I will need to get a set of winter rims come this fall. I found a set of 17" from a Solara, I want to make sure that they will work on the SC. They have the correct bolt pattern (5 x 114).

17x7
50mm offset
60.1 mm centre bore

It's the offset I'm a little concerned about. Will these work with a 245/45 17 winter tire?

 

I cant answer your question however I have found the sc430 is terrible in snow to drive. . Its pretty squirrel. I don't dare drive mine in winter.

 

Lol - it's part of the deal I struck with my wife before buying it. She wanted to downsize from 3 vehicles to 2, so if I wanted a convertible, it had to be drivable all year, unlike my Miata. So, a hardtop convertible was the answer. I learned to drive in the winter on RWD cars back in the 70's, long before traction control or ABS was even thought of. Also, where I am, 4 of 5 days in the winter, the roads will be clear. And when they're not, my wife won't drive, so I get the Subaru. Cheers!

 

No worries, I don't think of any issues. your wheels will look about 10 or 15 mm (5 mm offset and half inch in wheel width) deeper inside, you may add 10 or 15 mm spacer, optional...

 

Coming from the desert, I don't know if snow tires are suppose to have more wheel well clearance, but..

Aren't the default tire sizes 18 inch?

 

You can downsize to 16" if you want. You just need to make sure the rim clears the brakes and the tires clear the fenders. Generally, the smaller the diameter of the rim, the smaller the aspect ratio - narrower tires are much better in the snow.

 

Thanks! As a desert rat, I did not know those three things

 

I bought the rims, and did a test fit. Seem to be perfect. Just need to find some centre caps.

 

OP, you should be fine with a good set of winter tires, especially cos you have a Subie for days when the SC cannot handle it. I run OEM 18 inch rims plus 245 40 18 winter tires ( Falken Eurowinter ) from mid Dec through end of March. The SC was OK in a snow storm on a 60 mile drive ( forecast was for flurries, not a real storm, and the forecast was wrong !). I only had slippage once I got close to the destination and there was about 2-3 inches of accumulation. My headlamps were totally obscured by the accumulation from the storm though, - different safety issue but the drive was quite OK on dedicated winters.

 

^ I've tried many different brands of winter tires, Michelin X-Ice seem to be the best for this area. Once the temp drops below 5C (40F) I wouldn't be without them.

 

In regards to winter tire type, I would also recommend the Nokian Hakkapeliitta (aka Hakkas).
I use them on my Rav4 and can stop on a dime in the land of the ice and snow.
I have also seen a lot of premature weather checking/ cracking on the sidewalls of my Michelins.
I usually put them on in October, right after Canadian Thanksgiving :+)

 

 

The Nokian's are half again as expensive as the X-Ice, and for the type of winter weather in Southern Ontario, they really aren't necessary. As I mentioned above, the roads are mostly bare here within a day of a snowfall all winter. I find the Michelins to be the quietest winter tires I've used, and have surprisingly good handling.