Wheels/tires/suspension for Colorado winter driving

I just posted an intro in the FNG forum, and am posting my most serious question here. I am about to take possession of a C4S with entirely inappropriate tires for December-March in Colorado, so I have to rectify that. First of all, wheels/tires. I split my time between 8-10k feet up in the mountains and the Front Range of Colorado. My first thought was to get your basic $65 black-painted steel wheels 17" x 8"-ish on all four corners, with spacers so the back doesn't look like I'm riding on the donut tire, with Continental WinterContact SIs or Cooper DIscover True North tires. Then later, when the boss has cooled off some about the 911, some decent Braid Winrace or Fullrace wheels. I have no clue about offset or anything like that. I'll be learning. And not crying. I hope. Next, suspension. It's my opinion that Colorado has some of the worst roads in the nation, with pothole and paving issues that give my Tundra some pretty serious jolts (so maybe forgo the Braids, and just paint the steel wheels rally white or something); I don't want to tear the bottom out of my new ride, so I think I need to raise the ground clearance and possibly soften the suspension a little. I know. It kind of defeats the purpose of a 911 C4S, but If I'm driving on snowy roads like a couple of nights ago, I don't want a 6" snow drift to bring the show to a screeching halt. So to sum up, while I'm a little bit savvy on wheels and tires (probably just enough to make me dangerous), I have no clue about the suspension. Everything I found so far on the interwebs is focused on lowering the suspension. Not what (I think) I need to do. Thanks in advance for all suggestions!

My favorite winter / gravel pretend rally tire Nokian Hakkapeliitta... For wheels, I would look for a thrashed set of stock wheels to mount them on. I'm not sure you'll clear the brakes with 17's

Thanks - that is one more thing I need to learn, what diameter wheels will fit.

I have a 2003 C4S on which I currently have 18� wheels with the correct stock wheel sizes (in the manual). I have Pirelli Sottozeros on there for the winter. The car handles well with the factory-recommended wheel and tire sizes. If you plan to get another set of wheels/tires later, you may be spending more than just getting the right thing the first time. I don�t have much wisdom to offer on the suspension question. I understand your concern, but I don�t know how you can raise the ride height. The stock suspension is definitely not designed for that adjustability.

Thanks. That's it? Everyone else in Colorado garages their Porsches until July?

Be careful. Stock rear rims for 996 4s are 18x11 et45 but the manual calls for 18x10 et47 winter rims, and they are very difficult to find. Last winter I incorrectly mounted/stretched 265 Pirellis on the 18x11 summer rims. It worked but looked stupid and probably wasn�t safe. Took me a year to locate aftermarket turbo twist 18x10 et47 rims but finally got them few weeks ago and mounted last winter�s Pirelli set. Nobody makes winter tires for 18x11 rear rims so buying different tires vs finding proper 18x10 rims wasn�t an option.

Thanks, Optionman1!

https://rennlist.com/forums/market/1228502 {Edit}: I'm not sure you can get to the Rennlist Marketplace without membership. It's being sold by user 9INE97 for $625 delivered. A steal. You can try to DM him. Some Carrera IV for sale. Super cheap for OEM. I think they would be perfect for you. I kind of want to buy them myself. I've been itching for some gold winter wheels and have been looking for a cheap set to powder coat. They are 18X10.5 and 18x8 for a 997 narrow body but other owners run them with spacers. I've haven't heard of another owner going all square on 17x8. The amount of weight in the back kind of demands a wider rear tire but I'm no expert. My Cayenne lives in Arizona now so it's been the 5th Colorado winter in a 4S. I roll with 18x11 18x8 Porsche Carrera III wheels with 295/35 R18 and 235/40 R18 Pirelli Sottozeros. This is the recommended winter setup for the 997 and the Pirellis are "N" rated ("N" rated means they are approved by Porsche). I've experimented with Blizzaks with 275 on the rear but I don't think the stretch allows the tires to work properly so I'm back to a 295. Those Blizzaks also wore down to the cords on a road trip to Vancouver and Banff. It's nice to stomp on it when the roads are dry but they weren't up to the power. The Pirelli's are a much, much better match to the car. It can get pretty dicey in the heavy wet spring snows. I was up at Winter Park when it was dumping 20 inches. Good skiing but fat tires and light weight means you have to be on your game. I still a "drive until they close the roads" guy but it sometimes means slowing down to the speed limit. I've got full front PPF and have avoided damage to the front clip. It's pretty flexible and will bash though those ridges of snow the plows make between the lanes. I don't know about the 996 but the 997 has underbody air scoops for the front brakes. I ran over a chunk of snow which knocked one of them into my tire. No big deal. A $35 part. But it made a terribly embarrassing grinding noise. I took them off completely. I now carry a collapsible metal shovel in the trunk just in case a plow blocks me in when parked. The only damage I've had was when I was parked in Tahoe for a couple of days. That sierra cement and the plows pretty much buried my car. After a few hours struggling with a plastic shovel I got out but it ripped off my rear mud guard which damaged my side skirt. It was all easily repairable but lessoned learned. Winter Park. Spring 2018.

I�m in MN and driving all winter always ends up a bit of a pipe dream; mostly because the alley leading to my garage gets 5-6� deep ice ruts by late January. Some OEM 17s wouldn�t be much different in price from the Steel wheels. I would imagine some of the places that do coilovers like Feal could set you up with something that gives you 15mm or so of lift. Of course their stock spring rates are 8/12 so you might want to see about softening those up as well if they do have solutions.

Hula, Neilll, Thank you!

Here are some Carrera IIIs for sale locally for $500 (no affiliation): https://denver.craigslist.org/wto/d/...250341623.html . I think those are wide body .... My experience lifting other things suggests it wouldn't be too hard. It looks here and other places like "safari" is your keyword. You might be able to size up the tires a bit, subject to availability. That could fill out the wheel wells, increase ground clearance, and soften the ride. (Be sure you keep the f-r diameters the same! At some point, you'd want to re-gear, which I'm not even sure is possible. But, I doubt a size or two would require it.) If I'd also explore other fitments and wheel combinations for narrower winter tires. Paul

Thanks, Paul. A 2" wider diameter would gain me an inch of ground clearance; I guess I have to measure the wheel wells carefully and then try it. Or dither about it and ask more questions on the internet!

I might be wrong but i dont think you will find �winter� tires wide enough for 11� rims, maybe �all season� tires but not specs the manual calls for. Not saying all season tires might not be fine, just making sure we are comparing apples to apples.

Quotes source post: 17121436

I run an 18x11 rear with Pirelli Sottozeros 295s. 295 is the recommended width for an 11 inch rim. Severe snow service rated not all season. "N" rated. They are not available all year round but can be found in fall and early winter months. Two in stock now at Tire Rack.

Quotes source post: 17121516

Thx i see them. Never saw those because tirerack doesn�t list them as compatible for 03 4s. Cost about the same as the aftermarket turbo twist 18x10 winter rims i found to run Pirelli 265 winter rears. Good to know for the future. Thx again.

Ahh. I bet that's why you couldn't find them before. TireRack.com is a great resource but it's a bit quirky. The search engine is tied into the inventory system. It won't always return results if they don't have the tire (or wheel) in stock. They also don't always account for optional wheel sizes.