Wheely good question

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Dollywobbler
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Wheely good question

Post by Dollywobbler »

Hooning in the Pyrenees trying to keep up with Mr Fenwick, it quickly became clear that a lack of power wasn't the only disadvantage - my TGD on its 165s also possesses a worrying lack of grip. Yuck!

Now, after discussions, I understand that to fit wider rubber, I need wider wheels. Correct? If so, are there wider steels that I can fit? I'm not really a fan of alloys. Or can I just sling some 185 or 195s on the existing rims?

Any brand recommendations too? It's on Michelins at the moment, so it's a little disappointing that they're rubbish.
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jonathan_dyane
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Post by jonathan_dyane »

You can go to 185/60 14 with your existing rims, but if it were me I'd get some wider steels (early Xantia, higher spec 306 and ZX are all good doners) which will be more satisfactory.

In terms of tyre choice, personally I'd go for Uniroyal or Vredestein; Michelin's available in the correct sizes are shite now alas.
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Post by Dollywobbler »

Thanks. Some good options there.
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Mike E (uk)
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Post by Mike E (uk) »

I agree that 185s are fine.

I run Michelins on my BX at the moment, and they are fine, but I do not doubt that you can get more grippy tyres.

When I switched from old Michelins to new Millennium tyres on the 406, I was very impressed at the improvement in grip.

I doubt if they will last as long, and fuel economy worsened, but then I may stop in time which is more important.

Any new tyres will be more grippy then worn out items of course.

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Post by Kitch »

jonathan_dyane wrote:You can go to 185/60 14 with your existing rims, but if it were me I'd get some wider steels (early Xantia, higher spec 306 and ZX are all good doners) which will be more satisfactory.

In terms of tyre choice, personally I'd go for Uniroyal or Vredestein; Michelin's available in the correct sizes are shite now alas.
Wouldn't agree with that. 185 on the standard rims will buckle and bend during hard cornering. You need a wider rim for better stability. C5 steelies are wider, but 15in. I'd suggest looking for Pug 106 Rallye steelies and repainting them (as they come in white!) They're 5.5J...designed for 185 section tyres.

Tyre-wise, again I can't say I concur there. Uniroyal do tend to be good, but Vredestein are an overrated brand IMO. I've also run 195/60/14 Michelins on my valver for the past 3 years and have nothing but praise for them. But I guess it's each to their own...different people will have different experiences.

The ones I'm most happy with are the Toyo's I bought for it through. They were cheap and the grip/wear ratio has been brilliant.
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Post by Dollywobbler »

Ah, interesting. I've got Toyos on the 2CV. They're good.

The Michelins fitted aren't in the first flush of youth, but they're not exactly bald either. Just feels very skittish in the wet and doesn't give any confidence at all. As I do like to push on a bit sometimes, wider wheels are the sensible option I think.
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Post by MULLEY »

Another tyre debate & what you can & can't fit :lol: :lol:

If you want a straight answer on this forum, no chance, its all down to personal experience. I've run Michelin XT2's, which i think were 170/65's on the Gti, which incidently the citroen manual say's you can run with instead of 185/60's. They were absolute shite, i could spin them up so easily, especially if they were slightly unloaded. Changed them for some Yoko's on 185/60's, miles better.

I also currently use vredestein, & have found them to be simply excellent in 185/60 size & guess which one's were fitted to Mat's bx :wink: although his are 195/60's which were quite a bit more expensive compared to my narrower one's.

185/60's are as much as you'd want to go tbh on a diesel, whether they would fit those skinny steelies currently fitted i'm unsure about, best going to a tyre fitter & asking their professional opinon. I've fitted 185/60's on 6j speedlines with various people on here saying thats not ideal, giving various reasons, however, i did consult some tyre experts & they said they would be fine, & having driven i can't detect any issues.

I think ideally, if you can locate some 5.5j steel gti wheels or equivalent, then you would be fine with 185/60's.

So there you go, lots of different idea's about what size you should or shouldnt fit & each make of tyre being slagged of by someone else :lol: :lol:

And you thought it would be simple :lol: Best of luck & let us know how you get on.
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Post by jonathan_dyane »

Kitch wrote:
jonathan_dyane wrote:You can go to 185/60 14 with your existing rims, but if it were me I'd get some wider steels (early Xantia, higher spec 306 and ZX are all good doners) which will be more satisfactory.

In terms of tyre choice, personally I'd go for Uniroyal or Vredestein; Michelin's available in the correct sizes are shite now alas.
Wouldn't agree with that. 185 on the standard rims will buckle and bend during hard cornering. You need a wider rim for better stability. C5 steelies are wider, but 15in. I'd suggest looking for Pug 106 Rallye steelies and repainting them (as they come in white!) They're 5.5J...designed for 185 section tyres.

Tyre-wise, again I can't say I concur there. Uniroyal do tend to be good, but Vredestein are an overrated brand IMO. I've also run 195/60/14 Michelins on my valver for the past 3 years and have nothing but praise for them. But I guess it's each to their own...different people will have different experiences.
You disagree yet give very much the same response (on rims if not tyres) that I did?

As I stated you *can* fit 185/60 14 tyres to a 5J rim, and indeed many people have done so, however as both you and I remarked a wider rim (5.5J) is desirable, and available on vehicles rather easier to find in the scrappy than the 106 rallye as I listed above.

The shite Michelin tyres I was referring to were the energy, however I have just realised that the Pilot Exalto seems to be available, and are probably somewhat more useful than the woeful Energy, however ain't cheap... Tyre choice is subjective however, and I have to say I judge a tyre on how it performs in adverse conditions and wear more than anything else.
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Post by MULLEY »

I always choose my tyres on wet weather specific performance, michelin's i've found on all the cars that i've had were fine in the dry, but in the wet, woeful.

They weren't the worst tyres though, i think the no name shitey shite one's from some strange unheard of country that were fitted to my tzd have the be the most woefu ever.

They were 165/70's which probably didnt help, it was slightly amusing as i was overtaking someone & some bint pulled out at the last minute, so i slammed on the anchors & i was still overtaking said car whilst the abs pedal was pumping harder than a 70's pornstar fluffer. Eventually the speed came off, & the poor old dear who'd pulled out, panicked & ended up stopping on the road in front of me (she could have elected to go onto the nice grass verge, but no?), so i blended my car in back behind the one i was overtaking & mouthed to her "SORRY". I guess it was technically my fault for overtaking at that particular spot. I soon changed those tyres after that incident, they were lethal (well nearly). I can still see her contorted face with the look of fear on it, as well as the rining sound in my ear of my wife screaming out at the top of her voice "OH Fxxk" :lol: :lol: Needless to say i still got past the car that i'd tried to overtake 1st time around.....
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Post by mat_fenwick »

MULLEY wrote:pumping harder than a 70's pornstar fluffer.
:lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: Brilliant.
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Post by Vanny »

well i'm back on the 205's again, propper rubber!
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Post by BX Bandit »

If it's the Toyo Proxes I found them excellent in the dry, but truly awful in the wet, both with regard to grip and aquaplaning.

Some (but not necessarily all) pug 306 and MK2 Mondeo rims are suitable too
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Post by Linegeist »

FWIW I fitted a pair of Russian 'Tigars' last year (all that was available locally) and, 2000 miles later, they're clapped! I wouldn't mind if the bloody things were hyper grippy, but they're like driving on sensitol lubricated KY jelly in the snow!

Bloody rubbish. Waste of good beer tokens. :evil: :roll:
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Post by docchevron »

6J Speedlines (ok, they are alloy's but they look teh sex) shod with Uniroyal Rallye 550 195/60's.

Unbeatable in my own experience.
Dry performance is good, wet performance is unbefreakinglievable, reasonably quiet and last well, even with my driving.

The only drawback is that they have fairly soft side walls, so if you're prone to kerbing tyres, you'll buying lots of them!
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Post by citronut »

if your suspesion is not quite working as it should this to will have an affect on handling

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