not sure if anyone will have checked yet with it being such a new car, but the availability of top end performance tyres in the standard 205/40R17 sizes are very limited.

Now you can change the aspect ratio and width of the tyre within limits provided that the new rolling radius is within 2.5% of the OEM spec.

My link

heres some potential sizes you could fit

Tyre code Diameter Circumference Difference

---------- -------- ------------- ----------

205/40 R17 596 mm 1872 mm 0 % OEM

215/35 R17 582 mm 1828 mm -2.27 % 7" rim required minimum

225/35 R17 589 mm 1850 mm -1.09 % 7.5" rim required minimum

235/35 R17 596 mm 1872 mm 0.08 % 8" wide rim required minimum

195/40 R17 588 mm 1847 mm -1.34 % 6.5" minimum

215/40 R17 604 mm 1898 mm 1.34 % 7" minimum

195/45 R17 607 mm 1907 mm 1.93 % 6.5" minimum

however you need to consider the width of the standard rim when you do this which is 7Jx17" 205/40 R17 7 ET41.

So 195, 205 and 215 width tyres will all fit the standard width alloys on the vRS, but you will need to specify the correct aspect ratio from above to ensure you rolling radius isn't increased, otherwise your speedo will be incorrect.

Hope that helps

Edited 20 March, 201115 yr by janner_Sy

not sure if anyone will have checked yet with it being such a new car, but the availability of top end performance tyres in the standard 205/40R17 sizes are very limited.

No it isnt!!!

Have you seen the availability of a huge range of tyres on My Tyres?

Michelin, Pirelli, Vredestein, Toyo, Continental, Bridgestone and many others....

I even got some winter tyres in this size..They were superb

I would not advocate changing the tyre size at all....Certainly not when there is such a HUGE availability

Do us all a favour and chill out, are you still upset at me for not singing the praises of the fabia all the time. you seem to whinge everytime i point out a niggle or downfall of themy car. You obviously are being short sighted you cant see any of them. Try turning your blinkers off for a second. :giggle: jutst kidding....In all fairness you have to remember everyone has an opinion of what they think of things or why they buy them. I have mine and you have yours. they wont always correspond with each other. At the end day if the car was crap i wouldnt have bought it, but it is only an entry level hot hatch so its never going to be great. If i had the clio200 id still pick faults. doesnt make it crap.

Im not imposing my opinion on anyone, just my view, which is the whole point of the forum in the first place.

Back on topic Im talking from a high performance tyre point of view. I tend to filter out alot of tyres before searching as i wouldnt put them on my car. I have a select few brands/types of tyre that i will use and that is it and tend not to go elsewhere.

I will concede that there are alot more options available on there now, compared to when i looked into it prior to starting this thread. Its the whole reason i started the thread in the first place. They brands and tyres i wanted were not available in the 205/40R17 yet they were readily available in 215/40 sizes. Now most(not all) of them are, however for an extra £4-£10 per corner i could increase the width to 215/40 and get the tyres brands i want.

Larger contact patch, more grip etc etc. Bear in mind the Ibiza and polo GTI all come with 215s as standard. skoda obviously spotted another opportunity to save some ££'s

Apart from maybe an extra £40 in the purchase price i fail to see a downside of increasing the tyre size

Edited 6 April, 201115 yr by janner_Sy

Fitting the slightly wider tyres also means you are less likely to kerb those alloys.

fair point. The alloys on mine poke out a few mm from the tyres so are prime for some kerbage. that could be down to the tyre design as well though

What does the inch of rim refer too when it says for example 7' rim minimum?

For example for the 215/40s:

215/40 R17 604 mm 1898 mm 1.34 % 7" minimum

Also, the percentage I am guessing means the speedo reads higher than actual speed if it is a plus number?

I too would probably be interested in 215s, as you said, more choice and better grip.

Edit:

Just had a re-read, looks like the percentage refers to the circumference difference?

Edited 6 April, 201115 yr by Stu vRS

What does the inch of rim refer too when it says for example 7' rim minimum?

For example for the 215/40s:

215/40 R17 604 mm 1898 mm 1.34 %

i think ive worded it incorrectly. with a 7" wheel the widest you can go is 215. If you want to go 225 you will need to get a wider alloy of 7.5" at a minimum.

Also, the percentage I am guessing means the speedo reads higher than actual speed if it is a plus number?

I too would probably be interested in 215s, as you said, more choice and better grip.

Edit:

Just had a re-read, looks like the percentage refers to the circumference difference?

Its pretty much both radius and circumference

Tyre code Diameter Circumference Difference

205/40 R17 596 mm 1872 mm 0 %

215/40 R17 604 mm 1898 mm 1.34 %

circumferance % difference = (1-(1872/1898))*100=1.36%

diameter %% difference = (1-(596/604))*100= 1.33%

Edited 6 April, 201115 yr by janner_Sy

Do us all a favour and chill out, are you still upset at me for not singing the praises of the fabia all the time. you seem to whinge everytime i point out a niggle or downfall of themy car. You obviously are being short sighted you cant see any of them. Try turning your blinkers off for a second. :giggle: jutst kidding....In all fairness you have to remember everyone has an opinion of what they think of things or why they buy them. I have mine and you have yours. they wont always correspond with each other. At the end day if the car was crap i wouldnt have bought it, but it is only an entry level hot hatch so its never going to be great. If i had the clio200 id still pick faults. doesnt make it crap.

Im not imposing my opinion on anyone, just my view, which is the whole point of the forum in the first place.

Back on topic Im talking from a high performance tyre point of view. I tend to filter out alot of tyres before searching as i wouldnt put them on my car. I have a select few brands/types of tyre that i will use and that is it and tend not to go elsewhere.

I will concede that there are alot more options available on there now, compared to when i looked into it prior to starting this thread. Its the whole reason i started the thread in the first place. They brands and tyres i wanted were not available in the 205/40R17 yet they were readily available in 215/40 sizes. Now most(not all) of them are, however for an extra £4-£10 per corner i could increase the width to 215/40 and get the tyres brands i want.

Larger contact patch, more grip etc etc. Bear in mind the Ibiza and polo GTI all come with 215s as standard. skoda obviously spotted another opportunity to save some ££'s

Apart from maybe an extra £40 in the purchase price i fail to see a downside of increasing the tyre size

WHAT!!??

Im not having a go at all!! :wonder:

You stated that the availability of 205/40/17 tyres was limited.

I pointed out that you are wrong..Really quite simple to understand

I also stated that in my opinion, fitting a different size was NOT a good idea

I think its you that needs to take a Chill Pill...LOL

Good luck with your new tyres

lol - you two make me laugh!

Wider tyres will be fine, probably go for 215's for extra alloy cover and grip when the first ones run out.

Less grip in snow? lol

Less grip in snow? lol

Yes..unless you get some Winter tyres

Nah, they're a waste of money.

Nah, they're a waste of money.

I hope you were not being serious

Oh I am. If the weather is poor enough to need snow tyres then the car doesn't leave the drive. Too many people out there who don't know how to drive sensibly on snow.

I'll also be making the move to 215's when its replacement time.

The 205's do look too small IMHO

Oh I am. If the weather is poor enough to need snow tyres then the car doesn't leave the drive. Too many people out there who don't know how to drive sensibly on snow.

Jesus!!.......For the millionth time Ive said this..Winter tyres are NOT just for snow, but offer grip on cold wet tarmac below 7C. We both have winter tyres ready to fit again in November.

Leaving the car on the Drive is not an option many people can do.

You should get some!!

We'll agree to disagree. My all weather tyres are fine in cold, wet conditions (hence the all weather name) and given how sly insurance companies are over whether snow tyres are a modification I'll play it safe.

My current Yokohama's are fine in the wet, no problems

Jesus!!.......For the millionth time Ive said this..Winter tyres are NOT just for snow, but offer grip on cold wet tarmac below 7C. We both have winter tyres ready to fit again in November.

Leaving the car on the Drive is not an option many people can do.

You should get some!!

Only a guy who has never driven cars back to back through a winter with winter/summer tyres on will say winters are not worth it.

i spent the last 9 years living in germany. believe me winter tyres are awesome. i never go without now, even in the UK. a FWD car with winter tyres will go alot further, brake alot quicker and change direction alot better than any 4wd car with summers on. The biggest and most important factor is braking grip. On snow or just on a damp cold road, the winter tyres always outperform summer tyres.

Generally the higher the performance of a tyre, the worse they usually are in the winter. So budget tyres etc normally arent so bad in the cold.

All weather tyres are a great compromise though. Id prefer to have to seperate sets. so top end summers and top end winters. i like grip to always be there

Edited 6 April, 201115 yr by janner_Sy

Thanks Janner..We agree at last

I think buying winter tyres for our cars was the best investment we have ever made in recent years....

Those who say you don't need them haven't tried them..Simple!!

We'll agree to disagree. My all weather tyres are fine in cold, wet conditions (hence the all weather name) and given how sly insurance companies are over whether snow tyres are a modification I'll play it safe.

I agree if the weather is really poor (like it was earlier in the year) then you shouldnt be out in the car regardless of what tyres you fit on it unless its an absolute emergency.

Makes me laugh how foolhardy some people are who go on like normal when the snow falls. If our local councils were more geared up to plough the snow and grit the roads like they do abroad wouldnt be a problem but its plain fact that as soon as deep snow has been driven over a few times, been compacted and begins to ice which is all that happens out here it becomes lethal. If you can barely stand on it without falling down how is a car with any sort of tyre (bar having spikes!) going to gain purchase?

In any case you have a crash see how quickly your insurance company tries to pass the buck on you, if you cause someone serious injury you could end up going to prison. No disrespect to anyone but I for one wont be taking that risk thanks.

On the note of tyre size (getting back on topic sorry!) I'm wondering if fitting wider tyres will affect the cars drivability.

I was under the impression that the Fabia shares the old Polo platform and as a result has a smaller track than the new Polo and Ibiza and this was the reason wider wheels with 215 section tyres arent fitted. I reckon they'll look a bit strange on the rim personally.

Edited 7 April, 201115 yr by pipsyp

However lots of people run 215 tyres on the old Mk1. I have 205/40's on my 7.5" rim and its horrid, the tyre just doesn't look wide enough to me. I will definitely be moving onto 215's when they need changing.

They look more square sat on the rim, rather than stretched, which I'm not a fan of.

It should not affect the drivability of the car, if anything others have said it handles nicer on the 215's.

Didn't Evo do a test with an XF-R on winter tyres against one on summer tyres when we had all that snow and it was a lot better. Think they even managed to get it round a track faster than an FQ360 Evo X that was on summer tyres.

Although my local dealer refused to give me winter tyres for my car - some poop about them not being available in the right size. Bit stupid considering i had the vRS alloys pit on it over my old Comets and the Comets were the ones I wanted the winters on!

I might go one step wider, to 215/40 but that's about it IMO. I certainly wouldn't change to a lower sidewall profile. A 35-profile 17" wheel at 215 width would ride and handle badly, in my view.

If we take the Mich PS3 as a high-performance benchmark for a moment, they do seem a touch expensive at £118 a corner from Camskill, for 205/40. But in 215/40 they don't seem to be available at all!

Looking at something well regarded and available in both those sizes, say the Rainsport2, I would again keep with the OEM 205/40 size, as they're £79.80 from Camskill, against £91.50 for the same tyre in 215/40 size.