Howdy all,

Looking to buy a pair of steel wheels and snow tires for my 2009 Fit Sport.

I was thinking of 15" rims with 195/60r15 snows which should match the circumference of my stock 16" alloys.

What steelies are available at the Rack for a cheap bast*rd like me?

Alex

 

TR had steelies for our '07. They throw in a set of plastic wheel covers too. (Tho' these quickly fell off... )

When you buy the package they mount & balance everything as well.

Remember, your 09 will need TPMS sensors unless you choose to ignore the light all winter.

 

Weladdie,

I do have some 15" steel wheels at 49.00 each for the Fit Sport. I would only sell them in a set of four unless you are matching them to two more winter tires you already have on the car. If I can help just give me a call.
Thank you,

 

on my GD i run 15" steelies with 185/60/15 snow tires. great setup, great traction.

 

Four winter tires make all the differnce in the world for winter drriving.

 

X2

As good as 4WD IMO

 

I agree. The 4WD will help you go but doesn't help you stop or steer.

 

Check out Nokian WR G2. Had these for two winters in Southern Ontario. They were very good in wet and 6" of snow. No need to change to summers.
Also, see Hankook Optimo 4S. Only in Canada ???. Specs are good.

 

The Blizzak WS60 is the best that I have driven on for ice and snow. They are 80.00 each and there is a 50.00 mail in rebate through Bridgestone. If I can help let me know.

 

We are running Blizzaks on both the Acura and Fit..I agree, an excellent snow tire!

 

Hi Jim. My husband and I both drive Honda Fit Sports (both are 2008). We just moved to Connecticut (from south Florida) and we've just starting shopping around for winter wheels. The service guy at the local Honda dealer recommended that we get a set of inexpensive steel rims with snow tires to swap out for the winter. Do you recommend 15" rims or 14" rims, which I suppose are standard on the base model Fit? We won't be able to afford this until early November (remember, we're buying sets for 2 cars). I've looked at Tire Rack's website and I'm leaning toward either the Michelin X-ice or the Bridgestone Blizzak.

Any input would be highly appreciated.

 

We will be running 14" steelie rims on our '07 Fit Sport for the fourth winter now, no problems except that the plastic wheel covers tend to fall off over potholes.




Do your 08s have TPMS? Then you may be obliged to tolerate the TPMS light being on all winter.

IIRC the steel and alloy rims have different types/sizes of sensors. But no matter what you buy, the Honda dealer will have to "train" the car to read the sensors at each changeover (for a charge).


I hear that future Honda TPMS systems will be able to recognize 16 sensors (four sets of tires) without reprogramming.

 

Yeah, both of our cars have TPMS. I hate it. Over the summer all 4 of my wheels were stolen (I'm sure some punk with an older Honda Civic is driving around with them). When we replaced them, the TPMS sensors were also replaced. My mechanic couldn't seem to get them set properly. I've had the light on all summer. The Honda dealer in south FL wanted to charge us $100+ just to diagnose the problem. I thought that was rather crazy, so I haven't had it taken care of yet.

My husband's sensor light also came on over the summer and we finally got it taken care of this week when I brought the car in to a local dealer for something completely unrelated. (His car is still under warranty. Mine is out of warranty due to higher mileage.) So we can live with the TPMS light being on all winter.

Carbuff, I've never driven in snow and ice. How does your Fit seem to handle it? (Both of our cars are manual transmission.)

 

I've never driven our MT Fit in snow, because it is our daughter's car. Sorry. (It handles GREAT in the dry...like a go kart. Better than a Mini!)



But I can tell you that our 2WD Acura with 4 snow tires drives more consistently (less likely to skid) than our CR-V, with 4WD and all-seasons.


I suggest experiencing what your car can do at the first snowfall. Find a deserted, unplowed parking lot (without curb "islands!") and drive it around so that you get a feeling for its limits in slippery conditions. I try and do that once a year with our V 'cause I drive so many miles, the tires lose their effectiveness over their life.

 

My husband and I tell everyone how the Fit has awesome "go cart" handling. Who needs a Mini when you have 2 Fits?

I think the comparison to the Acura might be a good one, especially if it's one of the smaller 2 door ones. We had a 1st generation CR-V, which we traded in for a 2006 Element. 2 years later when gas hit close to $4 a gallon, we traded in the E for a second Fit (just a few months after my husband got his Fit).

 

When do you put snow tires on? I've heard to wait until it's 45 degrees (F) out, but is that when the high temp doesn't go above 45, when the low temp starts to go below 45 or somewhere in between?

Right now I'm dealing with highs around 60 and lows around 40... I'm guessing by the end of the month it'll be around 50 and 30. Do I put them on then or wait for it to get even colder?

 

The Tire Rack has super fast shipping... I ordered my steelies and Altimax Arctics Thursday night... (Really friday morning it was around 1 am) Tires and rims are here today 10-11!!!!! Price was right too... $460 to my door, I will never buy tires anywhere else again!!!!!!!

 

Put them on before it gets too damn cold to do it in the driveway and before first snowfall. I will likely do mine early - mid Nov.

 

LOL, do like most people do...put them on the car, in your driveway, in the middle of the first blizzard.

Seriously,

Unless you are driving hard, you could put them on now if you want. Just remember, the more dry-road mileage you cover, the less effective the snows will be (because they will be worn out).

 

Good questions, well thought out. Winter tires do like it better when it is colder, so that is definitely an important consideration. Plus, if you are taking advantage of your summer/winter setup to run more aggressive summer tires, they too are quite sensitive to ambient temperature. The original RE070's on my STi turned into bowling balls at any temperature under 40 degrees!

But of course the most important consideration is that you want to have them on the car before it snows.

I live in eastern PA, and my weather patterns are roughly equivalent to Allentown PA weather. My rule of thumb is to put the winter tires on the car just before Thanksgiving, and take them off in early April. I chose those times because I've seen enough white Thanksgivings, and enough white April Fools' Days. YMMV, adjust accordingly.