S4 Avant wheel question for winter tyres.

[Lemonski]

Hi All

Sorry I am sure this has been done to death, but I am about to pick up a new car S4 Avant 2014, with 19" 5 segment alloys which I believe are 19" X 8.5J ET 43. I don't have the car yet, but happy for anyone to confirm that for me.

My question is what size are the S4 18" standard alloys.

I have just purchased a set of used Audi OEM wheels which are 18" X 8J X ET 47 to put 245/40/18 winter tyres on. Will these be the correct size fitment for 18"?

I see on auto trader they say the standard S4 alloys are 18 X 8.5J but other websites say 8J.

Can anyone confirm if what I have purchased will work 100% without affecting handling etc.

Thanks in advance

Lee

 

[rum4mo]

I use 18” 8.0” ET 47 8K0 601 025 Q 1 H7 with 245/40 X R18 97V XL in winter on my S4 saloon.

Edit:- in other words 5 spoke Audi A4 alloys which are easy to keep clean in winter - that is on a 2011 B8 S4.

 

[Lemonski]

I use 18” 8.0” ET 47 8K0 601 025 Q 1 H7 with 245/40 X R18 97V XL in winter on my S4 saloon.

Edit:- in other words 5 spoke Audi A4 alloys which are easy to keep clean in winter - that is on a 2011 B8 S4.

Thanks for the quick reply.

That's great as that is the wheels I have just bought..

Thanks again, now time to tyre shop

 

[rum4mo]

Excellent, for what it is worth my 2011 B8 S4 came with "your" quoted size of 19" wheels, which are my summer tyres/wheels.

It might be a bit early to look for winter tyres, though no harm in checking prices as they can move quite a bit as winter approaches - I normally use mainland Europe places like mytyres.com for winter tyres, except this last time I used Costco as I wanted Michelin Alpins, though I'm not convinced that Costco's prices for them reflect the lowering of prices that Michelin tyres seems to have taken over the past few years! I seem to think that this year's winter tyre factory output does not appear until early October at the wholesalers, I might be wrong there though. The trick is to dive in quickly after the new stock is available and not just get the last of previous year's stock.

 

[ianv5]

Check Tyreleader.co.uk they have a good selection and are cheap .

 

[RyanJonS4]

Excellent, for what it is worth my 2011 B8 S4 came with "your" quoted size of 19" wheels, which are my summer tyres/wheels.

It might be a bit early to look for winter tyres, though no harm in checking prices as they can move quite a bit as winter approaches - I normally use mainland Europe places like mytyres.com for winter tyres, except this last time I used Costco as I wanted Michelin Alpins, though I'm not convinced that Costco's prices for them reflect the lowering of prices that Michelin tyres seems to have taken over the past few years! I seem to think that this year's winter tyre factory output does not appear until early October at the wholesalers, I might be wrong there though. The trick is to dive in quickly after the new stock is available and not just get the last of previous year's stock.

Which alpins are you running?

How do you find them?

Ryan

 

[rum4mo]

I bought mine 5 years ago almost, they are PA4 and they seem to do all I ask of them, they tend to stay on the car from the end of October until end of April - same with my wife's Polo 1.2TSI SEL 110PS, as these tyres perform well with heavy rain as well as low temperatures and snow and ice.
From my experience of using older versions of Alpins, they do last for a long time, both previous cars sold before they used up their winter tyres!
I don't really use my car much in the winter as the Polo is easier to keep/make clean!

 

[Lemonski]

I have been running Vredstein winters for years on company vehicles and drove all over the Alps for ski trips and did not use chains once.

On my current car I put Vredstein Wintrac S on and have used them for two winters, including 3 weeks in the Alps and they have been amazing. I will probably put these on the S4 for the winter. Only other one I have considered is the Nokian WR A4. On ski trips to Norway lots of the locals use these for obvious reasons. My old man has used these for two winters on his Octavia 4x4 doing 6 weeks in the Alps and swears by them.

In my eyes the big name brands are often not worth the extra.

 

[Adamantium]

Even budget winter tyres will be fantastic compared to premium all seasons or worse yet summer tyres.

You aren’t comparing apples with apples.

Try a premium winter versus a budget winter and you might find the extra is a substantial improvement again.

Personally if there’s one area of the car that it’s not worth fitting a lesser product, it’s tyres. That doesn’t mean the budgets are poor, they are typically excellent value, it just depends if you prioritise absolute performance over value. Where tyres are concerned I choose the product first then try to get the best price on it.

 

[Lemonski]

I have purchased a new set of Audi OEM Alloys now and just need to purchase tyres.

I have seen on some forums that folk are running 225/45/18 for their winters on the S4. Certainly the rolling circumference is spot on compared to the 255/35/19 currently on the car.

Others are running 245/40/18. Anyone have any experience of either sizes.

I had seen a picture of someone’s sticker ( one with tyre pressures ) on the door shut showing you could run either size on the S4. Sorry I would check mine but I don’t pick the car up till next Thursday

 

[rum4mo]

You are right, the suggested wheel/tyre package for S4 in winter is 225/45 18" with I think 7.5" wide alloys, now that is the best choice for winter use as narrower tyres work better in ice and snow and slush, but I just went for the standard 18" factory fit option and fitted that with the winter version of that tyre size which is 245/40.

In UK I'd be more inclined to go for the slightly wider 245/40 on 8" wide rims and drive to the conditions, these cars are quite heavy so the 245 section winter tyres will bite into whatever you are driving over.

 

[Lemonski]

Hi

Thanks for the quick reply.

I live in in Scotland in the Highlands ( near Glenshee ) and we can get a LOT of snow, plus I do drive to the Alps too for winter trips.

I am leaning towards the 225/45/18 as I will not be flying about in winter and my main concern is the best grip in snowy conditions.

 

[rum4mo]

Fair enough, you are following Audi's best advice, your limitations to moving about will be ground clearance, it would have been better maybe to have bought an SUV with 4WD for that sort of work?

 

[Lemonski]

Fair enough, you are following Audi's best advice, your limitations to moving about will be ground clearance, it would have been better maybe to have bought an SUV with 4WD for that sort of work?

Yes you are right re clearance. I currently run a Subaru Outback which is amazing in the snow and I also had a weekend toy, Audi TT 240 Sport.

I sold the TT several weeks ago and whilst the S4 will be no where near as sure footed in the white stuff as the Subaru, I wanted a one car solution that can carry camping kit, bikes and will be reasonable in the snow but fun in the summer. The roads up here are amazing drivers roads and whilst the Subaru is extremely sensible it does not really get the heart racing.