winter tyres with new wheels or simple exchange ?

[dominicR8]

Hi R8 owners, I will have to put winter tires in the coming weeks as weather becomes colder those days. For those who also use winter tires, I was wondering if you also purchased a set of dedicated rims for the winter season or if you simply change the tires twice a year on your existing stock rims. Can multiple tire swaps hurt the tire or the rim?
Can any tire retailer do the job or is it advised to do it at an Audi dealer ? any reprogramming of some sort required after the change ?
Thx for your comments.

[KfabR8]

If you have an 08, there shouldn't be a problem switching between two sets of wheels. The 09's on up tend to be a tad picky about it, though. The dealership can fix any TPMS issues, though.

Put a set of winter tires (I've been very happy w/the Pirelli Sottozero) on the stock rims and then get a set of dedicated good weather rims & tires for your car. Ditch the brick P-Zeros and put on a good set of rubber like PS2's.

[toecutter]

I recommend separate wheels. You can install yourself and the dealer can set the TPMS. You can also reset yourself with a VAG-COM.

[mlpor]

2nd set of wheels definitely makes swapping back & forth a lot easier, and depending on where you are located and want to do with the car, e.g. HPDE a lot easier to manage a separate set of tires for track use. It's easier to put, and keep appropriate rubber on the car - e.g., don't run excessively worn tires in rainy weather etc. or high performance summer rubber compounds in relatively "cold" temperatures (anything from 45°F or less for some of these tires) where even without snow, the tire may not be at its best. Watch a cat in a relatively low powered Porsche Boxster loop his car one cool early fall morning trying to show off taking off from a stop sign - they had the top down, and the expressions on their faces was priceless.

Dealer claims my "TMPS" should recognize & reset after "x" (apparently a mysterious number) restarts. I can tell you, I have had several TMPS sensors malfunction after a tire install - so far the Dealership has covered the failures, but I can't help but wonder if there wasn't a mishap in the R&R of the tyre, damaging the sensor. The **** things cost a lot more than:

Hum . . .. have to find the url for that.