OK we all know the SS/TC comes with 18s... now heres the thing.. How does this do in the snow?

Can it fit 17" rims with snow tires... or will the brembos not clear?

Also, what about the 18s on it... they look big already for the car... would it help with snow tires?


The stock tires are they all season or summer tires?


Has anyone driven even an SS/SC with 17/18 in the snow... they can chime in.



Thanks,
Mike

 

You can use the 17" ss/na wheels with snow tires but you need spacers from what i have read!

 

i have an ss/sc with 18s and ive driven threw 2 winters with it..does well in the snow..handling is good..but getting goin u do quite a bit of spinning lol .. just gotta start out in second gear and be easy on the throttle but overall its not a bad car in the winter..

 

No 18 is going to be great in the snow. But I have a set of HP year rounds on mine and havent had any major problems yet. Just cant do anything stupid.

And yea you'll need a spacer most likely. Dont quote me on that though. Just from what I've heard.

 

Have you ever seen what they sell for either on here or on ebay (set of 4) and what kind of spacers and where would someone get the spacers?

 

That your going to have to find and look up. I have no idea maybe someone on here can chime in!

 

The stock tires are 3-season, so no good for winter. I have a good set of all-seasons on mine and have only driven in light snow and slush, and it was fine in that...

 

Bought my car in March and drove it in snow twice, seemed to do OK. There are a few 18" winter tires out there and I'm thinking of getting some. Would rather just pay the little bit extra than buy wheels, spacers and tires for 17's. I think Blizzaks's in 215/245/18 are around 140 or so.

 

Last fall I bought some BF Goodrich Super Sports all seasons. I actually didn't have to drive much in the snow, but when I did I was quite impressed. The electronic stability control (esc) works really well and traction for me was great with the bfg tires and limited slip diff.

I wouldn't mess with trying to get winter rims. But that's just me. Rims are expensive and I don't like using spacers. and I love the BF goodies. I like them a lot better than the stock contis.

 

I also have the BFG S/S G-force All season tires on mine...since last November. It did pretty good up to 4" of snow, beyond tyhat I stole Mama's SUV.

Forget the stock conti's on anything under 40 degrees. No traction, no snow traction. Look at the tread pattern, no swipes for any snow traction across the majority of the tread.

I tried the stockers a few times in 2" of snow...fuggedaboudit!!

Edit... BTW, the N/A 17" SS wheels will work with 3mm spacers if you are so inclined. There are also a few aftermarket wheels that will fit, try a search. The 17" SS wheels will barely nick the Brembo's under hard cornering without spacers and machine off the edges. I did a fair amount of research here last fall, hope it helps some.

I'm also very pleased with the handling & traction of the BFG's. Check the Tire Rack reviews.

 

I drove in a whiteout blizzard on unplowed country roads with mine on stock rims and Blizzaks. My car was a ******* tank in the winter. Never had problems with the hill outside my apartment either.

 

i put on a sit of invos right before a good snow and well lets just say don't do it! but i would like to knwo if you could fit a 17 or of a good 18 in winter tire. im a truck guy so im not really sure how to decifer tire size from the metric crap what size tires could you run on the stock 18s

 

yeah i have no clue, but i just wanted to add that everytime i see one of these threads someone always complements the stability control in the ss/tc saying it auto corrects really nicely. I say just put some snow tires on it, dont do anything stupid, drive the SNOW speed limit and you will be fine. Do a search though, multiple threads like came up when it was actual snow season and there was a lot of good info in there!

 

I'm running the 17's off the Cobalt SS/NA with NO SPACERS. They clear the brakes safely, just make sure they're torqued down correctly. This is your best bet. I found all 4 wheels for cheap and mounted winters on. Drives great in the snow, no problems.

 

I ran my TC with some all seasons through a Michigan winter. We had one or two snowfalls where there was about 4-6 inches on the ground. Cobalt did fine.

If you get snow tires, you'll have no problems at all. No need to get different wheels, just different tires

 

17"s are the smallest but only certain ones fit the front calipers. I am in talks with my TR salesman and he found me a 17" rim thats around $150 a rim...It will be expensive for this winter setup but ugh.. Just like my ms3 the car has all that traction control and ecs crap so it should handle very well in the winter. I would recommend going the 17" route so you have more of a side wall.

 

I run 17" BSA Model 264 wheels in the winter shod with Gizlaved Nordfrost 5 snow tires (imported from Sweden) in 225/45R17. I run 3mm spacers in the front just to be safe.

This package, combined with the LSD, makes the SS/TC absolutely unstoppable in the snow. I'm not kidding here. My home town regularly sees massive Canadian snowfalls and temperatures below -35F. Winter threw everything it had at the SS and I never got stuck once.

Word to the wise: DO NOT try and drive the Continentals on snow. I don't care if it's a light dusting. You will skid. You will crash.

Pics of my winter setup are in my gallery. I got the set for $1,150 CAD.