18" to 16"?

[S00perb]

I am about to buy an L&K superb to go with the elegance in the drive - but IU am really not sure about 18" wheels (cost of tyres, noise, pot-hole resistence)

If I don't get on with them, how easy is it to swop them for 16"?

 

[valv1866]

The 18" wheels are fine, I've hit plenty of nasty potholes in mine and had no wheel issues. Tyre costs vary depending on the brand you select. The 225/40/18 size has become more widely fitted, so the costs have come down so budgets are less than £50 each.

 

I went for the Michelin Cross Climates last year when I needed 4 and that was a little pricey at £570 for 4. I think the brakes might need the larger wheels, so the 16" might not clear the discs?

Edited 15 August, 2017 by valv1866

[Noddy90]

A Superb on 16" wheels looks like a whale on roller-skates. Don't do it! 

[bigjohn]

17 minutes ago, Noddy90 said:

A Superb on 16" wheels looks like a whale on roller-skates. Don't do it! 

 

Must remember to clear out the blow hole and oil the skates 

 

 

 

Edited 15 August, 2017 by bigjohn

[silver1011]

Go for 17's with 50 profile tyre.

 

A good balance between comfort, pothole resistance and filling the arches...

 

 

 

 

 

[silver1011]

Available options...

 

[Noddy90]

Anything less than 18s are just toys. You might as well build your car out of lego... 

[bigjohn]

6 minutes ago, Noddy90 said:

Anything less than 18s are just toys. You might as well build your car out of lego... 

 

Last time I looked even the S model was welded 

 

 

Seriously though - One of the reasons I bought mine was BECAUSE of the tyre size:-

• On my previous Superb I loved the ride and struggled with the MKII on some test drives but found the ride OK on the  1.4tsi S which has 205/55 R16s (although the light 1.4 may have helped!). My commute involves some rather bumpy roads though - I prefer to take my replacement car test drives over part of this route.
• Long tyre life seems to be a feature of this size/profile - got 32k miles out of a set of Michelins on the Superb I and 35k out of a set of Continentals on the Superb II.

[superbdreams]

The L&K 18" wheels are beautiful... but ..

I have already replaced two due to pot hole damage and also one tyre that was a month old.

wheel refurb centres want £130 for repairing them and then they are just going to spray them silver and grey which defeats some of the point of having diamond cut alloys.

 

This size of wheel/tyre is wholly unsuitable for the roads where I am and probably most of the country where chicanes, humps and road narrowing are done in priority to road condition.

 

The ride is not awful with them on but is nicer with 16" wheels.

I purchased a set of 16" steel rims for winter use and have them on for six months of the year.

They look horrible in comparison so if you can afford to spend £175 on new rims as needed then stick with the 18's

 

As a side, I have not been able to find any 16" or 17" alloys that look similar to the L&K sirius wheels, nor any trims that are that close either.

 

As a summary, If I ever find some 16" alloys that are identical to the Sirius I will have them in a heartbeat.

 

 

[Superb170]

Very much agree with Silver1011's comments above re the 17" wheels.  I think they are the optimum size for the MKII Superb.  I had 17" on an Elegance and 18" on an L&K and the 17s were that bit smoother.  Having said that, an L&K without 18" wheels just won't look right.  As a compromise, I did put on higher sidewall tyres with a 45 profile when I had the 18s (when it came to replacing the first set) and it brought the ride back to the same comfort level as the 17s.

[superbdreams]

I had considered the 45 profile but the 16" is a factory option (as is 17") but 45 profiles are not.

If you feel  insurance companies will not take this opportunity to refuse to pay out then that is a good solution.

[valv1866]

If you increase the profile but don't decrease the wheel size does this not increase the rolling radius of the wheels and thus cause the speedo to be out of calibration?

[S00perb]

4 hours ago, valv1866 said:

If you increase the profile but don't decrease the wheel size does this not increase the rolling radius of the wheels and thus cause the speedo to be out of calibration?

I think the Flux Capacitor should compensate and keep it accurate

[valv1866]

1 minute ago, S00perb said:

I think the Flux Capacitor should compensate and keep it accurate

 

Which page is that on in the handbook!!!!

[S00perb]

22 hours ago, valv1866 said:

The 18" wheels are fine, I've hit plenty of nasty potholes in mine and had no wheel issues. Tyre costs vary depending on the brand you select. The 225/40/18 size has become more widely fitted, so the costs have come down so budgets are less than £50 each.

 

I went for the Michelin Cross Climates last year when I needed 4 and that was a little pricey at £570 for 4. I think the brakes might need the larger wheels, so the 16" might not clear the discs?

How are the tyres holding up? - I don't mind paying for tyres that last and are quiet

[S00perb]

17 hours ago, silver1011 said:

Available options...

 

Thanks - great info

[S00perb]

4 hours ago, superbdreams said:

The L&K 18" wheels are beautiful... but ..

I have already replaced two due to pot hole damage and also one tyre that was a month old.

wheel refurb centres want £130 for repairing them and then they are just going to spray them silver and grey which defeats some of the point of having diamond cut alloys.

 

This size of wheel/tyre is wholly unsuitable for the roads where I am and probably most of the country where chicanes, humps and road narrowing are done in priority to road condition.

 

The ride is not awful with them on but is nicer with 16" wheels.

I purchased a set of 16" steel rims for winter use and have them on for six months of the year.

They look horrible in comparison so if you can afford to spend £175 on new rims as needed then stick with the 18's

 

As a side, I have not been able to find any 16" or 17" alloys that look similar to the L&K sirius wheels, nor any trims that are that close either.

 

As a summary, If I ever find some 16" alloys that are identical to the Sirius I will have them in a heartbeat.

 

 

Living in the same area as you - I know what you mean about the roads!!

[valv1866]

3 minutes ago, S00perb said:

How are the tyres holding up? - I don't mind paying for tyres that last and are quiet

 

The Michelin Cross Climates are wearing very well. They were a little noisier at first due to the tread pattern but that soon settled down. I've done around 14,000 since they were fitted and the fronts are only around half worn while the rears are like new.

 

The advertising said they were good for all weather conditions and although I've not experienced any snow with them, they are fantastic in the wet.

[S00perb]

15 minutes ago, valv1866 said:

 

Which page is that on in the handbook!!!!

p176 of "Haynes Classic Retro Maintenance" pub 2053

[silver1011]

6 hours ago, valv1866 said:

If you increase the profile but don't decrease the wheel size does this not increase the rolling radius of the wheels and thus cause the speedo to be out of calibration?

 

Yes, moving from 45 to 50 profile on my 17's has meant that an indicated 80mph is exactly 80mph (according to the GPS on my sat nav).

 

Most speedo's are set to indicate a slightly slower speed that you are actually doing to compensate for any potential inaccuracies. Running the larger profile tyres removes that safety net.

 

As already mentioned running any wheel and tyre combination that isn't approved, or without first declaring it to your insurance company, means you could be in trouble come claim time. These are the roads near me, the worst of the damage is almost avoidable during the summer months, at night during the winter months when new potholes appear daily means they are all but impossible to miss...

[Warmonkry]

1 hour ago, silver1011 said:

 

Yes, moving from 45 to 50 profile on my 17's has meant that an indicated 80mph is exactly 80mph (according to the GPS on my sat nav).

 

Most speedo's are set to indicate a slightly slower speed that you are actually doing to compensate for any potential inaccuracies. Running the larger profile tyres removes that safety net.

 

As already mentioned running any wheel and tyre combination that isn't approved, or without first declaring it to your insurance company, means you could be in trouble come claim time. These are the roads near me, the worst of the damage is almost avoidable during the summer months, at night during the winter months when new potholes appear daily means they are all but impossible to miss...

 

Hmmm....thought they read high to give leeway?

 

[bigjohn]

8 hours ago, superbdreams said:

The L&K 18" wheels are beautiful... but ..

 

 

 

 

There was a L&K combi in our car park today - did look rather nice

 

[silver1011]

3 hours ago, Warmonkry said:

 

Hmmm....thought they read high to give leeway?

 

 

Sorry, yes they do.

 

Thinking about it the higher profile of my tyres means I'm travelling further during each complete rotation of the wheel.

 

In my situation the speedo is reading higher still but does now match the GPS.

[williamshatnerspants]

I had reservations on the 18"s when I first bought ours. Two years on I concur the ride is good, tyre prices OK, and no further damage (one wheel was slightly out of round when we bought it, from hitting a pothole). If I had the choice I'd go for 17"s though, mainly for cheaper tyre options and less risk of damage. 16"s migh be OK if you lived on winter tyres, or if there was no tarmac in your neighbourhood.

[brad1.8T]

I've had 16", 17" & 18" on my Octy and if I had the choice, I'd go back to 17" with a slightly higher sidewall.  16" are my 2nd choice but they need to be 7.5-8" width