Hi all,

Has anyone any experience fitting 18 inch or 17 inch wheels all around with the appropriate 40 or 45 tyres?. Will it affect the handing?
I have a different make of tyre on all four corners in different stages of wear on standard wheels at the moment and it is not a easy drive on these Cumbria roads.
My idea at the moment is to put 17 or 18 wheels on with the appropriate tyres and getting the tracking done.

Thanks. JT

 

I think you may find 17's will look a bit lost in the arches!

 

Hi there. Just a thought, but having 4 different tyres of varying tread depth is not going to contribute to a balanced ride!

I had a matched set on mine when I bought it (Pirellis) but they were well worn and it wandered badly and 'tramlined' on white lines and road seams. A new set of Continentals fixed all that (along with 4-wheel tracking) and transformed it completely. If you go for different wheels, you'll still need to buy more tyres, so my advice would simply be to stick new rubber on the std rims. Bear in mind that smaller rims might affect your insurance too, bizarre as it sounds... Good luck.

 

Hi,
Thanks for the replies.
I have already replaced the front 2 tyres with a matching pair as they were worn most.
I am still running the back 2 as they have quite a bit of tread on them. I will replace them in a couple of months and keep the standard rims.
My original idea was to run 18" all around putting 255/40/18 tyres on that would more or less keep the ride height the same as 255/35/19 standards.
I dont like the idea of no spare wheel and I believe a audi space saver spare would fit any wheel if I went to 18".
But I never thought about the insurance. Good point.
Back to the drawing board.
Thanks again.

 

A spate does not have to b the same size or look anything like the other rims or tires it is just a spare. As long as the car does not rub the ground when you drive on it, it is a good enough spare to get you to a tire shop. Which is all a spate is for, not for driving on for extended periods

 

#1 - make sure the 5 OEM bolts do not go into the rear emergency brake with non-standard wheels.
#2 - Speedy, the best spellchecker of all is the eyeball - 'spare', not 'spate'

 

Thanks ala_xfire. The wheels I was looking at stated the correct fitting bolt but I will double check if I go ahead with the purchase.
Speedy4x4-I do understand the use of a spare tyre and I do not recall saying I would be driving for any extended time. I have been driving for 40 years and do not appreciate the lecture.

 

Or standard wheel change to a different size does not affect the operation of gear and other systems? Sorry for my English.

 

Changing to a different diameter will effect the electronic systems.
You can mount a wider tire, with a larger aspect ratio equaling the OEM diameter, and there will be no ill effects ( other than possibly rubbing suspension/body parts )

 

I have thought from 225/40/18 to 195/60/16. Thank you ala_xfire!

 

gu8a,

Go to Tyre Size Calculator and click on the "Tire Size Comparison" tab on the right. You can then enter different tyre sizes and it calculates the difference in diameter etc and even tells you the difference in speeds. The size you suggest (although I think it will look really odd!) is only 0.3mph difference at 80mph so they are very close in circumference.

Ala_xfire, I assume you meant a 'lower' aspect ratio on a wider tyre to retain the same rolling radius, as a 'larger' one increases the tyre circumference/rolling radius and (obviously) the overall diameter of the wheel/tyre combo.

As a matter of interest, I retain the standard rims on mine and went up from 255/35/19 to 275/35/19 on the rear (to give added protection to the rims, having just re-furbished them). My speedo no longer over-reads, now being absolutely dead on with Sat Nav at all speeds between 30mph and 70+. I went up to 235/40/18 on the fronts for the same reason without any rubbing problems.

Hope some of this is of some use to someone!

 

Yes, you should listen to what I MEAN, not what I SAY ........

 

I'll remember that!

 

Hmm..where have I heard this before.. kinda splains those pink fog lights...

 

No, I meant what I said there .....
Kinda thought you might want to start a "Hello Kitty" theme.
That way, when I see you coming into Fontana, I'll know it's you

 

If you want a custom themed Crossfire.. your going to have to do it yourself.. Last thing I need is you following me around trying to buy it..

 

Didn't some SLKs come with 16s ?. The key is to maintaining the same tire diameter. I have thought something similar in some of the frog stranglers we get around here. Suspect a narrower tire with very good water dispersion might be better particularly in the back but the Contis have been pretty good.


OTOH the 245x70x17 Goodyears on the heep are at about 6/32nds and I see the TC light come on quite often in the rain. Think it will get a set of Michelins before the next monsoon season (now coming into the glorious weather Floridians put up with summer for).


Back in the day I ran 27" 12.65x15s on the back of my Corvette which was a bit lighter than a XF and had about 470 hp (SAE Gross). Today that would be about a 325x50x15. They were useless in the rain.

 

For reference. 195/60/16 winter tyres. Latvian winter via temperature range from +5 to -25 degrees (from November to March).