Change to smaller wheels!

[bertJ]

This is going to upset many members but I'm thinking of changing my standard L&K 17" wheels for smaller ones with higher profile tyres. As I'm now getting on in years with a bad back I find the L&K ride very harsh compared to a previous Elegance on 16" wheels. I'm thinking of either 16" rims with 205/55 tyres as the steel spare is that size, or even 15" with 205/65's. I'd welcome comments and or suggestions , (other than 'don't do it'!). I'd also prefer tyres that are a bit quieter than the fitted Bridgestones.
I'm afraid that I'm not willing to swap wheels with other members as the original wheels will go back on the car when it's eventually sold.
Thanks, as always, for any responses.

[bahnstormer vrs]

Understand your idea but perhaps we ought to check out a few basics first as 225/45 17 tyres are not that bad for ride on the whole. A few thoughts;

1. Are your tyre pressures correct? Might they be overinflated, particularly with warmer weather.

2. How much tread depth is left on your Bridgestones? If you have 5mm or less this will make the ride more jittery.

3. Bridgestones, I have heard, can be firm on the ride. A different tyre but still 225/45 17 could give a softer ride.

4. Consider Koni FSD shock absorbers; whilst they are designed for tighter sportier handling, they are also designed to give a generally softer ride (they are frequently used by vRS drivers with 18" wheels and stiffer springs as they keep the ride soft; I have them on my vRS with standard springs).

How's that for starters?

[Makefish]

....................sound advice imo, just a change in tyre make and inflated pressure can make a huge difference.

I personally dont think that changing the wheels to a different diameter and increased tyre profile will have the effect you are looking for.

[Timo]

Tbh I wouldn't worry about down sizing if thats what you want to do. Would try rectify what you have first for cost reasons. 16's would look odd on a VRS or a car that had been visibly modded. Only a few years ago I was lusting after 15's, 16's seemed a pipe dream. Just say you are gradually moving toward the euro look if you feel you have to defend the move..

[bertJ]

Thanks for comments. Car has only done 5k so plenty of tread left. Pressures are OK (32 psi all round). Should have said that it's a DSG estate and I don't think FSD's are available for estates. My wife has just bought a DSG 105 pdi Golf with 195/65 15" Michelins. The ride is far superior to the Skoda and very much more comfortable over Merseyside's third world roads.
I'm considering swapping the wheels on both cars (assuming they will fit) to see if there's a difference but I don't think SWMBO will go for a permanent change!

[bahnstormer vrs]

Originally Posted by Timo

Tbh I wouldn't worry about down sizing if thats what you want to do. Would try rectify what you have first for cost reasons. 16's would look odd on a VRS or a car that had been visibly modded.

Car in question is an L&K

[bahnstormer vrs]

Originally Posted by bertJ

Thanks for comments. Car has only done 5k so plenty of tread left. Pressures are OK (32 psi all round). Should have said that it's a DSG estate and I don't think FSD's are available for estates.

IIRC I have heard they (FSDs) are available and have been fitted to a Briskodian Estate or two.

My wife has just bought a DSG 105 pdi Golf with 195/65 15" Michelins. The ride is far superior to the Skoda and very much more comfortable over Merseyside's third world roads.

I see where you are coming from (awful phrase I know) BUT you may well find that the Golf has different spring/shock absorber settings that will make the ride more comfortable, regardless of the wheel/tyre combo.

However I can see a clear option that you have; do an experiment and swap the wheels (they should fit both being 5 x 112 PCD and I doubt there is a critical difference in offset), use the cars for a week or so and see what result that gives you.

[Makefish]

Koni FSD's fit and work fine on the Estate

[FocusZtec]

Originally Posted by Makefish

Koni FSD's fit and work fine on the Estate

They sure do.

[Wardy]

Just to satisfy your own curiosity, I'd swap the Golf and Octavia wheels round and judge the results.

In terms of downsizing - if you decide it's a good idea, drop to a 16" with a 55 profile.

Steve

[sebulbus]

Switch the wheels between the Golf and the Octi, they are interchangeable. See how that feels.

Maybe you have the sport suspension, and that's mostly why it feels different from the previous one.

[bertJ]

Again, thanks for all your comments. I'm away next week but will try swapping the wheels on both cars when I come back. Should be interesting.

[Ivan-DK]

are on a listening, have the same idea

[SilveRS]

Going from an Elegance to an L&K I have noticed the same thing. The ride is harsher and the steering is lighter. As someone has mentioned changing the tyre pressure can help as when we collected the car they were on 26psi all round and it didn’t seem to bad. They are now on 32 to improve fuel consumption and cornering but the net result is a harder ride.

Changing back to 16”s with a 55 profile would give a better ride in theory as the suspension is the same, although with DSG the car will weigh more.

I think the steering can be stiffened up by altering a setting using the dealers diagnostics or VAG COM software and a laptop.

[InSaNeCaT]

Bridgestones typically have a very stiff sidewall. I only had a pair of them on my vRS in 225/45R17 form, spending time on both the front and rear wheels in their lifetime, and now that I have replaced them to have Falkens all round the difference (read improvement) in ride comfort is very noticeable. No more harsh crashing over bumps and potholes so maybe worth considering a change in tyres as mentioned eariler....

[sebulbus]

Same goes for Michelin Pilots, IMO. Now that I have two ContiPremiumContact2's on the back it's easier to tell they are far less sporty, but more comfortable.

[SilveRS]

Thanks, I’ll bear this in mind when I need some new tyres. I’ve got used to the ride now but the steering being lighter is not my cup of tea. Do you think the dealer would alter this for me?

[matt@theforce]

I noticed a huge difference in the softness of the ride when I went from 16" wheels to 17" wheels and much prefered the ride on 17" wheels although it did affect my fuel economy so I went back to the 16" wheels and the ride was instantly softer.

I know I have a mk1 octavia and not a mk2 but I belive you will experience the same with changing the profile of the tyres by going for smaller wheels. It's upto you, if you do decide to go for 16" wheels you then need to decide if your going to keep your 17" wheels or sell them on. If you do sell them it may make it harder to sell your car in the future.

[Wardy]

Good point from Matt. Think if you were going to permanently settle for 16" wheels, you'd need to keep the L&K ones in storage. I wouldn't paticuarly want to try and sell an L&K in the future that looked different to all the others a potential buyer may look at...

Certainly something to consider.

Steve

[bertJ]

At last I got round to swapping the wheels from my wife's Golf to the Octavia. The ride comfort and noise levels were dramatically improved in the change from 17" to 15" but very much at the expense of road holding. This was particularly obvious on a motorway at about 70 mph. The car was very twitchy and seemed to need a lot of steering correction. Road holding on bends was OK but not as positive as on the original tyres. I didn't try the car in the wet.
I suppose that the above is obvious considering the 'footprint' and tyre wall rigidity difference between 225/45,17" and 195/65,15".
An interesting experiment that proves you can't have it both ways so I'll be staying with the original wheels and perhaps change the tyres to a quieter make when the Bridgestones are worn out.
Thanks for all the comments.