Hi all,
New to forum but I have a question about tires. I have a 2016 XC90 AWD and am thinking about getting winter tires. It’s probably important to mention that I bought my Volvo for safety year round and to go camping/towing a trailer in the summer. I live in Utah where we definitely have a winter. First, thoughts on winter tires? Has anyone found a good all season tires that will work? Secondly, I have 235 55 R19s and I’m considering going down a size for winter to 235 60 R18s. The tire guy at Costco said that changing the wheel size could mess with TPMS and the computer. Does anyone know if that’s actually true?
thank you!
Brandon

 

Get snow tires. Find whatever size wheel you can for your car and buy snows for it.

I swear you'll thank me to your friends. It's NIGHT AND DAY! No discussion.

Get as narrow and as high a tire profile as you can.

Regarding studded tires or chains: I'd seriously consider chains IF YOU HAD TO DRIVE during deep snow times.

Be ready to remove studded tires as dry running wears 'em fast.

What do you NEED to drive through?

Buying 4 TPMS valve assemblies (~$400) is no big deal but not necessary. You'll have a TPMS icon on the dash for the time your snows are on if you don't.

When you restore your regular street tires the car senses the TPMS senders and the light goes out.

Nothing is "messed with". My snows do not have TPMS semsors. No biggie. Cheers

 

Thank you Georgeandkira for your experience on this! I don’t think I’ll need studded as I’m mainly going to be driving in the Salt Lake City and don’t plan to go up canyons/skiing in deep snow. Any recommendations on how narrow/high to go? I have 19 inch wheels and standard width is 235 and height is 55. I’m thinking that I can’t do much about height if using same wheels but I’ve been told I can go down in width. Any snowies you’d recommend?

 

I agree, snows are a must have for driving in mountains or where there's a lot of snow. All wheel drive is great for the go, but snows let you stop and turn better than all seasons. Its not uncommon to go -1 or -2 with a second set of rims so you can keep the snows mounted for easy change overs. Narrow tires cut through to the road to avoid floating on top of the snow (like hydroplaning). You can use a site like Tire Rack to see what the proper size rims work for your model. In terms of tire brand, right now I have Artic Altimax 12s on my VW CC and the older Altimax's on our Highlander.

PS - you may not need new tire pressure sensors. Older Volvos used the in wheel sensors and the newer models went to use the ABS speed sensors. If your wheels have metal valve stems, that's the sign you have an in-wheel sensor. Rubber valve stems means the tire monitor judges differences in rotational speed to sense when a tire is going flat. Note - this works most of the time but can create false alarms when driving in deep snow...