Smallest alloys for Mk2 FR?

[Greatest Dancer]

Hi there guys, getting upset with the ride quality so thinking of putting on smaller wheels with bigger aspect ratio. Currently have 18" wheels with (I think) 225 40 R18s on.

Was hoping to go to 195 65 R15s

Would these clear the brake calipers? Car is totally standard.

Yes I know the car might look worse although 195 65 R15 should be pretty much same overall diameter as 225 40 R18 by my calcs. Reckon if I go black alloys it won't look so bad (car is red)

Cheers.

 

[Leonidas]

Wouldnt 17's improve the ride quality without makin it look like a pram??

 

[kezFR07]

Brave man, go for it

 

[rllmuk]

16s will clear the brakes. Not sure about 15s.

 

[Leigh15]

205/55 R16 would give you decent brake clearance without looking silly - that's what's on the A3 in my sig - not sure how clear it is

 

[RobH]

Dampers might be cheaper than buying alloys mate, Koni fsd's are around £400 i think and your car wont look daft either.

 

[OLDOILER]

Hi there guys, getting upset with the ride quality so thinking of putting on smaller wheels with bigger aspect ratio. Currently have 18" wheels with (I think) 225 40 R18s on.

Was hoping to go to 195 65 R15s

Would these clear the brake calipers? Car is totally standard.

Yes I know the car might look worse although 195 65 R15 should be pretty much same overall diameter as 225 40 R18 by my calcs. Reckon if I go black alloys it won't look so bad (car is red)

Cheers.

No go for Koni fsd's, they may be a bit expensive but the handling/ride would improve. And that NOT what you would get with high aspect ratio tyres, what ever dia rims!! - it will also throw the speedo out further than it already is !!

 

[Knight_Rider]

i'd go down the dampner and spring route, decreased wheel radius will have very little effect on the FR.

 

[Greatest Dancer]

cheers for the advice guys. By the way I didn't think that changing down to 15" with the 195 65 tyres would make much difference to the speedo or even look much smaller given that they should have pretty much the same overall diameter as the existing 18s. I accept they make look a bit poor though given that much more of the wheel will be black rubber tyre and much less will be gleaming alloy.
I was planning however to go black alloys so hopefully it will look a bit better.

Anyhow, I will take a good look at what 16s are around.

 

[Greatest Dancer]

by the way if i were to get 16s do you think i could fit 215 55 tyres on? not sure if they'd be too wide. If so this would probably look fairly good as I think this makes the total wheel diameter 25.3 inches so in fact slightly larger than the 25.1 inches I have right now with the 18s....

I am using this formula for wheel total diameter in inches, hope it's right:

diameter (inches) = wheel rim size + (2 x w x ar / 25.4)
where w = wheel width in millimetres (for example 205)
ar = aspect ratio (for example 55)

So 18 inch alloys running 225 40 tyres = 25.086 inch diameter wheels
16inch 205 55 gives 24.878
16 inch 215 55 gives 25.311 inches

etc.

Cheers

 

[coggie]

24.878 is closer to 25.086 than 25.311 is, and 205 55 tyres will be MUCH easier and cheaper to source.

 

[Leigh15]

24.878 is closer to 25.086 than 25.311 is, and 205 55 tyres will be MUCH easier and cheaper to source.

I agree - 205/55 R16 is a very common size and they are generally pretty reasonably priced

 

[FR Scott]

Hi there guys, getting upset with the ride quality so thinking of putting on smaller wheels with bigger aspect ratio. Currently have 18" wheels with (I think) 225 40 R18s on.

Was hoping to go to 195 65 R15s

Would these clear the brake calipers? Car is totally standard.

Yes I know the car might look worse although 195 65 R15 should be pretty much same overall diameter as 225 40 R18 by my calcs. Reckon if I go black alloys it won't look so bad (car is red)

Cheers.

Hi mate,

Just investigated this myself but for other reasons....

16's Do fit with reasonable clearance for the calliper.

15's Aren’t even close - don’t fit.

(edit) - Ohh, and im currently running my Dads Passat wheels (while mine get referbed) - they are 215/55/16, work great.

Cheers
Scott

 

[Paulki]

I would go for the shock absorber upgrade, which would probably cost a similar amount to new, smaller wheels and tyres.

I think changing the shocks is more likely to give you the ride improvement you're looking for, with the benefit of not spoiling the apperance of the car. If you only change the shocks and not the springs it shouldn't affect the insurance?

I've got Koni FSD's and I highly recommend them.

 

[stephenSF]

Does anyone know how much the shocks alone, without the springs, improves the ride. Seems a good idea if it doesn't affect your insurance.