I could use some winter tire advice. I will be purchasing winter tires for my new to me 2012 Chrysler Town and Country Touring-L. I also want to buy decent looking rims as well. I hate those awful looking steel rims that rust and look like crap. Could I get some suggestions as to a good winter tire and where is a good place to buy the rims? Also if I get new rims what happens with the TPMS?
I am looking at some tires at Canadian Tire that are on special right now. They are the Bridgestone Blizzak WS90 or the Michelin X-Ice snow and also wondering if checking with the junkyards to see if they have some decent rims that come off a 2012 Chrysler Town and Country.
Would appreciate any advice you can offer.
Two years ago I purchased 4 Goodyear Winter Command tires for my 2013 Grand Caravan that I used driving for Uber in the Salt Lake City area. I needed snow tires to be able to carry Uber Ski passengers up to Park City and the surrounding areas. I was truly impressed with the smooth and quiet ride of those tires in addition to their handling prowess. The highway to Park City is fast, winding, pretty steep, and at times has some curves that can be very challenging to drivers not on their toes or vehicles not capable of handling high speeds curves. Typical fast lane uphill traffic travels around 80-85 MPH and often has to weave around slower vehicles to maintain that pace; it is a fun to road to drive quickly. I've seen all the usual German & Japanese suspects speeding uphill along with various and sundry 30+ year old pickups & SUV's flailing their way to the top at 80+. In general when I see those older 4x4 rigs coming up fast behind me I move far over to the right as I don't know how they keep those things on the road. Going downhill it's easy to maintain 70 MPH without ever touching the gas but for one or two spots, same for the brakes; but one has to be ready for the turns. All in all these snow tires are about 5 MPH slower on that road than my regular tires.
But in the snow they are great. I have them mounted on the original 17" aluminum wheels and driving for Uber my van goes through the car wash every morning so it's as clean as I can get it and to keep salt and other crap off the wheels and undercarriage. I purchased a complete set of matching aluminum wheels with tires at a local salvage yard and have been running those when there's no snow. I'll need to replace two of those tires in the near future.
As a former tire store manager the only advantage I can think of that steel wheels have over aluminum is their ability to be hammered out by almost anyone after a misadventure with a curb or other immovable object. Aluminum wheels can be repaired but it typically has to be done by a professional trained to do so. As far as corrosion goes, both steel and aluminum are susceptible to it but with proper care and maintenance any damage can be prevented or minimized. Clear coat can and will come off aluminum wheels just as paint on steel wheels; but a bit of sandpaper, polishing compound, and a respray of clear coat an aluminum wheel can look almost new again, just as a steel wheel with some rust remover, sand paper, and paint. So the choice is really whether you want to drive a nice looking vehicle during the winter or one with ugly black wheels or cheap hubcaps that will most likely be impossible to keep on the vehicle while driving in deep snow. At least that's been my experience.
Good luck!
