You don't need dedicated snows. I just got a set of 20's with Yoko Spec X all season for winter and they are excellent in varying accumulations of snow. I live right off Lake Erie in the snow belt too, so I don't see the pavement on my road for quite some time during the winter.

 

I always have two sets, of both wheels and tires. The summer tire/wheel combos ar ethe ones I keep the TPMS in.
get the tallest, most narrow, smalles wheel you can for winter, the opposite for summer.
for winter on my GTS I had 18's, which I sold to a fellow 6speeder for a steal of a price.
For winter on my new CTT with ceramics, I can only go as small as 20 inch.

 

I live in Park City, UT and have a 2011 Cayenne S (w/ PDCC and PTV Plus) and 19" tires. At the start of our season, I went the Pirelli Scorpion route for snow tires b/c that's what's spec'd and my wife laughed at me b/c her Subaru handled better - I was sliding all over. So I switched (at considerable expense) to Blizzak LM-25 4x4 tires which are somewhat better although I still slide around turns and feel my front end not tracking right. I'm at a loss. My Jeep Wrangler w/ all season tires handled snow better than my 100k Porsche! If any of you have tried the Nokian or any others that are really worth it - let us know.

 

I have the Nokian Hakkapalitta's on my Cayenne (275/40-20) They are great so far, my first winter with this CTT and it handles very well, stops are good, still need to exercise good judgement as the vehicles are heavy and can still get loose under hard braking. We have had a large amount of snow and it has been fairly icy as well, I would recommend these to anyone looking for a great winter tire. I only wish mine were studded, would be even better.

 

I'm on my second Cayenne Turbo S with the same set of 20" Continentals and they've been just fine in northern Minnesota.

 

Gee, I don't know about PCCB's but it appears PCCB's may limit one to 20's and larger. I do know about CTS standard brakes require 19" or larger. CT require 18" or larger, and C can go as small as 17". This is all to accomodate different brake sizes.

Only the Pirelli are "N0" rated as far as I can tell but I wouldn't let that stop me from trying Blizzaks next time. I have 255x55x18's but plan upon 235x65x18's Scorpions next set. I do my best NOT to drive these above temps of 40F and won't put them on until the temps are safely under 40F.

So, I've another set of 255x55x18 AT tires for All Terrain use, pimarily in the summers but these will handle snow AOK. Still, not nearly as good as the straight winter Pirelli Scorpions. General Grabber AT2's are not "N" spec'd.

My 20" OEM set up is really nice on better roads than we have up here. Our highways are so rutted that wider tires get tossed all over the road.

I do not use studs but there are (rare) times on the ice when I wished I had them. Still, when it's fairly dry, studs would lessen actual tire contact with the road and not be as good.

I do not recommend low profile snow tires. That's why next time I'm going with 235x65's. They are narrower (which cuts through the chop and digs down better) and taller (more clearance) and have a better ride.

There are two theories for winter tires up here: Wider to ride on top of the snow and narrower to cut deep and get better grip. Narrower tires cut through the chop & slop better. In my experience narrower (regardless of HP) is best.

All three sets of mine are OEM Porsche complete sets and have TPMS.

The loaner Cayenne I borrowed had All Season tires on it and I'm glad they mentioned that before I took it. It helped explain why the loaner Cayenne slid sideways about a foot and a half AFTER I came to a complete stop at a Stop sign. While others can take chances with "All Season" tires, I won't.

I like the non-"N"-spec'd Grabber AT2's for summer use because of our gravel and dirt roads up here. They seem more durable and cost effective than 20" Michelin Diamaris. However, I would not recommend them for speed.

If I could have my ideal winter set-up it would be the taller narrower (studless) Scorpion Ice & Snow with a pair of Porsche's chains. One could go anywhere on winter roads in almost any weather--even the mountain passes that require chains. Just limit upper end speeds when the conditions are favorable (<125-130) and never drive them in the warm (>40F).

TPMS goes haywire when there are tires in the back headed to the shop--too many sensors.

I think it is well worth the extra coin for TPMS. This is part of the safety system. While I know how to re-set the TPMS and load settings in the PCM, to make it easier to change tire pressures I bought the Cyclops pressure system from TireRack. This allows me to change two tires at a time (an axle) and it indeed works well with the air supply hose of the CT compressor. I recommend it:

While my car is garaged and heated, I run +3 lbs of pressure over what's called for inside my heated garage (42 and 45). It's often warmer in my garage than in my house! In our cold weather after sitting outside I see pressures as low as -6 below ideal (33 39). I watch the pressure carefully and try to keep it at partial load spec when running warm (on the road after driving for a while and letting the tires heat up) at 39 and 42.

It's a gas to drive in the winter. I watch my turning lines carefully so as not to invoke the PSM and suffer the embarassment of PSM kicking in and stopping me in my tracks mid-slide, planned slide. In many ways winter in a CT is more fun than autocrossing and summer driving at speed.

Not much keeps up with me if I want it that way and in the winter I try to keep other cars away from me--a buffer zone. Watching the heated vapours pour off the rear in the cold as I accelerate is a gas. Quad exhaust output obscurs my vision for a few seconds.

The first time this happened I thought I'd broken my plastic coolant lines----which wasn't so funny.

One must have the proper tires or it isn't safe, nor wise.

I'm not sure about ceramic brakes and cold weather. I hear PCCB's are not good in northern climes but that could be sour grapes. If anybody has experience comparing the stock Porsche brakes (which ARE excellent) and the PCCB's in winter driving, please inform us.

Thank you.

 

This limitation is part of the reason I prefer the CT. The CTS has staggerred tire sizes and won't take 18's; CTS requires 19" or larger.

CT uses the same size tires on all four corners.

This is the first I've heard of the limits of the PCCB's.

You've confirmed my suspicions of the limits on the C-GTS--which has the same brakes as the CT.

I concur with your philosophy per winter tires, taller, narrower, smaller.

 

People in Alaska prefer Blizzaks and Nokita but those are not available in "N" spec.

 

Yokohama Parada SpecX

https://www.6speedonline.com/forums/...da-spec-x.html

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GlYEMH10Z4s

 

Thanks for everyone's inputs. Here is a picture of my snow setup that I bought used from someone local. The snow tires are Dunlop Grand Trek wtm3 and they are actually N-O rated. The size is a little smaller than recommended 265/50/19, but when I did the calculation the 255/50/19 is acutally same diameter as my 295/35/21 so I wasn't too worried about it. Also there is way more available tire size in that configuration. Going to Park City Utah next week, I hope it will suffice.

 

another note, I can't see how an 18" rim will fit on the Turbo. There is almost no clearance between the calipers of the front and the 19" rims.

 

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Seeing your new 2011, my insight is limited to the last, first, original version. It may not apply to the 2011 CT. Perhaps the 2011 CT brakes demand 19" wheels.

Damn sharp looking ride. Should scare the hell out of little children (and sadly draw the attention of LE).

 

After spending so much money to gain the performance from a Porsche Cayenne, it would seem foolish IMO to skimp on tires, which are so critical to the sporty handling of the Porsche. This is especially true during the winter months, when traction significantly decreases.

I purchased a set of winter tires from Tire Rack, with wheels and TPMS. Obtained the Pirelli N-spec NO 265/50/19 Scorpion Snow and Ice tires. So far, these snow tires have been exemplary in their winter performance in both snow and ice. There is almost no wheel spin in the icy/snowy conditions with these snows. My crazy brother in law from Rochester NY, who lives in the wintry conditions 8 months out of the year, was not only amazed by the Porsche's performance, but was astonished by the Pirelli's cornering performance under acceleration on the icy roads.

Well worth the investment, not only to protect your investment in an expensive Porsche, but in the protection of your precious cargo.

 

Funny thing is winter driving is often more fun that summer driving in one of these. The CT is the most practical of Porsches!!