NorthernMonkey

having collected the new Panamera in the summer i am now procrastinating as I'm sure many UK owners do each year....do I fork out for:

- set of winter tyres and use existing 21" wheels...Pirelli Sottozero3 seem to fit the bill. this option is quite novel to me as last few cars have had run flats so swapping tyres was not possible really had to be new set of wheels. OPC tell me swapping tyres on the 21" turbo design wheels is no problem. a full set of Sottozero's would be about £2100 fitted.

- buy a whole new set of wheels/tyres from OPC and swap over, OPC will store the summers. looked at the various options on the tech accessory website. i like the 21" winter set but that's punchy at £4700 but OPC suggest price after bit of discount be more like £4200. they also have a 20" set in stock with are up for £3900 which i also quite like.

- none of the above as I know if I do the avg temp where i live will never drop below 7 deg for more than the odd few days and i'll feel like i've wasted money

don't get me wrong i'm all for winter tyres etc but i'm also a cheapskate when it comes to stuff like this.....cannot put a price on safety etc etc but last year had same mind games debate with wife's X5 and it never had a problem all winter on its summer tyres as the winter was so mild.

law of sod if i do nothing the temperatures will plummet for weeks and i'll be kicking myself.

cerbomark

what I just did with one of my cars was to take off the summers and buy a used set of oem wheels. Then grabbed a set of all season tires to make another complete set. Here s my thinking. I am fine on all seasons and the ride is way better than winter tires (except in snow of coarse). As far as money I feel that because I can stay on the all seasons longer than I would the winter tires that it makes my summer tires last that much longer. Once on a 911 I just put all seasons on my wheels and got rid of summers all together, BUT the performance ride is never the same. A cheap way to go but you loose the reason you own a Porsche IMO. Staying on the summers all year is the only choice I wouldn t do.

and7

I have the same issue in the UK as NM.

But someone who is an expert on Porsche cars has told me that as long as there is no snow and I allow for extra braking time in low temperatures, I can avoid the expense of winter tyres.

So I Did not change to winter tyres in my previous Porsche and do not propose to in my new Panamera.

I do not drive my Porsche if there is snow or ice on the road—which is no more than 7-10 days a year in the recent past where I live in the UK

dudecs

Is that "7 deg" Celsius or Fahrenheit? Summer tires are generally not recommended for temperatures below 40F to 45F. With that said, I've driven on summer tires below 32F and it was fine. Use good judgement and keep in mind the reduce traction on dry roads. As already mentioned, avoid frozen precipitation on the road (snow, ice, slush) as summer tires have nearly zero traction in those conditions.

ajriches01

At the Porsche experience centre, they said people shouldn't change in the UK. They have a mixture of cars on summer and winter tires and say that the summer tires are inappropriate 9/10. I drove a Panamera on Summers and a 911 on Winters - IMO, a winter tire driven in warmer weather is more unpredictable than a summer tire in low but not sub-zero temperatures. Most will have 4WD also which is helpful.

If the snow falls, I will get snow socks but otherwise, just adjust my driving style if around freezing.

NorthernMonkey

really? that does surprise me that they would say that.

I must confess I've never bought winters but have thought about it many times. the "miser" in me wins every year.

I would say last time the snow really fell i just did not drive until it went and worked from home i guess having option for that helps.

only thing playing on my mind is i do frequent 3-4am airport runs to catch red eye flights often returning later that week on 22:45 or later flights meaning car is often out when the temperatures are at their lowest.

.......i'll procrastinate for a bit longer....and then probably do nothing and stay on summers and just adjust driving style like every other year.....

thanks all for view points so far.

knowspin

NM, do they use salt on the roads in the UK? If they do, like they do here in New England, then I would get a seperate set of wheels and tires. The salt raises heck with the wheels.


My wife has a Jag S-Type and when she got it I bought a set of OEM wheels and had snow tires mounted on them. Over the years her summer wheels look pristine, while her winter wheels look like s**t.

ajriches01

They do salt the roads, interesting point.

According to the below, it may make sense for 3-4 months of the year: https://www.metoffice.gov.uk/climate...al-climates/so

Things are different up North though so you will be best to judge!!

KNor

Buying a £100k car and then skimping on winter tires seems absolutely insane to me.

I like the tire option since I can keep the same wheels for the entire year though. And I wouldn't store the wheels at home anyway, so I'd still be taking it to the shop for the change.

Frank 993 C4S

This!

NorthernMonkey

don't get me wrong...i agree.....but last few winters have been so mild i can only recall a few days last year where it even got below 2-3 deg that's why i always end up second guessing myself.

dealer is sending me the prices for the wheels+tyres and then tyre swap only later today.

David Patel

Hi Northenmonkey

I too am in the same boat. I don't drive my Porsche enough but last 2-3 weeks I happen to have, and even turning in my drive, I can feel the front of the car tyres making a horrible noise that scares the guts out of me every time as though I've kerbed the car!.

for how much I drive / won't drive it during the mega winter months, I don't think I'll change, BUT if I am doing the odd drive, is it damaging the tyre in any way?
would you know?

David.

NorthernMonkey

this is fairly normal on any Porsche I think. if you google "porsche tyres skipping full lock" or include keywords like "judder" its normal. more obvious on full lock in colder months.

back to the winter tyres....as expected after not buying them the snow has come and car is on the drive. to be fair i don't need to go out and seeing some of the other cars sliding around on local roads i'd be petrified of someone sliding into me irrespective of what tyres you have 99% of the others have normal tyres and are just as likely to hit you. I can work from home today and the snow is forecast to be gone by tomorrow so i'm happy to leave the car on the drive having a rest.

ajriches01

Got snowed-in this weekend - even the X6 (without winter tyres) was useless. Looked at getting tyres for that but by the time you get around to it, the predicted temperature is 10 degrees (so winter worse than summer). I think it makes sense if you live somewhere high and rural but otherwise 50/50.

and7