Would it be crazy to run 18's with all seasons for year round driving? Would it be IMPOSSIBLE to drive in the snow, or not too much didfferent than 17's. I'll be going with a BBK, so the 16inch stockers would be out of the question, so its eithre go with 17's or 18's with all season falkens. Please advise.

Well.....I believe that the smaller the better for winter driving....
A tall, skinney tire would work best.
How much winter do you usually get where you are? If not much, you may be able to use the 18's.
What brakes are you getting? The Subaru 4-pots fit the stock wheels with a 3mm spacer...good for winter;)

the extra sidewall deflection of a 16 or 17 will aid winter driving traction

what sort of winters do you have? im in minnesota and we get some doozies. there were some days i wasnt happy w/my stock 16's but chances are the roads wouldve been bad with anything.

ive not heard of anyone successfully driving in a minnesota winter with 18's... your traction just goes to hell.

I seem to put my 18s on about a week early every year in Ithaca NY and let me tell you, they are USELESS in the snow. They are basically sleds since my tires are 225s. The thinner the tire the better in snow. Also, its will be impossible to find snow tires in 18" with small sidewalls (40 series). Try 17s, I know you can get blizzaks for them.

- Chris

Shrug.. I ran with my 18's through a full winter here in NJ with no problem at all. 78 mile commute each way through some pretty nasty snow and it still didn't change much.

-- Steve

i wasnt going with snow tires, just trying to run 18's all year round with all seasons, and ny winters have a few good snow packed days a year. I most likely will go with the rotora front and rear BBK so I know the 17 will fit too. I may just go with the 17 inch Rota SDR's with all season falken's. Think this may be a better setup?

What is the impact of winter driving on changing the tires from
195x60x15

to

205x65x15

and

225x60x16

As others have stated, for winter tires (even if they are "just" all season radials) you want the narrowest tire you can fit with the most sidewall for better traction. In PA, the extra sidewalls definitely help with our pothole infested roadways. :( Nothing worse than blackice and having your suspension and rim swallowed by a pothole!

I ran 18" wheels and tires last winter. I used Dunlop M3 snow tires in 225/40/18. This set-up had lots a traction. It was fun to pass all the cars stuck or sliding in the snow.
Don