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I found out that I'm going to be getting stationed in South Dakota now where they actually have seasons. Since I have dry/wet tires (fuzion zri) I plan on buying some winter tires before I drive to my next base (in january and through colorado...I don't think my summer tires would cut it haha.) My question is what tire/sizes should I look at? I would probably want to buy some cheap steelies to put them on after I get to my next base so I don't have to mount and balance my tires every season but for now I want to put them on my stock chrome wheels. Currently I have 205/55/15 Fuzion ZRi tires on but I was looking at getting some Michelin 185/60QR15 which is back to the stock size anyway. They are pretty expensive ($72/tire on tirerack) which sucks but does that sound like a good idea?

snow? what is that?

That sounds good, just keep the tire size narrow which the 185 is perfect. Getting them too wide only makes the tire ride ontop of the snow rather than cut through the snow. I have Pirelli SnowSport 210 tires in 185 series on some 15" steelies and they have worked great in the two years that I used them for getting to work and back in snow.

snow=no chrome... salt on the roadways (used to melt the snow) will corrode the wheels. definetly use some steelies.

thanks for the assurance...about my chrome wheels I don't have the money to spend on the steelies so my regular chrome ones will have to do it for now..the tires are going to be enough as it is.

Remember to take it easy I see southerners come up here all the time and think that its not as hard as people make it out to be, believe me it is. Back when I lived in Western NY we would get tons of snow, and I used the stock neon tires which kinda just skated me above the snow.

My rims will never see snow. The steelies do though.

I'm from minnesota so I know what snow is like haha...I just have always had all season tires. Does anyone know how much a set of steelies usually go for?

like 20 bux a pop

I run Nokian Hakka2's in a 175/70R14 for winter and they are absolutely UNSTOPPABLE!!! Best snows I have ever had the privledge of running!

I have a set of steelies + tires, in great condition, very cheap if you are interested. the tries have at least 2 years of driving left on them. i live in florida, so i have no use for them. PM me if you are interested ......i could send you pictures also .....

You'd be much better off spending less on tires -- and getting some 14" stealies. Spend $40-50 on some Kumhos (probably better than Michelin). In the end, you'll have spent about the same, and have a dedicated snow set -- w/o having to unmount/mount/balance tires every season.

Wisher2 wrote:like 20 bux a pop

Multiply that by 4 and you are correct. Steel is up right now.

atom wrote:

Wisher2 wrote:like 20 bux a pop

Multiply that by 4 and you are correct. Steel is up right now.

head over to the junkyard... you might be able to get wheels and tire for cheap

FYI> (4) new Black painted 14x5.5" steel wheels from Tirerack runs $132.

dblsg wrote:
head over to the junkyard... you might be able to get wheels and tire for cheap

the juckyard out here will charge me $100 for any set of steel rims with tires

Just a tip: When driving through snow, try your hardest not to stop. If theres a redlight ahead, just coast as long as you can. Sometimes it can be a bitch to start up from a standstill on snow/ice.

I run 195/60R14 Cooper Weathermaster S/T. I paid 50 bucks a tire and these things are sweet, never had a problem in the snow.

I guess this is an update...with more questions haha

So I went to the junk yard yesterday to pick up some steelies to mount winter tires on since I'm going to be moving to a place that actually has seasons and my tires are summer wet/dry ones. What I didn't know was that some 14" wheels are 5 1/2" wide and some are 6". I'm not sure if I got them messed up at all (I got 3 from one neon 1 from another) because I dont have them with me right now but if say one of them is 6" and the other 5 1/2" or vice versa..will I have problems?

Second: what size tires should I get? Tire rack has michelin X-Ice for $55 a tire at the 175/70QR14 size. They also have Dunlop winter sport m3 (which is rated slightly better than the x-ice) for $72 a tire (with a $50 mail in rebate), and the Michelin X-Ice for $71 each both at the 185/65TR14 size. I would think that in winter driving the more narrow tire would be better but what are your opinions? And will this mess up my speedo at all? (I drive an 03 with 15" wheels right now)

I would recommend that you stay with the 175/70R14 in size for the 14" steelies. I believe that this is the stock size of a tire that Neon came with, if equiped with the 14" rim. The 15" rim came stock with 185/60R15. Putting the larger size tire on that 14" rim wouldn't be the smartest thing to do in winter time, the narrower, the better.

As for the tires, I personally am running my stock 15" rims with 185/60R15 Cooper WeatherMaster S/T winter tires. They are great in the snow, but they are loud when you get on some roads that are dry and no snow...

I've heard good things about the X-Ice tires, and the Dunlop Graspic DS-2 tires are supposed to be rated decently as well.

Personally, I think that whatever tire you go with, as long as its made for winter/ice, coupled with the steelies is a great decision.

~Amit

Amit is 100% Correct. Stock size is 175/70.

are you sure? I was looking at the faq at the other org and it says that the stock size is 185/65-HR14 ...for the first gens (which is what I got the wheels from). But I would be more than happy go to with th $55..in the end its only a $17 difference but I don't like sitting and waiting on rebates so I think overall it's a better deal.

How about the question about size? will the balance and alignment be all jacked up if one size is bigger?

The rim itself won't make a difference, it's the tire size that will. The stock 2nd gen 14" steel rim tire size is P175/70R14. The car was designed to use that specific size, or Dodge wouldn't have put that size tire on the car.

You will hear this over and over, for winter, going with a narrower tire will actually give you better traction. When you have a wide tire in snowy situations, the tire will tend to drive over the snow, and compact it while its under the car. Driving on packed snow what you want to do in winter, its just like driving on ice. The narrow tire will tend to cut through the snow, therefore still griping the road.

If you still feel like you need to go with the wider tire size, go right ahead, but others will recommend the opposite. As for a wider size tire screwing up balance and alignment, no it will not.

As long as your tire shop is properly mounting, and balancing the tires on the rims, and as long as the rim itself is in good shape, you won't have any problems. You'll start seeing the difference when you go with larger rims, and summer tires...

Save your money, go with the narrow tire, and whatever tire brand you want. Like I said, you've already made the best choice possible by buying a set of dedicated winter rims/tires.

~Amit

I knew about the narrow=better for winter tires I just wasn't sure if having one tire slightly wider wheel would make my car feel funny or anything. Hopefully I can order them on friday once I get paid.

I've always questioned that narrower the better in snow personally...
My old turbo daytona had 225-50-15's on it and when we had the nasty blizzard a few years back(everything shut down) I watched cars go into ditches,snowbanks..etc...Yet I had some wide tires on the car....
My 03 SXT with its stock 15's sucked in the snow, I switched to some 205/50/16's and it was better
My 02 R/T is running 195-50-15's, they were better last december than my 205-40-17's....
I honestly dont think its the width of the tire that makes a difference, its more the tread and the driver....
my 2 cents....

^Tread does make a huge difference, and that's why your old stock eagles sucked in the snow. God they were some terrible tires in the snow.

Eagle LS tires are garbage to begin with. The only thing I liked about them was that they were quiet...

~Amit

^^^
Agreed, I had to be pulled out of my own driveway when I had the 03 SXT.....

Funny you should mention that...

I had to be pulled out of a ditch of snow right next to my driveway with the LS's. Have a wild guess why...

~Amit

Well..I got a chance to look at all of them and they are all one size. So I'm going to be going with the 175 micheline X-Ice when I get paid.

Too bad steelies are ugly as hell and I've always hated people who use them...now I'm one of them haha at least mine are going to be glossy black once I paint them.