Which wheel/size upgrade?

[pomy]

Alright lads... i'm planning to get my b5 out of the garage this summer and spend some long overdue money on it.
Its due its first cambelt service as well as a few other things and i want to start ticking off from the large list of mods i plan to eventually carry out.. dough permitting! lol

First thing that i want to get right is the stance of the car, definately an adjustable coilover setup but the wheels i'm having trouble with.
I'm running 19x9.5 bimotos all round over the Movits at the moment but i'd like something with more of a dish and atleast 10'' wide so i can squeeze some more rubber on to em... would prefer something lightweight and track orientated without having to rob a bank!!

Really like the BBS CH's in black.. and i've seen pics of a black b5 on 20'' OZ Ultraleggera HLTs.. the wider, taller and more aggressive looking the better but not at the expense of grip and performance... comfort is not a priority

I know there are a few wheel junkies on here, so you're most welcome to voice your opinions men!!

Cheers!

[stumpyrs4]

Trouble is you'll be sacrificing performance for looks?
Which is fine, so long as that's what you want.

The wider the wheel/tyre the more prone to tramlining you'll be. The larger the wheel/tyre will also increase unsprung weight, which is not good for handling either.

18" wheels are perfectly fine for the B5 if you get the height of the car adjusted to suit. I wouldn't go wider than a 9" wheel, that sits flush with the arch edge.

I was going for 18x9ET20 Team Dynamic Pro Race 1.2 wheels. Light, strong, and nice looking. Oh and cheap as chips.

[pomy]

Hmm, i dunno if i could go down to an 18'' after the bimotos stumpy.. but i'll likely ditch the idea of 20's now.
I understand the whole tramlining issue, i do get that a little on the bimotos but the standard suspension doesn't feel great when the car's being pushed.
Anyone running 10x19 wheels or wider on here with a suspension set up and spacers?
I'll probably sell the bimotos and tyres to help fund the new purchase anyway.. so i might stretch to BBS CH's..

I've looked at the Team Dynamic wheels, they look great and are very light but the size range is limited
Its a shame more manufacturers don't state the weight of the alloys they make on their website!

I saw these on a b5 advertised on autotrader.. forget the car itself, its the wheels and the overall stance that caught my eye!... though they may just be cheap junk! lol

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/ ... &logcode=p

[stumpyrs4]

Nills J had the 19x10" BBS CH's which he sold. Said they were hard work...

18" is definitely the way to go or 19 max, but no more than 9" wide.

Yeah big/wide wheels looks the Biz, but they don't make you go any quicker (in fact slower), or handle any better (in fact worse), so actually hinder performance rather than better it...

[juice]

pomy, you got a pic of your car with how it looks currently.

[N11LS_J]

Pomy, I agree with Stumpy on this, depending on what you want, my opinion is that the B5 is a drivers car, and believe me you will sacrifice performance and handling if you decide to go wider or bigger (depending on how much).

My last wheels I went for (think they were wheel number 6!!!) were they 9 x 19 Dymags, even though they are bigger and slightly wider, they would have been well suited to the B5.

Next on the list I would say is stick to 18s, but go wider, I had 9.5 x 18 BBS RSs, and stuck with stock 255x35x18 tyres, no comprimise on handling, and looked awesome too, very 'euro', low and wide!

[Blue_Thunder]

Car needs it's 1st cambelt service???

I thought it was 40,000 miles or 5 years on these cars!!

[RS4KILLA]

true regarding the cambelt long overdue

[stumpyrs4]

Someone's S4 has just seizxed due to not changing the cambelt... He sold the car on for pennies knowing the costs involved in a new engine...

[Jules]

19's all the way for me,18's look a bit small and 20's are a bit to much although look awesome.
I have had 4 sets of 19's on mine and have not had any problems and think the ride is good.It's just what your used to i suppose.I think 18's are defo the right choice for track wheels if you are thinking of that in the future.

[stumpyrs4]

And don't forget width of wheel. That's what's going to make you tramline.
8.5J = standard. I believe 9J should be fine, and maybe even 9.5J, 10j and upwards will start being affected...

[pomy]

Lot of replies there..
As for the cambelt service.. i bought the car in 2006 with 30,000 on the clock.. its now only just hit 34,000 and the service light came on late last year.
Car has really been in warm storage for a good while on a battery drip conditioner.. its not my everyday car.
When the weather is good though, i get it out for a wee drive to keep everything moving as it should.

I'll need to get a decent pic of the car and post it on here.. its always so dark when i get back from work and the weather is still quite <beep> up in sunny scotland!! lol

Thats alot of great information there regarding wheel size.. i'm wondering now that if i did upgrade to the 10'' wide bbs's, whether i should just stick to 265's to avoid any rubbing?.. or should i jump to 275's?
I suppose i am doing this for cosmetic reasons too now, so i'll just need to make that sacrifice

The grand plan is to strip the guts out the car eventually anyway, so it'll all balance out in the end.. hopefully!
Anyone interested in a set of Bimotos?

[N11LS_J]

4,000 miles in 4 years??? Am i reading that right Pomy?!

On my 10 x 19s, a ran 265 tyres, perfect setup if you going for cosmetic reasons, 275 may give you issues, especially if lowered.

No doubt the 19s look better, and wider rims will be even better to fill those huge arches

[pomy]

Yep thats correct.. just 4,000 miles

I really bought it as sort of project car with a view to eventually lightening it, upgrading the turbos and making it more of an animal purely for fun.
Something quite satisfying about having an avant with such a high tuning potential, that can already out accelerate most supercars in standard form, has incredible road presence with its steroid filled bodywork... and its so rare!
Spent a good while finding the right one

I think i'll hunt around for a set of 10x19s and stick with the 265's since the car will likely sit quite a bit lower on the coilover setup... cheers for the advice all

If anyone on here is thinking of selling a set of 10x19s pref bbs ch's, i'd be interested!

[stumpyrs4]

I believe you also need to get the BBS CH in that size drilled out to fit Audi's.
Sure Nills will be along shortly to explain all...