out www.tiretrends.com and www.talontire.com and www.1010tires.com - all Canadian on-line tire vendors (make sure you're displaying prices in US currency to avoid a shock! ), but give them a call to see if they can get any 17" winter tires still (215/55-17 or 225/50-17).

Regards,
Gordon

 

I surfed 1010 and their prices seemed a bit high compaired to local prices and other sites. I'll give tirerack another try. I tried to place an order for the dunlop M3's and new rims llast week, clicked on having them balanced, etc, and when I placed an order it said it was coming in two seperate shipments, rims from one place tires from the other. One from an Indy warehouse and one from AZ, and I would had to wait 4-6 weeks. That was too long to wait and I was getting hit with double the shipping cost so I cancalled the order.

Tirerack seems to be a little deceptive, but I'll keep checking. Thanks for the heads up.

The other thing that concerns me is the Tire Pressure valve. I've gotten quotes from local tire folks who will put the pressure sesors in from 150-200 a tire.

For those of you who swapped tires, what were you charged for the pressure valves? Or did you leave them off your winter wheels?

 

I went without the tire pressure sensors. They were about $100 each. I can deal with the blinking light for a few months out of the year.

 

I went without also, but only because there is only about 1 1/2 months more until I put the stock tires back on. I will probably put the sensors on the rims next fall.

dag

 

Well thanks for the advise and help.

I have to shelve the car for a bit and hold off on the tire and rim hunt till this summer or fall.

When bad luck hits, it hits hard. The universe has a nasty sense of humor. I have an old 50's house and the water heater and furnice both went this weekend, the last time they were replaced was 80 or 82...I got 20 years out of them, and that's about 5 better than average. I should know better being an architect to check that stuff life expectancy...grumble, grumble.

So the grand or two I was going to use on rims, tires, and a few other add ons, has to be relocated to the house.

Oh well, crap happens...

But thanks again.

For those of you looking Rosenthal Mazda has the tire pressure sensors for 74. something a piece. Might be cheaper than having the dealership or some other vendor supply them.

But I'll be back.

 

geffy ... are you going to post some pictures when you have these mounted ?

 

I can if you are interested give me a few days though

 

I am also shopping for winter tires. I too was concerned with getting a set of rims without the pressure sensors. Are there any other downsides to not getting the sensors installed, except for the flashing light?

 

Yes I'd love to see some pictures . . . thanks

 

Nice looking wheels, Geffy! Are they compatible with the TPMS sensors?

 

I finally got some pictures

 

more