[geo1]

My 2004 V70 has factory 15" wheels and I'd like to update to 16" or 17" Volvo wheels. What are the limits as far as size goes?

How about width? I see quite a few 17" that are either 7" or 7.5 inches wide but I'm not sure which will or will not fit.

Will the ride become quite a bit harder with 17"?

 

[VTT5]

Re: Wheel questions (geo1)

Quote, originally posted by geo1 »

My 2004 V70 has factory 15" wheels and I'd like to update to 16" or 17" Volvo wheels. What are the limits as far as size goes?

The size of your fenders.

You can get pretty big; I've seen some R drivers thinking of stepping up to 19".

Quote, originally posted by geo1 »

Will the ride become quite a bit harder with 17"?

Yes, compared to a 15" wheel with a lot more sidewall. What tire pressure do you run at now? You may want to crank up to the higher recommended value to see if you are OK with a stiffer ride.

 

[pancho]

Re: Wheel questions (geo1)

Any size will be ok. 17" rims require low profile tires which will give you an outstanding performance at high speeds and turns but, on the other hand will harden the ride. Also, the tires (2xx/45) will suffer with bad roads, and is common that bubbles will appear on the side of it due to hard bumps. 16" seem to be good alternative between both. Related with the witdh, it goes from 6,5" to 7,5". Depending on the original configuration of your car it might be needed to add limiters, both front ( to avoid rubbing at full turn ) and back ( to avoid rubbing with spring/shock ). These limiters are sold as a kit.
Finally, once you select the rim diameter and width, you have decide for the tire size in order not to change the final path lenght. Eg: 205/55 16" against 225/45 17", the first will have 2.83" more of diameter for why will do 31 revs per mile less than 225/45.
Remember that a tire of eg. 205 will fit from 5.5 to 7.5" wheel.

 

[flbchbm]

Re: Wheel questions (pancho)

2001 2.4T. factory 205/55-16. I had 235/45-17 on 8" wide rims. I wore those out in 13k and have the factory rims/tires on for now until I decide what to do. I want to reduce unsprung weight so I might sell these 17x8's and get 17x7 or maybe 7.5. Very little rub at ride height and minimal in bottomed-out turns. The tire shape varies too. Read their specs too such as section width, tread width, etc.

There is a GREAT site that lists almost everything about wheel sizing except the tire's detailed specs. You can copy the results and paste them in excel for changing the sort order. Enter them as such: 235/45-17, hit return and enter the rest you want to compare. When done, click on compute and voila!

http://www.powerdog.com/tiresize.cgi