Got snow?

[Philosophe]

Originally Posted by RodJo

Just got my Xi2's today from TireRack. We'll see if they perform as well as the reviewers say.

As for WeatherTech, it took exactly 2 weeks for me to receive my Floor Liners. When I called they said it was taking 7-10 business days to make and ship them after the order is received. With that said, the Floor Liners are great.

Xi2/steel rims still in the garage (it's 10°C today!). Ordered WeatherTech mats (black, 1st and 2nd row) last week and received an email shortly after stating that they are backorder and that they'll send my another email when that are ready to ship.

[Judgeless]

Originally Posted by Judgeless

I just ordered snow tires and new rims today.

I ordered 4 195/65R-15 Michelin X-Ice Xi2 Green X on 15x6.5 Elbrus I05 SDC ICE rims from Tire Rack. I decided not to get the sensors. From what I read these are great non studded snow tires.

When I purchased the car I ordered the Toyota OEM all weather mats. That was a complete waste of money. They do not offer any protection from ice and snow melting from the mat on to the carpet.

I ordered the WeatherTech mats over a week ago directly for their site. They still have not shipped. They are another one of those companies that makes promises on a delivery date and never deliver.

The rims and tires showed up today. Tire Rack is an amazing company. They look great. No word on the mats. I have not recieved an email claiming they are back ordered. I would not recommend doing business with WeatherTech.

[spiderman]

Originally Posted by Judgeless

The rims and tires showed up today. Tire Rack is an amazing company. They look great. No word on the mats. I have not recieved an email claiming they are back ordered. I would not recommend doing business with WeatherTech.

I will be really interested in how the tires work out for you. I almost bought them myself but salesman actually talked me out of them by saying they work better on heavier vehicles. I stuck with the studs.

[jsharpe]

We didn't get much, but is was enough of an excuse to swap on the snow tires/wheels (Enkei SC05 and Blizzak WS60) It's still early so I might swap back to the OEM summers for another month or so.

[spiderman]

Originally Posted by jsharpe

We didn't get much, but is was enough of an excuse to swap on the snow tires/wheels (Enkei SC05 and Blizzak WS60)

Sweet looking snowmobile!

My studded snow tires are doing great at the icy intersections. The big 4x4s spill out to get going an I don't make a peep. The car is doing really well, I am happy.

[Tideland Prius]

Sweet rims! What size?

[jsharpe]

Originally Posted by Tideland Prius

Sweet rims! What size?

The same as the OEMs (17x7 50mm offset) but these weigh about 4lbs less each. I could have gone even lighter but liked the look of these for snows. To me they kind of look like snowflakes. I didn't seriously consider going down to narrower/tall 15's for the slightly better traction they would give since I wanted to stay with the general appearance of of the 17's.

[Tideland Prius]

Originally Posted by jsharpe

The same as the OEMs (17x7 50mm offset) but these weigh about 4lbs less each. I could have gone even lighter but liked the look of these for snows. To me they kind of look like snowflakes. I didn't seriously consider going down to narrower/tall 15's for the slightly better traction they would give since I wanted to stay with the general appearance of of the 17's.

Thanks! If Toyota's worried about 17" on 15" models, I'm wondering if 16s are a good compromise.

[jsharpe]

Originally Posted by Tideland Prius

Thanks! If Toyota's worried about 17" on 15" models, I'm wondering if 16s are a good compromise.

Personally I think the "concerns" about 17's are unfounded. If the overall diameter of the tires is kept close, which can easily be done with either 15", 16" or 17" tires, and the offset of the wheels stays close to stock, there really should be no issue. Since there is plenty of room in the wheel wells to accommodate the wider 17's the others both fit easily.

The business about weight is silly because they themselves picked a very heavy 17" rim. If that was such a big concern they could have chosen something lighter. And most 15" and 16" rims will be lighter. The rims I chose for my winter set shaved 4lbs off each corner and I could have doubled that with a different style. But after much research even I came to the conclusion that even that substantial amount would be tough to notice with my driving style and the normal loss of fuel economy during colder weather. Of course if I were a rally driver or competition hyper-miler things would be different.

So to me which to choose comes down to standard trade-offs like appearance, ride quality, cost, fuel economy, etc. and not a one size fits all kind of answer.

[Judgeless]

I am still waiting to put the winter tires on. Here is a pic of the new 15" rims with Michelin X-Ice Xi2. I think they look way better then the stock 15" rims.