Winter rims and TPMS

[bionicbadger]

Anyone know how the tire pressure monitoring system works if I swap to a set of winter rims/tires? I want to have the factory rims/tires as summer tires and a separate set of winter rims/tires.

Can I just get 4 more sensors, have them installed on the winter set and swap to the winter set when it gets snowy? Does the tribeca need to be programmed to recognize the new sensors or something?


Also any idea how much the senors cost?

Thanks.

[hawker800mech]

I believe you will have to have the dealer program them in. I imagine it would be one hour of labor. 1stsubaruparts.com has them for about $47 each.

[Magic Marker]

I believe you will have to have the dealer program them in. I imagine it would be one hour of labor. 1stsubaruparts.com has them for about $47 each.
Ahhh the price we pay for convenience and technology.

[bionicbadger]

I believe you will have to have the dealer program them in. I imagine it would be one hour of labor. 1stsubaruparts.com has them for about $47 each.

Me being the cheap bastard that I am, will most likely say no to the extra $50+/tire and drive without the TPMS on winter tires and have the stupid warning light on all the time then.

[Magic Marker]

Do you guys think we even need winter tires?

[hawker800mech]

Do you guys think we even need winter tires?

If you've ever driven a car with dedicated snow tires you would think 'YES!' It, of course, all depends on your regional snow fall and how far you drive every day. I can get away without having them, but am reconsidering them for my wife's Legacy due to her daily drive. I would, also, like to get them for my B9, but I don't think I can do two sets of tires in one year.

[bionicbadger]

Do you guys think we even need winter tires?
Depends where you live and how much snow you get

[SubOperator]

Me being the cheap bastard that I am, will most likely say no to the extra $50+/tire and drive without the TPMS on winter tires and have the stupid warning light on all the time then.

Me too. paying $47 for each wheel sensor is a ripoff. Somehow I managed to drive all these years without this feature, and chances are high I'll do just as well in the future :)

As far as winter tires go, here in northeast having good winter tires on the car makes day and night difference. I personally tend to stick to Nokian (Finland).

I am not sure If i'll be doing it this winter though.

[Magic Marker]

I think we'll tough it out with the stock tires for this winter and see how it goes. We've never driven on winter tires, so I really don't have a point of reference anyway.

[b727plumber]

I just got some winter tires and wheels installed and I'm really pleased with the way they turned out! (Pics to follow).

I looked up the various packages at TireRack.com and chose the Bridgestone Blizzak DM-Z3 in 235/65R17 and the Sport Edition F7 wheels in 17 x 7.5. I really wanted to narrow up the tire for good snow performance, so going to the 17" rims with the 65 aspect ratio did the trick. I also sprang for the TPMS sensors so that I wouldn't have the warning light staring me down every winter.

I went to my local Discount Tire store down the street and showed them the info from TireRack and the manager said he would be glad to order them for me and save me a small amount of money at the same time. They arrived a few days later, completely assembled and balanced - Discount Tire just had to put them on. They also said that they would do the swap every spring and fall for free as well.

After driving on them for several miles, the TPMS sensor hasn't illuminated - I assumed that Discount Tire got the new sensors talking to the black box. Would you agree? Hopefully, the lack of illumination of the TPMS light is a good thing! (It does light up during engine start.)

I'm looking forward to the first significant snowfall to test them out!! (We have Blizzak WS-50's on our other Subie and they work wonderfully.)

I'll keep everyone posted on how they work out.

[crazycanuck]

We switched over to winter tires as soon as we got our Tribeca. I have read reviews on the Factory Goodyear tires and apparently they are pretty horrible in the snow. We get a lot of mixed weather here, lots of snow to mush to ice and everything in between. We stuck on Cooper Discovery winter tires with steel rims and have been through enough snow to tell you they are worth it!
I decided against the TMPS sensors and am just living with the blinking light... which only goes on after 20 or so minutes. It doesn't come on for short trips.

PLus getting winter tires extends the life of your summer set, so really, you are not spending extra money.

[hawker800mech]

Where did you get the steel wheels from?

I would like to get winter tires next year. The Goodyears do lack winter grip most of the time. Especially over a couple inches.

[Magic Marker]

I've been through some snow w/ the Goodyears and didn't feel like I was lacking any traction.

[crazycanuck]

I have not been through the winter yet with the stock tires, and since I have my winters probably never will. Thats just the reports I got off tirerack and other sites that review tires. You can go to any local tire garage and they will have 17" steel rims that will fit... you do have to go up in sidewall thickness to compensate for the smaller rim.

[singincanary]

if you are willing to go with 17" rims, check nasioc for oem '05+ sti rims. i picked up 2 sets of them for $400 each set, and sold 2 of the extras at $125 each, leaving me with 2 spares. most steelies sell for $80+ new each. if you are willing to spend a little more for an oem alloy that will fit i have a set of '07 sti limited alloys for sale at $600 plus shipping.

[ozeguy]

There's been a lot of publicity recently here in Ontario about winter tires, & I can attest that on a RWD car they make a lot of difference. I live in on the south shore of Georgian Bay, & with winter tires my old BMW 535i got thru deep snow uneventfully.
On a Tribeca I'm not so sure about the necessity of winter tires on salted roads while tire tread is still good, but sooner or later I will need to buy some winters.
But what is really a pain is the associated trouble & cost of the TPMS. After all, it is just a (government required?) gimmick for people too lazy to go to Walmart & spend $5 on a gauge, & then use it once a week, isn't it?

So, I would like to just disable the warning light on the dash when I replace/supplement my tires.

Can it be as simple as removing a fuse so the receiving sensor is not working?

Anybody know how to simply disable the whole system to avoid that flashing light? And go back to "normality".

[crazycanuck]

black masking tape

[b727plumber]

Well, we just got a good 6" snowfall yesterday and I'm pleased to report that the Blizzak's work great!

On the stock tires, we would slide all around in just 2-3 inches of snow - these Blizzak's are a huge improvement! Accelerating, manuevering and stopping are all so much more confidence inspiring - the wife really feels alot better driving it in snow. Now, we just have to worry about stopping too quickly in front of someone that doesn't have the same capability! :( (We'll just have to punch it and move out of the way!)


If you have to drive even a few days in significant snow every month of the winter, highly recommend some type of winter tire over the stock Goodyears.

[Kamkze]

I believe you will have to have the dealer program them in. I imagine it would be one hour of labor. 1stsubaruparts.com has them for about $47 each.

Anyplace else you know to get them? 1st doesnt have them listed anymore.

[crazycanuck]

I believe tire rack sells them

[Kamkze]

I believe tire rack sells them

I cant find them on there for sale individually, just if you buy wheels from them, the only tpms systems I can find for sale on there say they arent compatible with oem tpms systems.

[crazycanuck]

are you using them for a second set of tires? what happened to the ones that came with the car?

[SubOperator]

ok, bringing this thread back from dead. Just got a set of 08 Tribeca rims of ebay, with sole goal of having winter tires installed on them. Now, I don't want to spend any more money on TPMS sensors and don't want to deal with reprogramming the ECU twice a year for summer/winter set.

So, are there any consequences for not having TPMS sensors on the car for 4-5 months other than the blinking light on the dash ? Will our B9 do fine when I put the summer set with TPMS back ?

Also, any suggestions for 18 inch winter tires are appreciated :)

[crazycanuck]

I choose not to get another set of TPMS for my steel winter rims.. i was also told the salt and winter wears on them faster. I just out a black piece of tape over the blinking light. You may want to consider going to a 17" steel rim and a slightly thicker sidewall.. thats what you will probably be spec'd as a size for the tribeca. 18" steel rims are a little harder to come by and the winter tires will be more expensive as an 18".. I think my Cooper winter tires are 235/65R17 or something like that.

Ok, just reread your post.. you have a set of Tribeca rims.. so you will be going with an 18" winter tire. Its going to be more expensive and probably less choices are you will need a 255/55R18 high performance winter tire.

The tribeca will be fine once you put the regular summer tmps tires back on... takes a few minutes for the sensor to recognize them again. no biggie.

[bionicbadger]

So, are there any consequences for not having TPMS sensors on the car for 4-5 months other than the blinking light on the dash ? Will our B9 do fine when I put the summer set with TPMS back ?

Also, any suggestions for 18 inch winter tires are appreciated :)

I did this last year. The only consequence is the light on your dashboard for the duration of the winter.

I got Nokian Hakka 5 SUV winters same as factory size, they work great but if If I had to do it again, I'd buy something cheaper.

[SubOperator]

thanks guys. My biggest concern was the TPMS missing for a long time and ECU's reaction to it. I can live with the light and probably will just use piece of black electric tape if it gets annoying.

I pulled the plug on 08 Tribeca's rims since the deal was too good to pass. 18 inch winter tires aren't cheap though.... I used to have Nokian WR before on other cars, but for my 05 LGT Wagon I have Dunlop M3s. I will probably shop between Nokian, Dunlop and Bridgestone's Blizzaks - I've read some good reviews on those as well. We will be driving 90 miles one way each Saturday with kids and do not want any risks during the winter. Stock tires are not too good in New England winter.

[ziggy]

I pulled off my summer chrome wheels and put my stock wheels and tires on for the winter and my TPMS light is staying on. I doubled checked the tire pressure and it is at the recommended psi.

Is there something I have to do to get the sensors in the wheels to connect back to the 'computer'? I would like the system to work and the light to go off.

[bionicbadger]

Is there something I have to do to get the sensors in the wheels to connect back to the 'computer'? I would like the system to work and the light to go off.

Just drive around for a while with them on. It took quite a while of driving (about 45 minutes) last time I did it.

[ziggy]

I have had the stock wheels on for 2 weeks and many k's and the light is still on.

Has anyone tried taking out the TPMS fuse to reset the system, or will this do more harm than good?