Hi,

 

I was wondering how owners of Superbs with 16" wheels find the driving experience.  My Superb 2 Greenline has 16" wheels and lowered suspension as standard and I've been happy with the way that it handles.  I know that the Superb 3 has softer suspension but the 16" tyres have much taller sidewalls as well.  Does it handle ok or is it incline to wallow and flex a bit on the sidewalls?

 

When I test drive the S3, the dealers that I visited only had cars with the 'Style' trim level, so leather and 17" wheels were standard so I didn't get a chance to drive one with 16" wheels. 

I would expect if you run them on the high side with the PSI you will be fine,

 

I ran 16 inch wheels on my BMW E60 in the winter (normally 19's) The ride was smoother, softer, less crashy and at the right pressure (took some tweaking) 39psi and 40psi rear,  handled good in fairness for the conditions and driving style.

I will get my car on 16" Orion rims - unfortunately. Would love some Stratos or even Phoenix, but SWMBO will be driving the car a lot, so big (and expensive!) rims are not the route to go. I'm fine with the handling of my current S2 with 16's.

Thanks to you both - that's a good idea about increasing tyre pressure to firm them up a bit.  I did a few calcs:

 

Current car: S2 Greenline: 205/55 R 16 = 112.75mm sidewall

 

S3: 215/55 R 17= 118.25mm sidewall (so potentially more comfy than my current 16s)

S3: 215/60 R 16= 129.6mm sidewall

 

The S3 16" has a much higher sidewall than the others.

 

My dealer has taken delivery of my new car and also has another new one in stock with non-standard Stratos wheels.  I was wondering if it was worth asking if he'd swap them for the €393 that it would have cost to spec them originally.  I feel like I've spent enough on the car up to this point but don't want to regret not taking the opportunity if it'd be a good move.

I would ask the question regarding cost to upgrade, unfortunately I can't see the dealer offering a swap as the 16 wheels will make the other car harder to sell.

But, for sure price up a set of 17's, you never know but you may see them for sale on this site in the coming months for people upgrading to 18 / 19's

Thanks to you both - that's a good idea about increasing tyre pressure to firm them up a bit.  I did a few calcs:

 

Current car: S2 Greenline: 205/55 R 16 = 112.75mm sidewall

 

S3: 215/55 R 17= 118.25mm sidewall (so potentially more comfy than my current 16s)

S3: 215/60 R 16= 129.6mm sidewall

 

The S3 16" has a much higher sidewall than the others.

 

My dealer has taken delivery of my new car and also has another new one in stock with non-standard Stratos wheels.  I was wondering if it was worth asking if he'd swap them for the €393 that it would have cost to spec them originally.  I feel like I've spent enough on the car up to this point but don't want to regret not taking the opportunity if it'd be a good move.

215/60/16 is used on Yetis with 16" wheels.