Hello chaps,

Pretty new here and first time I've owned a Skoda. Picked up a Superb yesterday, 1.9TDi 130bhp classic in that graphite grey colour. 50k on the clock.

The car is ok and was one of my rare "sensible choices" in life. My last few cars were a Maxda RX7, BMW 325i, then a Peugeot 406 coupe 3.0 V6 because I had always really liked the shape. Just finding the Skoda a little uninspiring right now.

It drives ok on the straight and flat but gives tons of understeer in the wet. Is this common? The TC or dsc is always kicking in.

Also it had standard 16'' steels with wheel discs on, which let's be fair are way too small for a car of that size, like when a fat man is wearing flip-flops.

So essentially I'm looking for a little advice on alloy sizes. I reckon 17'' will make little difference to the look but maybe I'm wrong? 18's are better maybe? I kinda like the look of the Audi RS4 type because they're not flashy, they're more understated and have a little class. Spinners or ones with daggers always look awful anyhow, it's a grown up car it needs grown up alloys. Can anyone give me personal opinions on size and where they may have bought in the past?

Like I say it's not a bad car, it's just not what I'm used to and I'd like to get it looking slightly better. The bodywork is in great condition but the small wheels make it look feeble.

Thanks in advance for any replies and thanks to the admin's of the site for keeping a place like this going. I know it takes work both in terms of setup and generting initial interest, but these types of forums can be a lifeline to owners (and a social life for a few die-hard geeks) and much more help than your dealer.

Oh yeah ... and Hi everyone.

Edited 18 October, 200817 yr by allclownsareevi

The 17 inch "solid" alloys look a lot better than steels and would be worth a nose at.

I prefer them to a lot of the 18s that people buy.

What tyres do you have at the moment? It's never going to be a brilliant handling car, but some tyres are a lot worse than others

You can't make a silk purse out of a sow's ear and putting bigger wheels on a B5.5/Superb isn't going to make any real difference. It's not a driver's car, which is one of the reasons most of them are now taxis. Hopeless marketing (eg. no estate, wrong engines) is another reason.

There's not a lot you can do to overcome the poor weight distribution of this car with the engine's centre of gravity miles ahead of the front axle. Paradoxically, this was one of the reasons I bought one because for towing, the arrangement gives less front-end lift off when you put a heavy trailer on. It works, too. My other job for the car is a motorway cruiser where straight line stability is good (that weight again) and there are no corners to worry about.

Although some people like to lower their cars, I find the ground clearance useless as it is for serious jobs and road humps, so the only marginal improvement I can suggest is the fitment of stiffer dampers. I gather Bilsteins work well on this vehicle - mine will have to wait until the originals are worn out.

rotodiesel.

I changed my steels to 17inch alloys and fitted michelin pilot sport tyres ....and it totally changed the way the car behaved .....it will never be a good handling car but that made it an awful lot better

in theory the picture should be here

Skoda Superb 1.9 TDI PD 130 Classic 4-Dr Saloon

Thoroughly enjoyed my drive in a 130tdi superb.

Certainly isn't a racer,its asensible cruiser.

Even seeing steelies on a car would have potentially put me off buying! Try Dr Z's suggestion.Certainly the first thing I would do

Edit...or Octygones.Thats a lot of car for little money!

As above the superb is a motorway car - period! I don't have a special problem with the TC kicking in, in the wet, but then the diesel is torquey and most front wheel drive diesels with any salt do this, you just have to be more progressive on the throttle and realise that diesels need a different driving approach to nice fast petrols.

Coming from a petrol to a diesel - you need to give it a couple of weeks to settle into a new driving style.

I did the same coming from an Audi S4 to the Superb.

Just turn off the TC and experiement with hard acceleration till you get it right, or just pull away in second!

However you will always miss the fast cars you came from but just remember it was only ever useful 5% of the time and if you revo your superb you can stick to the bumpers of pretty powerful petrol cars from 80 -120mph!

:P

And burn half the fuel whilst you are doing it.

rotodiesel.

Hi fellas,

Cheers for the replies, though to be fair I never figured it would be a drivers car. I've had my fun driving like a loon for a while. My old Mazda hit 0-60 in 4.6 after some tweaking. Ideally I was looking for an Octavia but this came up and I figured I'd go for it for at least 6 months ... after which time I may throw it at my Dad.

The more I look at the car, the more I'm thinking "man those wheels look tiny" so yeah some alloys is about the only thing I'll probably do. Other than that it's ok. Not had chance to hit the motorway yet.

Just didn't know whether the jump from 16'' to 17'' was enough. Wondered if anyone else had 18's and where is a good place to look for them.

Hi fellas,

Cheers for the replies, though to be fair I never figured it would be a drivers car. I've had my fun driving like a loon for a while. My old Mazda hit 0-60 in 4.6 after some tweaking. Ideally I was looking for an Octavia but this came up and I figured I'd go for it for at least 6 months ... after which time I may throw it at my Dad.

The more I look at the car, the more I'm thinking "man those wheels look tiny" so yeah some alloys is about the only thing I'll probably do. Other than that it's ok. Not had chance to hit the motorway yet.

Just didn't know whether the jump from 16'' to 17'' was enough. Wondered if anyone else had 18's and where is a good place to look for them.

17" are just about right although if you wanted you could lower the whole car .......I have been told that the 130 pd engine tunes very easily to 170 bhp and that if you do it may just do this (0 to 60 7.5 secs)

YouTube - 0 to 60 in a Skoda Superb 1.9 tdi which is a very respectable time for a heavy car and the mpg stays the same:D

19's maybe? http://briskoda.net/items-sale/19-audi-original-rs861-alloys-sale/118763/

17" are just about right although if you wanted you could lower the whole car .......I have been told that the 130 pd engine tunes very easily to 170 bhp and that if you do it may just do this (0 to 60 7.5 secs)

YouTube - 0 to 60 in a Skoda Superb 1.9 tdi which is a very respectable time for a heavy car and the mpg stays the same:D

Hmmm that is tempting huh? I'd do myself an injury though with all the gear shifts. Lowering it appeals to me though.

As for the 19'' alloys, they're a little above my price range right now man, but thanks for the heads up.

I've just fitted 17" Solid's to mine, I like the way they look. My car is lowered -40mm though, so that may have helped the stance. It sits just about right - not low enough to look fantastic, agreed - but low enough to look better and still remain 100% practical.

IMHO 18's just aren't big enough if you want that big wheel look. Have a browse some of Baker's pics - see the difference between the silver 19's he usually has the the black 18's he fitted for a while a few months back.

Right then.....

Firstly welcome to Briskoda and congrats on owning your Superb.....

I have had my Superb for over 3 years now I think and it has had a few different sets of wheels on it and I am now looking for some others........

My Superb came with the 17" 5 spoke Solid's and when I fitted my KW Variant 1 coilovers the ride height was spot on but the wheels weren't wide enough.........:thumbdwn:

I went straight to the 19's and they worked well but then went to some 18's but they just looked too small and not wide enough so I am back on the 19's at the moment.

I am afraid that I don't have any pics of my Superb on 17's or the 18's hosted anywhere but if you want the pics I can host them up for you some time this weekend?

Currently on 19's my Superb looks as follows:

Regardless of some people's comment's if you deck the Superb and put some big rims on the handling is much improved but don't expect a go kart!!

IMHO 18's are too small and so are 19's but 20's now there is something we have seen with the right suspension can work a treat..........

Hey Baker,

Yeah I saw your motor on your signature, looks well. You've done a few mods but managed to keep it reasonably low key ... well kinda.

Strangely enough the colour is what I would have thought would have been your motor's biggest let down if I were buying it, but I'm wrong, it actually works well huh? The contrast between the body and tints looks well.

Yeah I want bigger wheels and to drop the suspension I think. I think 18's would suit me. Just want the car to sit a little more squatted on the road.

As for it being a go-kart, nah it'll never get there but that's no big deal. Wish it was rear wheel drive though, would make for more fun.

Hey Baker,

Yeah I saw your motor on your signature, looks well. You've done a few mods but managed to keep it reasonably low key ... well kinda.

Strangely enough the colour is what I would have thought would have been your motor's biggest let down if I were buying it, but I'm wrong, it actually works well huh? The contrast between the body and tints looks well.

Yeah I want bigger wheels and to drop the suspension I think. I think 18's would suit me. Just want the car to sit a little more squatted on the road.

As for it being a go-kart, nah it'll never get there but that's no big deal. Wish it was rear wheel drive though, would make for more fun.

Thanks for the comment, didn't have an option with the colour when buying my car but IMHO it works well and the colour is something that people always comment on.

Go with what you think wil work mate, worst case you can change the wheels........

Baker, I found these old photos of your 17's. Hi Allclownsareevi, hopefully these 2 pics will give you and idea of different sizes of rims

Two nice cars there. Like the style of the alloys too.

Already sourced a set of 17' a few days ago. I have to admit they're not exactly what I wanted, I would have opted for 18's or even 19's if I had a little more cash floating around right now but I still think they look ok. The suspension needs dropping a little. Not going for the same look as the pics you posted. They make your motors look something quite special. I kinda want the car just to look more squatted on the road. I doubt it'll look as mean as either of the cars you just posted up but I can live with it.

In fact they're originally from a member here. Andy2407, he had them for sale for a while. Helpful guy. Andy if you're reading this cheers for the info man.

My 19's were quite cheap at £800 with tyres but along with the suspension upgrade, I have lost alot of rolling comfort. My coilovers are ride height adjustabe and cost £300 + fitting. With them I can have my car anywhere from standard height to what Baker21 has. Be careful though, rumour has it Baker21 has to change his pants after 10 miles as they wear out on the road surface.

Be careful though, rumour has it Baker21 has to change his pants after 10 miles as they wear out on the road surface.

Blast from the past on the pics front.............

Very funny............

Blast from the past on the pics front.............

Very funny............

Looks lots better how it is now

Looks lots better how it is now

Yeah just a little.................

Wish I still had those 17's now though as the weather is really not nice at the moment............:thumbdwn:

Yeah just a little.................

Wish I still had those 17's now though as the weather is really not nice at the moment............:thumbdwn:

I don't know, I've cleaned easier wheels... I have a problem getting my hands in by the front brake discs. They're a little big inside 17" wheels.

True through, I'd rather clean my Solids over your 19's any day. Halfords wheel brush, anyone?

I don't know, I've cleaned easier wheels... I have a problem getting my hands in by the front brake discs. They're a little big inside 17" wheels.

True through, I'd rather clean my Solids over your 19's any day. Halfords wheel brush, anyone?

Halfords wheel brush on my 19's.............no chance..............

Ok I know I'm pretty sad, I demonstrated this when I confessed to taking pictures of my motor and using trigonometry to photoshop it so I'd know what my new lowered springs would look like before I ordered them .......

HOWEVER

...... cleaning your brake discs enters a whole new realm of sadness. Cleaning calipers is almost as bad. It sounds like you guys don't clean the cars, just wipe them down at 15 min intervals to remove dust.

I figured I'd post up the worst case of car obsession I've come across. I had a 325i a few years ago. I ended up going to a meet to pick up a few parts and met a guy from my town. His car was immaculate, to the point where the bolts on the engine block and body panels were all aligned. He had bought a rifle cleaning kit and used the pull-through brushes to clean the inside of his exhaust. When it began to rain on the day you could see the look of panic in the poor guys face.

Strangely enough he wasn't single, although if his life in the bedroom was as clean as his car, I pity him greatly.

Ok I know I'm pretty sad, I demonstrated this when I confessed to taking pictures of my motor and using trigonometry to photoshop it so I'd know what my new lowered springs would look like before I ordered them .......

HOWEVER

...... cleaning your brake discs enters a whole new realm of sadness. Cleaning calipers is almost as bad. It sounds like you guys don't clean the cars, just wipe them down at 15 min intervals to remove dust.

I figured I'd post up the worst case of car obsession I've come across. I had a 325i a few years ago. I ended up going to a meet to pick up a few parts and met a guy from my town. His car was immaculate, to the point where the bolts on the engine block and body panels were all aligned. He had bought a rifle cleaning kit and used the pull-through brushes to clean the inside of his exhaust. When it began to rain on the day you could see the look of panic in the poor guys face.

Strangely enough he wasn't single, although if his life in the bedroom was as clean as his car, I pity him greatly.

Some people are a bit OTT granted but you can't beat a clean daily driver.........

I do have a lot of respect for people that can keep a daily clean but people that don't use the car and keep it immaculate is a little crazy.........