# Needing rims and snows for my Cruze



## UpstateNYBill (Jan 14, 2012)

So anyone who lives in Upstate NY knows the winters suck around here, so I need some spare 16" rims to put snows on. It looks like the steel rims from gmpartsdirect are the cheapest way to go. Is there a center cap that goes with the steel rim? Part number? I'll need the steel wheel nuts to go with those too, from what I've been reading here in the forums. I'm considering going without the tire pressure monitors to keep costs down.

Finally, I have a practically brand new set of winter tires from my 2002 Impala that I'd like to use. 225 60 16's. Anyone see a problem using these on the Cruze? I suppose I could swap the snows from the spare vehicle, a 2002 Taurus, which uses the same exact size tire, but that is extra cost to swap tires from one set of rims to the other.

Thanks for your thoughts.


----------



## sciphi (Aug 26, 2011)

I see no problem with that size. It's a little wider than stock, but that shouldn't be an issue. 

For hubcaps, go to Wal-Mart and pick up some cheapies. Then when they get destroyed you won't feel bad. 

TPMS shouldn't be an issue, from what I've read. I have TPMS in my winter wheels due to not wanting the light on all winter.


----------



## UpstateNYBill (Jan 14, 2012)

Thanks for the reply.

Yeah, I didn't think one size different would be an issue, but figured I'd ask just in case.

Actually, I was trying to avoid Wal-Mart hubcaps. They will probably be ugly as sin, which is why I asked about center caps, just to cover the hubs. Maybe there isn't such a thing for cheap steel rims?

Do you know if the TPMS light is something that will always be lit up on the dash, or does the warning light go out after a bit? Does it prevent the display from showing the usual screen?

Nice MPG's. I'm only averaging about 32 mpg, but then, I've got the auto, it's been pretty cold outside, and I drive alot of hilly terrain. Can hardly wait for summer to see how much it goes up. Afraid of what snow tires will do to my mileage too.


----------



## UpstateNYBill (Jan 14, 2012)

So I went on gmpartsdirect looking for all the part numbers I needed to order my winter rims. When I add the steelies to my cart, the site allows you to verify that the parts are correct for your car if you submit your vin number.. Okay, I thought, I'll do it even though obviously they are the correct rims. I'm sure they haven't changed from 2011. (they don't have a 2012 parts catalogue on the site yet.)

Surprisingly, I get an email back, stating:

"I apologize for the inconvenience, but part number 13259234 is not correct per the VIN supplied. Please provide a complete description of the parts needed (location, function, etc), so that we can supply the correct part numbers requested."

Really? You gotta be kidding me? Of course they are the correct part. So I email back:

"I need 4 steel rims so I can put snow tires on my 2012 Chevy Cruze. I also need TPMS sensors and lug nuts to go with the rims."

They email back:

"If your vehicle did not come with the part, I can not guarentee that it will fit.

13259234 Wheel 16x6.5 (steel wheel PL69 - PWM code)
12768826 Tire Pressure Indicator Sensor
9594683 Lug Nut

If you have any other questions, please let me know.

Thank you"

Ridiculous. How can they not guarantee the parts will fit? Whatever.... now I am annoyed and amused at the same time, and in no rush to order the parts anyway, so I ignore it for a few days. Then I get another email:

"Hello,

Thank you for your recent parts inquiry here at GmPartsDirect.com.

We have noticed that an order has not yet been placed for the part numbers requested.

I would like to offer you $2 off the price of your order. Please use this discount code EPGxxxxxxxx or the following link to obtain the discount, this offer expires on 01/31/12."

Wow. $2. lol I wait. The next day I get another one:

"Thank you for your recent parts inquiry here at GmPartsDirect.com.

I would like to offer you an additional $5.00 off your purchase. Please use this discount code EPxxxxxxxx or the following link to obtain the discount, this offer expires on 01/31/12."

Hey, now it's up to $5. What happens if I wait another week? lol Anyone else get these offers. Just how high will they go?

I still haven't fully decided what I'm gonna do. I really want close ended lugnuts and a center cap for the axle so I don't have to deal with hubcaps. Anyone got any thoughts on this?


----------



## shawn672 (Oct 31, 2010)

This late in the season? I wouldn't bother. Only 6 more weeks of real winter before it starts warming up again... (yes even in NY)


----------



## sciphi (Aug 26, 2011)

TireRack has steel wheels for the Cruze from $69+shipping. A lug nut package might need to be added. It might be worth an email/call to figure out if they could help you.


----------



## Patman (May 7, 2011)

Jakkaroo has wheels and tires for sale. Only problem, he is in California. Thought I'd let you know.


----------



## UpstateNYBill (Jan 14, 2012)

Shawn, good point. I could tough it out the rest of the winter since we usually only get a few of what I consider real storms anyway. Either use a vacation day or use the spare vehicle which has snows if we get an actual blizzard.

Sciphi, that's quite a bit more than the gmpartsdirect price of $39.35 for steel rims. Are you saying they might try to match the price?

Patman, yeah I saw those. California is definitely too far away.


----------



## sciphi (Aug 26, 2011)

UpstateNYBill said:


> Shawn, good point. I could tough it out the rest of the winter since we usually only get a few of what I consider real storms anyway. Either use a vacation day or use the spare vehicle which has snows if we get an actual blizzard.
> 
> Sciphi, that's quite a bit more than the gmpartsdirect price of $39.35 for steel rims. Are you saying they might try to match the price?
> 
> Patman, yeah I saw those. California is definitely too far away.


I doubt they'd match the price. They might knock a few dollars off if you ask nicely.


----------



## eagleco (May 3, 2011)

I hope the offset on the steel rims is great enough that you wont have the problem with road spray all over the sides of your car like I am having. I purchased an alloy wheel and tire package at Tire Rack. The wheels have a 35mm offset, and the tires are 215 60 16". Even with the OE splash guards, my snow tires are throwing up road spray all the way to my door handles. The tires just stick out too far.

I may end up getting larger after market splash guards even if they don't look as nice.


----------



## sciphi (Aug 26, 2011)

Wow, it sounds like I lucked out on my winter wheels/tires. I got aftermarket 5-spoke 16" alloys with a 42mm (IIRC) offset, similar to OEM. They perform identically to the OEM wheels as far as I can tell. There's no difference in tracking/steering effort, and no spray up the sides of the car.


----------



## eagleco (May 3, 2011)

sciphi said:


> Wow, it sounds like I lucked out on my winter wheels/tires. I got aftermarket 5-spoke 16" alloys with a 42mm (IIRC) offset, similar to OEM. They perform identically to the OEM wheels as far as I can tell. There's no difference in tracking/steering effort, and no spray up the sides of the car.


You made a good choice. Tire Rack has wheels with a 42mm offset, but I just didn't like them as much, and didn't think a 7mm difference would matter. With the tiny OE splash guards, it does. 

Live and learn. Or to paraphrase your signature quote, to anybody buying snow tires/wheels, I got this mistake covered, so go find some other mistake to make :grin:


----------



## UpstateNYBill (Jan 14, 2012)

eagleco said:


> I hope the offset on the steel rims is great enough that you wont have the problem with road spray all over the sides of your car like I am having. I purchased an alloy wheel and tire package at Tire Rack. The wheels have a 35mm offset, and the tires are 215 60 16". Even with the OE splash guards, my snow tires are throwing up road spray all the way to my door handles. The tires just stick out too far.
> 
> I may end up getting larger after market splash guards even if they don't look as nice.


I'm getting road spray all the way up to my door handles too and I'm still running stock wheels and tires. No splash guards though.


----------



## UpstateNYBill (Jan 14, 2012)

Just updating what I'm finding out about winter rims. I printed out the order sheet from gmpartsdirect for 4 steel rims (part# 13259234 and price $39.35 ea.) and 4 sensors (part# 20922900 and price $34.99 ea.), then brought the sheet to the local Chevy dealer while I was getting some warranty work done to see if they could match the price. Can't hurt to ask, right? Well, they got closer than I thought they would. I do realize they need to make a profit. 

Anyway, Chevy quoted me $49.66 for rims and $44.16 for sensors, so that's about $80 more total than gmpartsdirect but there's no shipping charge (about $75 for 4 rims and sensors) and you can probably get the parts within a day or so. You will have local taxes to pay though, depending on where you live. States like NH that have no state sales tax could potentially get their parts for about the same as gmpartsdirect without waiting 10 days for shipping.

I also mentioned at the parts counter at Chevy that I already had some winter tires from my Impala (225/60 16's) that I was considering using on the Cruze (stock 215/60 16's). He cautioned me that since everything speed related is electronic, it could cause an issue with braking and handling, since all that stuff is calibrated for proper sized tires and number of rotations of the wheels (ABS, stability, traction, odometer). Different sized tires could throw that off. He suggested I check with the service department to be sure, but at this point I think I'll just take the 215/60 16's off the Taurus and put them on the Cruze's winter rims, and throw the 225's on the Taurus since the Taurus is a pretty basic car and shouldn't care.


----------

