Winter tyres and wheels STI 2018 model?

[M030ef00]

Hi, I'm thinking of getting winter (or all season) tyres for my STI but I could do with some advice:
Which are the best winter tyres for the STI?
Does anyone have any experience with putting smaller/steel wheels and crossclimates on?
What wheels are best?
If you go R17, what tyre size do you use, and do you have to alter suspension etc?
Has anyone tried Wintercontact 860s?
Any reasons not to?

Many thanks

[vxr2010]

Hi best way is get a set of 17inch which will clear your brakes not all 17 inch will , by getting 17 inch tyres are cheaper , Autogrip Ecosnow are a very good tyre and not expensive , i have a set of kuhmo kw27 too , the kw27 great in snow handling when not on snow handling is very poor , the ecosnow are a good all round tyre great with surface water they drive very well when not on snow and probably 3 x the grip of a summer tyre , just buy an equal equivalent size to what you have plus should tell your insurance company , the kw27 i put on when snow is very bad so i’ve had them for about 7 years , the ecosnow are that good as an all rounder they can be left on the car during the winter months , snow tyres compared to a normal summer tyre when it is driven in the snow is like night and day plus four wheel drive

[rastapasta]

vxr2010 said:

Hi best way is get a set of 17inch which will clear your brakes not all 17 inch will , by getting 17 inch tyres are cheaper , Autogrip Ecosnow are a very good tyre and not expensive , i have a set of kuhmo kw27 too , the kw27 great in snow handling when not on snow handling is very poor , the ecosnow are a good all round tyre great with surface water they drive very well when not on snow and probably 3 x the grip of a summer tyre , just buy an equal equivalent size to what you have plus should tell your insurance company , the kw27 i put on when snow is very bad so i’ve had them for about 7 years , the ecosnow are that good as an all rounder they can be left on the car during the winter months , snow tyres compared to a normal summer tyre when it is driven in the snow is like night and day plus four wheel drive

'He aint lying...'

What you have given is very sound advice.

We use Yokohama winter Ice Guard tyres on the Toyota corolla and Cooper Snow weathermaster Tyres on the Subaru Legacy. The biggest problem with such tyres is the road noise. You are right when you mention size clearance. All our tyres are either 15 for the toyota or 16 for the subaru (17 on the summer wheels). I do not really notice the lack of grip much because once the weather here gets bad (here in Switzerland) it tends to stay that way for an extended period. The coopers are outstanding in the snow but the noise is a huge drawback with them. For me the Yokohama's or the new continental winterconnect tyres (which colleagues tell me are awesome) would be the way to go for UK driving where it tends to be a bit milder.

Its a good idea to mention it to the insurance company. Here you will have issues with them covering you if you go around on summer tyres in winter and have an accident where braking or grip are or were at issue.

[Russ T Bolt]

I ran Vredestein Wintrac Xtremes on my last 2 Subaru's, worked very well in snow, ice and clear/dry conditions.

[Cooper Green]

I bought a second set of wheels for my 2016 STI 2 years ago but never got round to fitting them with a set of winter tyres, they have been sitting on my tyre rack in the garage but last winter snow was bad. Any further opinions to brand and tech much appreciated.