The decision depends upopn what you actually want. An all-season or a true Winter tire. I personally use both since Winter tires are designed for the colder weather and not just for snow. They are made with softer rubber compounds for better traction on cold bare pavement than you could get with an all-season. I admit that in the 20" size this becomes quite expensive. tirerack.com should provide you with the info you need and it also has customer reviews on the tires. For Winter, I plan to buy the base Explorer 17" steel rims and reuse the 17" Toyo Winter tires I currently have on my Highlander. The 17" tires are less expensive and allow for more choice. Good luck.
There are some all season tires that according to their specs, offer decent winter traction. Finding them in the 20" size may be a challenge. I haven't had any luck around here finding a tire dealer who is willing to give me a discount by 'trading' in the new Hankooks.
If I was closer to your location I might take you up on that but shipping them to Canada would likely out weigh the benefits. I haven't priced them yet but I think the 17" steel wheels at the dealership are around $80 each. I'm hoping to get a bit of a discount on that. I'll then be in the same boat, trying to unload the RAV4 17" steel wheels c/w TPMS valves that I have been using on the Highlander. When I transfer the lease on it, the new owner just wants me to put the OEM 19" wheels back on. I'll reuse the 17" Winters on the Explorer since they will only have 2 Winters on them and low miles.
I wonder if they included the TPMS in that price. Even so, that is quite expensive. When I bought the RAV4 steelies, they were $80 and the TMPS valve and installation kit was around $85. That is still far below what you were quoted. If I get a chance I'll verify the cost with the dealership tomorrow.
If I could get an acceptable deal through my dealership, I think right now I'd go for the Yokohama Parada Spec-X. I'm not very optimistic though.
Okay, got the following prices from my dealer. Keep in mind these are CDN $. 2011 Explorer 17" steel wheels are $174.67 each, and 54.95 for each TPMS valve. The 17" steelie for the 2010 are $89.95! The part numbers are different so I assume the wheels are not interchangeable.
I want the steel ones for Winter. Salt, sand and all the grit isn't too kind to alloy wheels. They tend to get pitted. But then being where you are, I don't Winter is too much of a concern. Just hope that the 17" will fit on the Limited. Just called the dealer to check but the service department just closed for the day. Received my build date today, week of the 21st, so I have a little time to check this out further. Right now my concern is focused on whether to keep the OEM tires which have horrible reviews. Thanks for the info.
You are absolutely correct. Didn't have my thinking cap on. Will do some checking and try and confirm that 17s will fit the Limited. Thank you.But if your just getting steel rims that cost more then the Alloys and will look ugly no matter what, why not pay less for alloy wheels and even when they are pitted they will look better then steelies......
