Dear All,

I was wondering where the best place to get winter tyres and wheels is, all feedback appreciated.

Does anyone have any views / experience on this item that I found on eBay please?

http://www.ebay.co.u...984.m1423.l2649

Also any views on 17" winter tyres on existing alloy wheels or 16" tyres on steel wheels appreciated.

Thanks in advance.

I'd be interested in hearing where people have sourced their winter boots too. Has anyone opted for 16" alloys instead of steels? - I prefer the look of alloys and (I hope) the risk of kerbing them is low (only had one one tyre touch on a kerb in snow in nearly 30 years).

I bought 4 completely refurbished 16" Audi alloys off eBay for £200, I think you need to keep your eyes peeled. There are always loads on sale. There are a number of courier firms that specialise in the collection and delivery of wheels for not too much money. Most sellers seem to want to avoid shipping.

I actually collected mine from Bristol.

Tyres can be sourced from lots of places and there are already loads of threads here about the many options and prices.

Down here in the deep south my requirements are not the same as those living farther north. Although we suffer with many untreated side roads.

I am currently considering hankooks w310's best price so far is about £65 a corner.

So all in all £460 for a full set of winter feet!

Edited 13 June, 201214 yr by vegit8

I'd be interested in hearing where people have sourced their winter boots too. Has anyone opted for 16" alloys instead of steels? - I prefer the look of alloys and (I hope) the risk of kerbing them is low (only had one one tyre touch on a kerb in snow in nearly 30 years).

Original Skoda alloys are expensive new from a dealer; one of a number of reasons I run steels in the harsher weather months. Although I have seen a few come up on fleebay (mainly salvage).

Mytyres along with other on-line retailers offer both after market steel or alloy rims already made up with winter tyres and delivered to the door, see the tyre and rim guide for a list of retailers;

http://www.briskoda.net/forums/topic/148948-yeti-tyre-and-rim-guide/

Oh talking steels we have both original VAG for the Yeti and aftermarket ones from mytyres for the Fabia II. The original VAG are better quality; less prone to rust and the Skoda wheel trims are a better fit.

TP

I'm looking at 16" alloys primarily because others here have said the tyres are cheaper. I found some 16" alloys - http://www.wheelbasealloys.com/16_Inch_MSW_22_Silver_Alloy_Wheels__2714 - that look similar (to my eyes, from a distance) to Spitzbergs for around £350 delivered. Tyres are another matter altogether though. Having read TP's tyre & rim guide (several times) I'm still no wiser as to what spec is needed for my Yeti :( I *think* they should be 205/55 94H (or higher) but there does seem to be a range of sizes in use. I'd like to stick as close to standard spec as possible.

I'm looking at 16" alloys primarily because others here have said the tyres are cheaper. I found some 16" alloys - http://www.wheelbase...oy_Wheels__2714 - that look similar (to my eyes, from a distance) to Spitzbergs for around £350 delivered. Tyres are another matter altogether though. Having read TP's tyre & rim guide (several times) I'm still no wiser as to what spec is needed for my Yeti :( I *think* they should be 205/55 94H (or higher) but there does seem to be a range of sizes in use. I'd like to stick as close to standard spec as possible.

215/60 R16 95H (or higher load index) should be OK for the UK as your unlikly to use snow chains

205/55 R16 94H can also be used and the size needed if your intending to fit chains in the snow.

Rims should be 7J width, 16" diameter, mounting face centreline offset of ET45 and a rim edge profile of H2

Oh and the spigot hole in the middle needs to be 57mm diameter (important as this takes the weight of the car, not the wheel bolts) and the stud pattern is 5x112.

TP

SkH, you'll hear a variety of opinions on here based on peoples different experiences, all of which are valid solutions. In the end you'll need to decide which option works best for you in terms of cost, storage of wheels and tyres, aesthetics of alloys -v- steels, how cold winters are in your area, how much (if any) snow and other factors.

My tuppenceworth ... I changed to Goodyear Vector 4 Seasons tyres last October, on the original alloy 17" wheels. They've seen me well through the winter. I live about half a mile from the nearest main road, up a steep and twisty farm track in the Pennines that is frequently covered in snow. I commute to work across a high Pennine moorland road. None of the conditions I encountered last winter proved any barrier to me - the only thing that stopped me was other drivers whose cars were stuck. I also drove across France to the Alps for my ski holiday.

I'm not changing the tyres for the summer, I'm going to keep running them through 4 seasons (as it says on the tin). I think they're a little more 'squidgy' than the original Dunlops in warm conditions, and I might not push them quite as hard through fast bends, but aside from that I've noticed no real performance difference. The thing that I'm most interested to discover is their longevity ... but after 14k miles thus far they're looking pretty good - nice deep tread still.

Just had a look at the MSW wheels, didn't know they are made by OZ! Should be good quality and great price as well!

FYI, http://www.ozracing.co.uk/configurator.aspx shows what it looks like on a Yeti.

I was unconvinced by the arguments for winter tyres until Auto Express featured a short video of identical cars, but with different tyres doing emergency stops in snowy conditions - and the results were astonishing. The car with winter tyres stopped so much more quickly.

So, as ever trusting Sinclair Skoda's advice, I simply put Winter Conti tyres onto the existing alloy wheels and they stored my Dunlop SP1s for me over the winter. Their price, as usual, was competitive with most sources, so all 4 new tyres were bought.

When it came time to change back to non-Winter tyres, they'd a hiccup with prices and suppliers, and as I needed two news Dunlops I ordered those from Black Circles at a good price. They were fitted when changeover occurred by Sinclairs as a part of the service.

For me this has been the most economical, and the most hassle-free way. I would have preferred to have bought the new Dunlops from the Dealer, but at that time the price difference was too much. The fact that they stored my tyres for me, and are storing my Winter Contis is a definite plus as I have nowhere to keep them at home, and again it removes a degree of hassle.

Driving-wise I didn't notice much difference other than what one contributor called "marshmallowing" on winters in warmer weather. Mileage and wear on winters was good, economy on Dunlops is better - but it always is in warmer weather with my 170bhp Yeti.

There you are - another tale, another opinion. (I'm still sceptical about the discussion regarding 16" vs 17" wheels, tho!!!!)

My only concern about swapping tyres at the change of each season is the damage that may be done to the bead of the tyre. The machines they use to remove the tyres are quite agressive.

With the overall wear rates being shared between both sets of tyres the number of changes required may introduce an unseen weakness over time.

The OP asked, among other things, for comments on a particular eBay deal which offered 4 steel wheels and 4 mediocre (Pirelli W210) winter tyres for £780.

That is an eye-watering rip-off. You can get 4 steel wheels from a Skoda dealer for around £200 and 4 top-quality winter tyres - Goodyear UltraGrip 8 - from Oponeo or Reifen for around £400. So that's roughly £180 cheaper in total and a much better tyre to boot (if you'll pardon the pun).