A5 Wheels On S4

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ub7rm

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Hello,

I'm looking for some winter wheelage for my yet to arrive S4 and have come across a set of reasonably priced A5 18" wheels with the 'new' bore size (66.1mm?). Only thing I'm not sure about is the seller thinks they are ET35. Any idea if these will fit an A4 / S4?
 
They are going to stick out 12mm more than standard A4 wheels with ET47.

So it depends if that will mean contact with the arches as suspension and steering travels through it's stroke.
 
12mm is fine I had 25mm spacers on with only minor rubbing was lowered 75mm too, so 12mm is not a lot to be honest, shouldn't they be 66.6 though :/
 
Interesting - total noob at this wheel sizing business.

They probably are 66.6 - they're off a 2012 A5 so should be compatible bore wise with current model A4. Just the offset I'm not sure about.
 
Any wheel fitment you want to know just go on willtheyfit.com type in your current fitment ie 18" tyre size and offset, then your new wheel specs and it will tell you how much more they will poke then take a tape measure and check how much you think you can go on your car, also if you require a bit of tyre stretch just type in the new tyre size it will show a picture of what it will look like, just have a play around that's the best bet, that's what I use to work out tyre & wheel fitment anyway. I have staggered X5 wheels on my A4 10j rears with 18mm adaptors and 9j fronts with 25mm adaptors and a slight stretch on the tyres, the fitment is spot on for how I want it :) hope that is understandable and helps with your new wheel fitment lol
 
It does poke a little bit too much for how low my car is but I had no chice as I needed adaptors to fit these wheels as they are 5x120 72.5 centre bore and 18mm is minimum size so I am due a refurb on the wheels so I am going to get 5mm taken off the back of the rear wheels so they won't poke quite as much, I also have maximum camber on the rears in that pic too so standard they stuck out loads lol after 5mm is taken off I can prob take off a little camber to suit. :)
Image
 
There is a difference in wheel offset between the A4 and A5 as you have found. You can fit 17 inch wheels over the brakes on the S4 if you want to go a little smaller for winter wheels.
I have S4/S5 brakes on my car and use 17 inch wheels.

Karl.
 
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Thanks all, some really useful infomation.

Especially that you can fit 17" over the s4 setup.. opens up a few more possibilities
 
17s will be better for Winter tyres as the sidewall flex gives better grip.
 
Indeed, not to mention cheaper. I have a set of monza's from my mk5 GTI with winter tyres I've been using on the S3 but alas the bore size rules them out for the S4. I don't think they would looks right either!
 
My S4 came with 19" and I bought 18" Audi 5 spokes for winter, mainly, due to the reality that in UK, 85% (guess) of the time they are fitted (end October > end April), cold weather with lots of rain will be the issue, so I was willing to compromise ice/snow use - though I don't take lots of risks and drive like a loon in ice and snow - for safer use overall the "winter tyres fitted" period, also, I might be able to sell them on a bit easier in 18" as compared to 17". Though none of that should take away the potential benefit of having narrower 17" tyres fitted, except, 17" is not one of the homologated sizes for use in winter on an S4. I've gone for "normal summer" 18" size for my winter tyre and V speed rating, Audi's first choice for winter use is slightly narrower and that by default gives higher side walls to keep the rolling radius correct. The sidewall height does not contribute to improved winter performance, it is just result of going for narrower tyre width, which does contribute to winter performance along with different rubber mix and sips.
 
You are wrong on the sidewall height on two counts.

Firstly if they are narrow 18" tyres the aspect ratio may well be greater but the actual sidewall height will be the same as normal width 18" tyres to keep the rolling radius correct. The thinner tyre will cut through snow and slush so get better grip in those conditions where a wide tyre will ride along the top.

Secondly high profile tyres give more sidewall flex hence grip better. A basic Discovery will grip better off road than a Range Rover Sport despite both having similar running gear. Enduro bikes run 18" rear wheels for grip in all terrain, MX bikes run 19" lower profiles for stability, both have the same rolling radius.
 
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Yes that was my mistake mixing talking about narrower tyres and smaller diameters at the same time, the fact remains that Audi did not homologate 17" wheels/tyres for use with B8 S4, to go down that path might upset the insurance company in a period of the year where risk of accidents typically increase.

With ordinary cars, in normal use in summer and winter, the side walls will not be expected to flex to any degree to maintain best contact with the road, well certainly not in the way that balloon tyres need to do for off road things.

I used LRs a lot when young, but we used them for work duty where there were few roads, and operating independently so little point in getting caught out burying one in nasty stuff!
 
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