17" or 18" for winter setup
 

I have a 02 4.4 with sport package. I live in chicago so I do see quite alot of snow. I deceided that I would get a winter setup. I am not sure if I should go with 17" or 18". Does anyone know if the 17 will not fit due to caliper/rotor size on the sport or will this not be a factor.

I run 17s in the winter as I wanted the best snow performance possible. A lot of people around here run 18s. It's a tradeoff--looks or snow performance. 17s are also cheaper.

Both 17" and 18" rims will fit your 4.4i, so no issue there. I lived in Chicago for 3 winters with my 18" rims coupled to the all-season Michelin MXV4's and didn't have any problems at all getting around. I just purchased a set of Bridgestone Blizzak LM-22's to replace the Micheys for next winter.

As Rangerfan indicated above, if you are looking to buy a winter setup from scratch then the 17's will likely be cheaper and should give you better performance in the snow.

I ran my 18's this winter. No huge snow storms but they did well in what we did have and that was with M+S factory tires. I imagine though that putting snow tires on 17" wheels will be slightly cheaper then say 18" rims.

I say go with the 18's. In fact, I happen to have a set in fabulous condition with new Michelin MXV4's (under 300 miles) on them.

Agree with RF and UCrew. 17s with their narrower 235 footprint will cut through deep snow much better than the 255 18s.

go with the 18s... With almost any snow tire you WILL get good traction. 17's on an x5 is too hard on the eyes for me..

I would go with 17's or 18's and use your preference on looks as a factor. With dedicated snow tires I don't see how you can go wrong with either. I choose 18's. This was partly due to the fact that I drive on the highway for 2 hours to get to our ski location and like the way the 18's perform at speed and in mountain driving (on dry days). I also prefer the profile of 18's over 17's. They did fantasic in the snow this winter with Pirelli Scorpion Snow & Ice tires. Here's my winter setup: winter 18's Here's some wheels to compare: X5 wheels
Good luck with getting a good deal when you decide.