Winter Driving

Have any of you actually driven a 911 (996) c4 in the snow? I have 18" rims on my c4 and I'm debating whether to (i) invest in a set of 17" rims with snow tires or (ii) leave the car in the garage for the winter and use my SUV. Having gotten used to the 911, I'm dreading alternative (ii). On the other hand, I wouldn't spend the approx $3000 necesssary to get the new rims and tires if the car still won't handle well in the snow given its low profile. I live in the Northeast US where snow is a problem. The other alternative is to purchase a performance type sedan for the winter (e.g., audi a6, mercedes e420 4 matic (automatic is a drawback) or bmw 540i (rear wheel drive but can use 17" snow tires)). Any thoughts on the 911 with or without snows and/or the performance sedan ideas would be greatly appreciated.

I don't have much experience with this, but given the 911's low ground clearence it probably wouldn't be able to go over more than a few inches of snow even if it had the traction. My suggestion would be to get some 17"s and put high performance all seasons on those rims. Then use the 911 with all seasons whenever its winter, but not snowing. The summer tires that are on your car now are not suited for driving in near freezing temperatures. Whenever it would snow, use your SUV. If you do decide to go with a performance sedan, I would recommend the Audi A6. I would definetely not get the BMW 540 as a winter car.

Driving a 911 in the snow would be a sad thing. You say you own an SUV? Then drive it in the snow! Being a car nut living in a place where we often have winter AND snow for damn near 6 months of the year (Minneapolis), I've made some hard compromises when I lacked the money to buy a "winter beater". Yeah, I drove my various sports cars in the winter. Bad Idea! Sports cars have lower ground clearances. Sports cars have wider wheels. Both are bad things in the snow. You want tall, narrow snow tires and lots of ground clearance anytime there's more than a couple inches on the ground. Chances of a fender bender are greatly increased in bad winter driving. Why risk your 911 in it? If you had no other car at all but had enough money to buy either snow tires or a beater car, buying the beater car would always be the better choice. For the price of 4 tires and 4 17" rims that will fit the 911, you can buy a pretty darn nice front-wheel drive winter beater. But you already have an SUV. It's a no brainer. Don't drive the 911 in snow or on ice.

I bet you need snow tires front and rear. Dunlap does make an 18 inch snow tire. I drove an M5 last winter, but I had to put snow tires on before it would go at all in the snow. With snow tires it went anywhere. One other problem is that cars take a beating in the snow from all the stuff they put down to clear the roads. Lot's of stone chips, etc. I would suggest driving the SUV when it snows and keeping the C4 only for the nice days in the winter.

There is no good reason to not drive a properly equiped C4 in the snow. The C4 is incredible in the snow with a good set of snow tires. When I was confronted with a similar situation as yourself, I ended up simply buying a set of 18-inch Pirelli Winter 210 Asimmertricos and these things do the trick very nicely indeed. Another item which I purschased for "ding" protection is a bra for the car. One of the great things about the C4 is that it will allow you to enjoy your Porsche all year round, in all conditions. Take advantage of the excellent capabilities of the car. Believe me, you will not be dissapointed

Dear Brian, First thing is that a C4 is mean�t to be driven all year round. Plus you can overtake SUVs in snow. I drive mine as a daily driver all year regardless. The main issue with tyre size is not so much diameter but width. The trouble is you can go from snow tyre to snow shoe very easily. 205 front and 225 rear for real snow driving is the best combination and proven combination. Going wider than this can and will cause some problems. I have seen people with 275s on the back but they did not get far. I presonally recommend the Michelin Alpin Pilot snow tyres. For cost reasons, a set of second hand 17 inch wheels shod with winter rubber would be a good solution. Just remember to desalinate your C4 every so often. You will enjoy the C4 in the snow. It will not let you down. Ciao, Adrian 911C4 PS: For the record I live in Switzerland and we see our share of snow. Lots of it.

Well Adrian, I don't know about the others but you've convinced me! You are right about the Alpin Pilots, those babies get the job done.

We C4 owner/drivers wear our smiles all year round. We are the only ones not going into a spin due to the winter weather. Full steam ahead and get past those SUVs, they are dangerous, Ciao, Adrian 911C4 944 (goes round and round in winter)

99-C4

I have drove my 99-C4 through the winter last year. I put on a set Dunlop Winter Sport SP on 17" wheels. I put the narrowest Porsche recommended tires. 205 in the front and 225 rear. The car drove great in the snow. Better than my Audi v-8 quattro but not quite as good as my Chevy Astro with AWD. I attribute this to the weight and relatively narrow tires the Astro has (215).