Chains? Snow tires? How do you do winter with these

I drive in Oregon and Washington in the winter. On many of the mountain passes or in the Columbia Gorge, signs will say carry tire chains or use winter tires. It's not the snow you need to worry about, it's the ice. I use Michelin X Ice in the winter with no chains. They work great and have never had an issue with traction. Blizzaks work great too but I get the Michelins since they have a 40,000 mile warranty.

 

Yes, I'll be permanently changing over to 17" wheels and tires in the late fall.

 

I would think so; steelies with snow tires are always a good idea in the snow belt, and maybe once in a blue moon if you must have chains you're set. I think the percent of vehicles that use chains is very low.

Too: if chains are required, maybe it's best to just wait a few days, till the weather clears. Especially with a Prius or similar, low-slung vehicle.

The OD's of stock 19" and 17" tires are roughly the same.

That's been working for me. In some* US States though, there's annual inspection that'll fail you with a TPMS light though. Maybe try to get the inspection in summer?

* TireRack has a list of those States IIRC

 

A second wheel set can have its own TPMS sensors, and their codes programmed into the system for the season. This does cost a bit more, but provides TPMS coverage year-round.

If you want a shop to put the wheels on, this is mandatory in the U.S. To go TPMS-free, you must put the wheel set on yourself at home. If you don't like seeing the warning light, black electrical tape is very cheap, easy to install, and easily reversible.

As for tire chain enforcement in WA, AWDs are required to wear them only very rarely. When it gets bad enough for AWDs to need them across the Cascade passes, WSDOT usually just closes the roads entirely, especially across Snoqualmie. While technically you must still carry them just in case (though only when winter traction requirements are posted), they seem extremely lax in enforcing even 2WD and commercial trucks requirements until the violators actually crash or get stuck and cause traffic blockages. If you are not one of the stuck vehicles, your risk of needing to show your chains in an AWD is negligible. While I do have chains in every household vehicle in winter, even in the AWD, it is more for potential problems elsewhere in our travels, not the usually well-maintained, well-groomed Cascade passes.

Traveling in other states may be different. Though one time when we was crossing I-80 Donner Pass much later in the autumn season than planned, with unseasonably early winter conditions, and a chain checkpoint officer was turning back almost everybody, he let us through simply because we were driving a Subaru, without even checking to see if we had winter tires on or carrying chains inside, which we didn't (yet).

 

In the places in WA where chain requirements are typically posted, one usually needs to wait only a few hours until requirements change. Sometimes for the better as traffic wears down through the snow and ice, sometimes for the worse as the road gets closed completely.

On the major highways, if it is a ground clearance issue for low cars such as Prius, the road is almost certainly closed. Ground clearance should become an issue only on lesser roads without full time grooming.

For the OP in WA, there is no such inspection. Other than the emissions checks, now ended, the only "inspection" I've ever faced was a pre-registration check to make sure the vehicle I brought into the state when I moved here, wasn't stolen.

 

In most states (maybe all), you can also use autosocks instead of chains. The actual 19” wheel size will not show up on any autosock package, but if you enter the actual tire size on their website, it will direct you to the correct size to buy. I bought a set (just have to have them IN my car to pass chain check in CA), and actually put them on to make sure they fit, which they did. It IS a pain in the rump to do though, due to low clearance in the wheel well. Chains would probably be even harder.

 

Did you switch to 17" tires already? I'm looking at doing the same for a 2023 AWD XLE and not sure which wheels and tires to get - any advice would be spectacular!

 

I did. I went with MSW Wheels Type 42 from Discount Tire. I initially put Michelin XIce on them and now I have Michelin CrossClimate.

 

Came across Konig K-Summit K44 chains and they say it fits the 2023/2024 Prius 195/50R19 wheel and tire. Brand Tesla accesory shop uses for Model 3.

 

During the winter here, I don’t make any changes to my tires. I sometimes put on long pants though. It stays pretty warm at the beach.