Hi all,

I have some anthracite aftermarket Team Dynamics alloys in fairly good nick, which I used to have on my C-class W202. What do I need to put them on my Octy VRS? I've got some pirellis and contis on them, but want to run them down and put winter tyres on for next year.

They have these numbers on them:

e38

5x112 (i think this is the spacing between the wheel bolts)

17x7J

225/45/R17 tyres

I've tried them on the car, but the hub is too small for the spigot ring and thus the wheel only rests on the bolts, which I've read on the forum is not a good idea. These questions come to mind:

Do I need spacers, if so what size? Hubcentric or not?

What size spigot rings do I need?

How long should the wheel bolts be?

While I'm at it...any tips for a good winter tyre and supplier circa 100-150EUR/GBP per corner?

I've had a rummage on the forum, but couldn't find all the answers...thanks in advance

The last thing you need are spacers! Standard vRS FL 18" alloys have an offset of ET51 so ET38 is already pushing the wheels 13mm further out. The centre bore for Skoda (and VW/Audi/SEAT) is 57.1mm whereas for a Mercedes it is larger (a quick google suggests its 66.6mm). You need to get a spigot ring that will step down from the Mercedes size to the 57.1mm you need for your Octavia. For bolt length I would drop a standard bolt through an OE Octavia wheel and see how much thread is showing, and then try it again in the Merc wheel to compare. You should also make sure the bolt profile is correct - standard Skoda wheels use a radiused bolt, but some aftermarket wheels use tapered bolts.

I've taken the original spigot rings off and they are 73.1mm outer diameter. Thanks for the info regarding the inner diameter, I will order some tomorrow and hopefully I'll be one step closer.

I thought the et38 would be more sunken in... it's a relief the numbering works the other way round as I was worried the tyres might rub on the springs and I would need spacers...phew!!

Speak to the sales guys at Rimstock plc (who make Team Dynamics wheels). Andy Williams is quite helpful. I have a set of ProRace 1.2 in Satin Graphite which sounds like a similar colour. They're ET45 so will give a wider stance than the OE Octavia fitment, but they're currently fitted to an Audi where the OE offset is ET42 - so a minimal difference.

Rimstock offer a full refurb service and could possibly machine the wheels to achieve closer offset. 45 is one of their defaults, and they said that if I wanted 42 it would cost a bit more due to machining. I settled on 45 as a compromise between 42 and 50 i.e. for flexibility.

Out of curiosity, what style are your wheels?

Forgot to say - I fitted Hankook Optima 4S which is a well reviewed 4 season tyre which out performed some of the winter Tyres in the Auto express tests this season. These are on a Renaultsport car, so similar performance to a vRS, but ultimately its about confidence and safety margin.