About two years ago I got caught in a surprise snow storm in the 928S with Continental racing tires. The resulting driving experience was not good (I drove sideways up hills and the ABS system really proved its worth going down snow packed hills) and as a result I promised myself I would get a set of snow tires if I was going to use the car as a daily driver in winter. In the meantime I picked up a set of cable chains that I could install if ever I got into a similar situation.

Well, this October I picked up a set of 4 Blizzak snow tires on pie-plate rims from Mr. Merlin. It was interesting because it turns out I have S4 rims on my 86.5 928S which are an inch wider (and have the factory spacer on the rear wheels)but we put the 1 inch narrower tires on the car, tightened up one of the new front wheel hubs (I installed it a bit loose in August), adjusted the AT cable (no more hard shifts!) and I drove off.

Today they proved their worth. We have another snowstorm and by 9am I had to get from my friend's house to mine. My friend's county doesn't know how to deal with snow so by the time I got ready to go there was already snow on the ground.


The Snow Porsche :-)


The Blizzaks did fine. Went down the 30 degree driveway without slipping, and once on the road had no problem with the snow covered portions. The tires just seem to cut through the snow and I was able to pretty much do fast starts from traffic lights in snow. No problem handling, and once I got on the highway I was able to easily pass snow plows and the like.

Overall excellent control, no slipping, no rear end sliding problems, and I didn't need to even break out the cable chains (which I kept in the car since the first incident). The 928 is now rated in snow and drives pretty well.

One interesting problem: When I go to steering lock while turning around or whatnot the tires hit the brake cooling ducts that come down from the front spoiler. It makes me wonder if I have slightly wrong-sized tires, these are for the 86 year, but does an 86.5 use a different tire size (closer to the 928S4) due to the suspension? I'm wondering if the brake cooling ducts are a bit different shape due to the 87 brakes and rotors and the 86 and earlier cars have smaller or different shaped ducts.

Thoughts?
C
h

 

The 928 with the skinny Blizzaks on all 4 wheels will be a reliable machine in the snow ,
though I dont recommend you racing around snow plows to find out the cornering grip as the tires could lose grip,

For the rubbing its possible that someone might not have put the stops back onto a new rack,
you will need to remove the inner edge of the rack boot to see

 

Indeed, they are nice. I certainly was not being too much of a dingbat with them, but the difference on overall drive-ability is exceptional. Once this snow is done I'll try driving it down then up my driveway (also about a 30 degree incline) to see how well they grip and compare it with the P6000's on the 944S. They're expecting 8-10 today and another 8 or so tomorrow. Enough for my Elec-trak snow tractor to have fun with.

The rubbing against the brake ducts happens at points in turns that are typical when one is trying to do a 3 point turn so I think the stops are not way out of spec. The front is at the low end of official spec, but I am wondering if they changed the ducts between 86 and 86.5 to account for the different rotors (87 onward used a new bumper so I'm assuming they re-did the ducts).

 

God winter tires in real winter conditions make alle the difference! Summer tires in winter are just dangerous, all season tires are not much better.

When I lived in Texas we did not have a lot of snow but when we had snow you could see the limits of summer tires. I still had my 944 S2 back then and brought my winter tires from Germany with me.
With my new Conti Winter Contacts and limited slip in the tranny it was a blast to drive! No 4x4 with summer tires could follow me, no way! Latest under breaking the summer tires show their limits, there is just no grip.

After all driving in real winter conditions is dangerous for yourself and others. Braking distance with winter tires is a lot shorter, the same car with summer tires under the same conditions would certainly be totaled.
If you don't have winter tires and roads are packed with snow, stay home or get yourself the correct tires for the conditions.

 

Do it.

 

Those wheels look familiar

 

Indeed!

 

As noted above, real snow tires make a big difference. The only thing better is studded tires. However, many places outlaw them due to the damage they do to the pavement. Wisconsin outlawed metal studs in the mid-70s.

High performance (summer) tires are downright dangerous in the cold. Not just in snow or slippery conditions. The rubber compound gets hard in colder temps. The 'cautions & warnings' you get with the tires says to avoid temps below 40F.

I got a spare set of rims & Blizzaks with my Cayenne. I used to run All Terrain on my old Blazer. I thought they did ok, but the Blizzaks are a world above them. I've also run all seasons that were more 'winter oriented', and again, they were nowhere near what the dedicated snows are.

Despite all of that, I'd never run my 928 or 944 in the snow. The melting compounds they put down are really corrosive. The newer liquid stuff is worse than plain old salt. I even try to avoid running over it when they first spray it and it's still wet. I did the shocks on my 928 a couple years back. The joy of finding virtually no corrosion under there when I took it apart cannot be adequately expressed in words.

Also, even in Wisconsin, lots of idiots refuse to believe that driving on snow takes more care than dry pavement. The number of idiots I see running at full speed, tailgating, going around curves too fast, and on and on is staggering.
A few years back, I had a moron riding my back bumper when there was snow coming down and covering the road. I tried the 'slow down a bit then open up a space' a couple times, but he never got the message. So I changed lanes. He moved up and tailgated the next car in front of me. At the next light, traffic stopped fairly quick. Having plenty of room in front of me, I had no problem. The moron I was no longer in front of rear ended the car he was tailgating.
Saturday night, we had a bit of snow. Enough to coat the roads. I was at a friend's nearby and walked home. On the way, there's a gentle curve in the road. I could see the tracks where someone didn't slow down for it, oversteered and ended up going over the curb on the inside of the curve. Over the curb, onto the sidewalk and then down the sidewalk a few feet to the corner. Missed a power pole by maybe three feet.

I have a fair amount of faith & trust in my skills, but no way I'd expose my 'good' cars to that risk.

 

I forgot to add
this is not something you would see any day .
A brand new looking 928 with winter wheels,
and roof racks with a pair of skis,
and yellow fog lamps in the snow.
Perfect if I might say so !