Alloy wheel issue - wrong size?

[mcneep]

Hi Folks,

I've just bought another set of alloys and tyres for my 1.9tdi a4 B5.

They are 17" and have 235/45/17 tyres on.

When I've fitted the front passenger side one, there is minimum clearance with one of the suspension parts (the one at the top of the tyre!), wit the old tyres I could put my hand between it and the tyre, but there is no chance of that now.


The ET is differnt between them as well.

Does anyone know if I need spacers for this size of tyre?

 

[aragorn]

whats the ET and width of the new wheels?

A lot of aftermarket rims will hugely reduce the clearance between the upright, and even standard 17" audi rims fitted to the S4 and TQS are close.

Bear in mind though that the wheel cant get any closer to the upright when driving, so as long as theres a few mm of gap it should be fine.

 

[mcneep]

Hi Aragorn,

The old 225 tyres had an offset of 35 - The new ones !!! are 235 and ET45, which according to a website means they are about 15mm closer to the suspension!

A bit too close I think.

Do you know of anyone running 17" 235 45 with an offset of 45 on a B5 A4 with or without spacers?

 

[aragorn]

Standard S4 wheels are ET45, as are the 17" boleros on the TQS.

They only run 225/45's though.

What width are the new wheels? S4 rims are 7.5" and the boleros are 7"

I suspect you need to change the tyres, instead of messing around with spacers.

 

[mcneep]

****** - Will need to try and return them to the seller then as dont have money to replace for tyres.

 

[aragorn]

Why dont you actually measure the gap properly?

if its more than 2-3mm you'll be fine.

 

[mcneep]

Gap is tiny, i can get a bit of corrogated cardboard between it. If I put 5mm spacers on from halfords would I need longer bolts too?

 

[aragorn]

corrugated cardboard? how thick are we talking?

If its 3mm or more then i'd say it will be fine.

If your worried, run them for a day or so and then inspect the inside tyrewall for contact, but unless your wheel bearings are shot, the wheel physically cant get any closer to the upright, so if its not touching now, then it'll stay not touching.

If you use spacers then ideally yes you'd want longer bolts. the problem with 5mm spacers is they are not hubcentric, meaning the wheel wont correctly locate into the middle of the hub. You'd really need to go with 10mm spacers to get the proper hub location, or alternatively very shallow spacers (like 2-3mm) so the wheel can still locate on the centre spigot.

You might also get away with the stock bolts if you use a very thin spacer too.

 

[THE MONSTER]

I'm running exactly that set up on mine.. Audi Wheels 7.5j x 17 ET- 45 I have Dunlop Sport 9000 235/45/17 they are so close but I have been driving now for quite a while like Aragorn says if they clear they clear...

I was concerned like you at first cannot get anything between tyre and strut...

Might be an idea to check your wheel bearings though off the ground rock side to side should be no play..

If you keep them when you need tyres again you could change to thinner ones if that makes you feel better..