Question about winter steel wheels..

[white_rice]

Hey guys.. I have a couple of questions in regards to winter tires/rims. I currently have the factory 15" OEM all season tires on my Yaris. Its a 2008 LE Hatchback. First of all, does it have TPMS option?

Secondly, I am in the states right now and picking up some brand new 14" Firestone Winterforce winter tires for the car. I still need to get some 14" steel wheels to have them put on. Where is the cheapest place for these? Is there anything to keep in mind if looking for a used set on Kijiji, besides the 4x100 bolt pattern? Does offset or anything else need to be particular? Or is there a good place in Canada to get these new?

Thanks.. and if anyone else has been running with this brand of winter tires I'd be happy to hear your opinion. They are a cheap priced tire but yet they seem to get really good reviews on traction control and what not. Only negative I've read is them being noisy, which honestly doesn't concern me.

Cheers!

[white_rice]

Also I decided to downsize to the factory 14" tire size to not only reduce the cost of rubber, but also I find that the smaller & thinner tires tend to cut through the snow easier.

[mojoyaris]

If you are in the US already, get your stuff in the US. It'll be cheaper than buying anything in Canada. 14' is good. Steelies you don't really need to worry about your offset.

[Tatsh]

I'd opt for blizzaks. They last a freaking lifetime.

[white_rice]

Well I am home and back in Ontario now. Didn't even get a chance to look at steelies there because well the van couldn't fit as much as another bag in there with 5 peoples worth of luggage and random purchases.

I've been reading and these Winterforce tires are getting amazing reviews as being a VERY aggressive winter tire which gets through everything!

So I am now on the hunt for some steelies, so I'll still take any recommendations. Furthermore, probably a dumb question but how would I know if my Yaris came equipped with TPMS?

Cheers.

[mojoyaris]

I guess: Check your owners manual. It will say if you have it.

I have used a number of winter tires (and for ice racing/rally x etc.)

The tires a bunch of us are using now is the General Tires Alti Max Arctic which can also be studded. Great grip on ice and hard packed snow and has good grip on pavement too. As a rain tire, works wonderful!

I know I should be saying the Toyo's are very good too, but honestly, bang for buck the General's are pretty hard to beat.

[white_rice]

Thanks for the tip about the owners manual. Never even thought to check reading that.

In regards to the tires, yes I read that the General Altimax Arctic are also an amazing tire at a cheap price as well. Can't go wrong with either. I have the Toyo G02 Plus winters on my wife's Matrix and honestly not impressed at all. I do however swear by their summer performance T1R's which grip to the road like crazy.

I heard that sometimes Canadian Tire does a buy 1 steel wheel, get the 2nd one free deal. Anyone confirm this? Hopefully this happens again soon if that info is legit.

[06_hbyaris]

I have a set of 14" steelies oem from my yaris for sale $100 they are yours. Only thing is there are still have the all season tires on them - and the tread are still very good two are 95% and others are 80% so if you don't mind to take them off and use the rims for winter tires and I am sure you can sell the tires for a bit of cash as well. I am in Ottawa.

[fidgell]

Crappy Tire sold me my winter steelies for $50 each, sometimes deals on too. I got Pirelli Winters which are amazing up here in Barrie. Our van has Blizzaks on, and they are equally excellent.

[Bluevitz-rs]

Yeah, if you don't take 06_hbyaris's offer, you should look for 14x5.5 et45. <-- that's the factory 14" size.

[white_rice]

Originally Posted by Bluevitz-rs

Yeah, if you don't take 06_hbyaris's offer, you should look for 14x5.5 et45. <-- that's the factory 14" size.

Thanks for the specific size. I contacted 06_hbyaris and we came to realize it won't work out for us, as he is over 6 hours away in Ottawa! LOL Unfortunately.. and they have tires mounted so shipping would be pure insanity.

BTW did I purchase the correct size tire in the 14"? I picked them up in a 175/65/14 size. But according to http://www.miata.net/garage/tirecalc.html I'll be a tad smaller overall diameter than my OEM 185/60/15's. Not much mind you. I was just wondering whether there was a 14" tire size that matched up equally as my understanding is that some Yaris models came with 14" from the factory.

[Bluevitz-rs]

175/65R14 is the stock size for the Echo's. So it'll only set you speedo out a few km/h faster that the stock Yaris tires.

[MUSKOKA800]

No TPMS in Canada. In U.S. only it would seem.

I run Echo 14" steelies with 175/65/14 winter tires on my '08 sedan. They stand considerably shorter than the 185/60/15 stock size. Speedo reads 2% faster than GPS speed. Better get-up and go. Incredable braking with the lighter set-up. Ground clearance is my biggest sore spot as I'm TRD dropped. I do more plowing than the City of Burlington.

[white_rice]

Thanks again for all the helpful info guys. Now I'm still finding the most difficult part is trying to locate a set of Echo/Yaris OEM 14's.. been searching Kijiji & Craiglist high and dry for the past couple of days. Found a mint set in Ottawa for $100.00 for the full set but just too far of a drive. Hopefully something else comes up soon. I hate to say it but I am pretty particular as to their condition as well, even if for winter only. I'm a car guy and always like to make sure things look proper. :)

[alan1828]

Hope I'm not too late for offer some help. I have a set of rims with tires on them from my corolla 99 , they are 14".

Long story short, I have a set of X-ICE2 tires from my Corolla 99. When I traded the corolla for my Yaris I swapped out the X-ICE2 and put on a set of all-seasons, now I have a set of tires and a set of rims. Winter is almost over and I've surviced with my original 15" seasonal rims and tires so I won't be needing the tires and rims. Make me an offer for rims and tires or either. I am in Richmond Hill.