A Dozen Tires With a Side of Wheels, Please

"NinetyQ" (NinetyQ) 11/07/2013 at 22:59 • Filed to: A90Q20V

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The more I think about it, the more I'm thinking that the wheel vibration and light thumping I'm hearing at highway speeds in the Audi are the tires. So I've been considering what my next move is regarding that. If I decide to replace them before winter really starts, it would be cool to get winter tires for the not-so-great aftermarket wheels already on it and then buy new wheels with summer tires installed sometime in the spring. At the same time, the Grand Prix needs new tires. I don't think I'll bother doing summer/winter tires on it, I'll just put all seasons on. I did a quick tally on !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! and this is what I came up with:

-195/55R15 Bridgestone Blizzak set of 4 for $284
-205/55R15 Yokohama S.drive (summer) set of 4 for $428
-Elbrus I05 wheels for Audi, set of 4 for $284
-P225/60R16 Firestone FR710 set of 4 for $368
With tax and shipping, the total comes to $1760.64.

These are what (a newer version of) my car would look like with the wheels I like. To see my current wheels, check out the first picture in my last post: !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!!

I don't have that kind of money to drop all at once. Trying to figure out what the best way to do this might be. The logical side of me says if I absolutely need to put tires on sometime, the Grand Prix gets the all-seasons. But then the Audi has crappy, vibrate-y tires through the winter. On the other hand, I could save money and buy all-seasons for the Audi on its stock wheels, be done with it, and save $568, but then be stuck with all-seasons on wheels I don't like that much.

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His Stigness > NinetyQ 11/08/2013 at 01:19

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Get some Michelin Pilot A/S 3s, they perform better than most summer tires but offer the benefit of being all season. Although they're probably more expensive than your average all season you can get them because you won't have to buy summer tires too.

NinetyQ > His Stigness 11/08/2013 at 01:31

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I can't. My wheels are 15" and so are the ones above that I'd like to switch to. I could go bigger, potentially, but I haven't found another set of wheels I like in a bigger size with a bolt pattern that matches. I'd rather not put new hubs on it, and everything that goes with it, either to get bigger wheels, but if I did, I'd go with something like this:

His Stigness > NinetyQ 11/08/2013 at 02:24

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Check out oewheelsllc.com and see if they have something that will fit your car. I've got some replicas for my Mercedes and I really like them. They're really well priced and not crap at all.

NinetyQ > His Stigness 11/08/2013 at 02:51

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They don't have any that I can tell right away. When I put in 1991, it doesn't even give an option for Audi. Couple that with my unusual bolt pattern (4-108), and it would be like finding a needle in a haystack.

His Stigness > NinetyQ 11/08/2013 at 03:04

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Maybe you should just buy a newer car then... ahha just kidding. I think you probably know how I feel then when I try and find aftermarket performance parts for my Mercedes, hint - they don't exist.

They have Michelin Pilot A/S 3's in 205/55 16, do they have a wheel in that size you like?

NinetyQ > His Stigness 11/08/2013 at 03:20

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Sidewall aspect is too big for my car with a 16" wheel. Looks like it just wasn't meant to be... That said, I did find a wheel I like in 16" size.

His Stigness > NinetyQ 11/08/2013 at 03:27

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If you get a lower speed rating they have smaller side walls and more choices in 16's.

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires.js…

NinetyQ > His Stigness 11/08/2013 at 03:40

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Hmm, I could have sworn I was looking at both speed ratings before, but maybe I just missed the one that's 205/50R16 . 50 is still a touch big, and according to 20v.org, would be +3.7% in diameter from stock. Ideally I'd have a 45, but it's still something to consider. When it comes time to buy, I might give it a shot if I have the extra cash.

His Stigness > NinetyQ 11/08/2013 at 04:44

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If it's only one size off and 3.7% I would say it will be fine, and I know tires so. You could also go to an America's Tire store and look at the fit entry guide and it will tell you if it will fit or not, but I'm sure it will. What's the price difference between the Michelin's and the other tire you would get?

Andy Sheehan, StreetsideStig > NinetyQ 11/08/2013 at 09:14

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I had a vibration problem on my Accord and it ended up being tires.