LS Wheels for Winter?

[Chuck27]

First post from a new member....having owned an '03 LS Premium for all of a week now. I think this model is uniquely Canadian; has the V-8 but came with 16" wheels and the 5-speed automatic, but without the slapstick feature.

I live in a snow belt in Canada so my first purchase was some 215/60R16 snow tires that I had installed on my (stock) 11-spoke chrome 16" wheels, replacing the brand new Michelin Pilot 225/55R16's that came with the car.

I wanted to put the snows on steel rims as is the norm up here, because I don't really want to sacrifice my nice chrome wheels to the salt, but I have not been able to locate any plain steel wheels. Tire Dealer tried a 5x108 Ford rim but he said the calipers were too big for the rim to fit.

Does anyone here have a solution? I really don't want to take the financial hit and sell either set of tires because both are brand new, which pretty much restricts me to 16" wheels. If I can't get a steel wheel, can anyone suggest an inexpensive 16" alternate?

Thanks for the help....

Chuck

 

[o3sonicbluexlt]

if i recall correctly, you should be able to find some taurus rims that would be steel or aluminum and put tires on them. i wouldnt suggest switching the tires from rim to rim because of the fact that if you would do that, the more you take the tire off, the more of a chance that you might damage the bead of the tire

 

[Chuck27]

Yes, that is one of the things I'm trying to avoid, having to switch tires on rims too often.

Have you tried a set of Taurus wheels to see if they will clear the caliper? A local tire dealer tried a generic Ford wheel and it would not fit.

Best bet right now seems to be to lurk on eBay and wait to see if an OEM set pops up for a low price, due to someone upgrading to a larger diameter.

Chuck

 

[o3sonicbluexlt]

i have not because i have the stock wheels and tires for winter time. otherwise i have 18 inch wheels for summer time. what is the dealerships version of a generic ford wheel?

 

[Chuck27]

I think it just happened to be a 16 inch wheel with the right bolt pattern...probably off a Crown Vic or something that comes stock with 16" wheels. The local tire dealers (and autoparts dealers) cannot find a steel wheel in their catalogues that they say will fit the LS, and the Ford dealer is only interested in selling overpriced OEM wheels that are not even what I'm looking for!

Chuck

 

[o3sonicbluexlt]

you should be able to go to a salvage yard and get wheels for the car. i think because of the design, you might have to get aluminum rims for it

 

[Chuck27]

Actually, I just made a deal for some OEM take-offs that were selling on eBay. The price was right so even if they do look fancy, which they do, I won't be crying in my beer over lost investment should Mr. Salt begin to take his toll this winter.

If they don't fit, I'll be loking for plan "B"....

Chuck