Hey guys,

I did some research on this forum but am hoping to get confirmation of my understanding.

I recently moved from Texas to Colorado. I'd love to be able to drive my 992 4 GTS this winter and am trying to figure out how to make it happen. For what it's worth, I live in Boulder and would love to drive it into the mountains if possible.

It seems like the simplest option would be to get the OEM 19/20 wheels (either from Suncoast or getting them from the dealers)—is that right? Seems like they come with some Conti winter tires already on them.

Are there any better alternatives that I should think about? Trying to find the right balance of simplicity, value and safety here!

Thanks in advance for any advice!

 

If you are not centrelocked, get some 20/21 flow formed wheels...run 245 on front and 295 on rear.

Will look great...pick your offset and you have a spare set of interchangable rims with your summers.

 

Sorry, I should've mentioned—I don't have CL wheels, so definitely have more options.

Any specific reason to get the FF wheels, or are you saying that due to cosmetic reasons? I'm guessing you're referring to the ones from HRE?

 

you should be able to pick up some Carrera S wheels on eBay for $2-3k in relatively good condition, and then another $500 will get these back to new condition from a wheel repair shop, if needed. I live in Switzerland with a C2 992, previously C2 991– so lots of mountain driving in winter, similar to Boulder. I have had great use of Michelin Pilot Alpin 4 on the 991 C2, absolutely no issue in any kind os now, even driving up gradients of 20% with ice. I now have some PZERO Winter on (not Porsche rated) , will test from the first time this winter (would have preferred Michelin, but this is what I got with the car). So far the PZERO are way noisier than the Michelin, not even close, also lots of vibration on smooth surface. Grrrr

You can fit 295 or 305 without issue, I think the 295 size are the only Porsche rated tyres. The Porsche N rated tyres I think are optimised for noise. For my money, I'd get PA4 or PA5 (brand new series) with N rating. You will only get stuck if ground clearance is an issue (even on my 2WD that's the limiting factor). Winter driving in a Porsche is the most fun period of the year!

 

call the folks at the Tire rack...i've found them very helpful on this topic

 

Another resource for you to look into. Apex may even have their fully forged wheels for under $4K for the set.

https://apexwheels.com/fitment-guide...-fitment-guide

 

I've been schooled here as well. I find the forum educating as well as relatable. Thank you everyone

 

You are going to get snow there - and you mentioned hills. You want the 19/20s (If they fit on the GTS) - a taller sidewall and skinner tire will help you a lot. Wider tires and wheels may look better, but you might be saying "well my car looks good in that ditch".

@siberian is in love with Nokians and I'd have to agree with him here based on your driving conditions.

Here is a good thread.
https://rennlist.com/forums/992/1165...l#post19019532

Edit: One more thing - if you do go with the OEM 19/20, see if you can get the Micheline Pilot Alpin as a selection. Both the Conti and Pirelli choices are lacking as a winter tire.

 

Thanks, y'all!

Does anybody happen to know if the 19/20s will fit on a 4 GTS? I'm a bit confused by this. The dealers are all telling me that these are not compatible after entering in my VIN, even though I don't have centerlocks. However, I can't tell why they wouldn't fit. And there are some threads on Rennlist (such as this one) suggesting that they'll fit.

If they fit, I might pick up this set. They're just $3k. Failing that, perhaps a set at Suncoast. With my goal of balancing simplicity, value and safety, this seems like an easy move.

I think they'll come with Contis, but I can use them and switch over to Alpins once they wear out in a few years!

 

I suspect the bigger brakes on the GTS are the issue. I seem to remember this. Do note that even the 20/21 winter wheels are slightly different than the OEMs as Porsche likes to go narrow on those - mostly to avoid throwing crap on the side of the car while driving through the muck.

 

I also live in Colorado, but was struggling to cope with spending $3,200 on just wheels. I ultimately decided to buy the 19/20" wheel + tire set from Suncoast, which cost me about 4k with shipping. I very much would have preferred to choose my own tires, rather than get whatever Porsche ships. Tires are all different, and are good at different things. If you're running around around town in Boulder, (in my opinion) you will primarily be dealing with dry, and some icy conditions (from the leftover snow that melted and froze over). There's definitely a fair bit of fresh snow, and a little bit of wet. Looking at Tire reviews, I personally would have opted for Hakka R5's, but they don't make them in 20", so that's a no go. Continental VikingContact7 seem like they would be good here as well, but I didn't see the proper size here either, but I'll admit to not being fully versed in tire sizing. Conversely, the Continental WinterContact TS870 seem to be excellent in the cold dry and wet, but aren't great in the snow and ice that we typically see.

If you're going into the mountains, the biggest concern is going to be snow depth. CDOT is very good at clearing the major highways, but you could definitely get stuck in a snowstorm. It's just constantly snowing up there and I've definitely had to crawl out of Winter Park in our Macan through some fresh powder. We've done a yearly multi-night ski trip in February, and I feel like every day we're waking up to fresh snow on the cars and streets. Usually it isn't bad, but I'd be nervous about getting stuck. However, because of the constant snow, and the temperature, the snow is dry. It's very powdery and soft, and so any tire that's good in snow is great. Like Doug mentioned, Siberian won't miss an opportunity to promote Nokian Hakka 10's (studded) tires, as this is probably an awesome environment for them.

 

I'm running the OEM 20/21 set with Michelin PA5's and honestly have not been impressed. They are great on cold dry roads, but being a performance winter tire, you give up a lot I feel in the snow. I had Sottozero 3's on my 991 and that vehicle did much better in the snow. I'm looking for an alternative tire and there is not much available. Has anyone tried the Nokian R5 EV? Its available in a 235/35/20 and 295/30/21 which should work on the OEM 20/21 winter wheels.

 

I hadn't considered the R5 EV, that's not a bad idea. According to tire review (appears sourced by Nokian directly), the R5 EV "[adds] a layer of acoustic foam on the inner liner of the tire" and "comes with a stronger structure and reinforced tread profile with an additional amount of rubber to withstand high torque and high wheel loads". Maybe you'll get some more info in your thread, but it looks to be a slightly different tire, but ultimately the same tread pattern. And hey, it being meant for the increased torque of an EV, probably isn't necessarily a bad thing for our cars.

 

You have some big *** brakes on the GTS...same as Turbo...so you gotta be mindful of clearance. I haven heard of anyone going lower than 9x20 on front. An 8.5 x 20 might fit. I did 10.5 on rear so a 295 looks fat.

No need to go fully forged for winters...lots of flow-formed/hybrid-forged options to get you a proper set without breaking the bank. They are vossen HF-3s on mine.

 

Damn, that looks SWEET! Beautiful car! Thanks for sharing!