[NAC] wide wheels with rather narrow tires

[Peter Berrevoets]

Totally agreed.

An ('the' doesn't belong) appropriate answer is fully dependant on an
individuals driving style, the wheel, the tire, air pressure, suspension
set-up, car weight, preferance for a particular speed, typical load, local
road conditions, temperatures...

I personally found that for me and my style... the appropriate answer was
the 195/60. I was lulled to boredom by the 205 and 215 yet wanted to
maintain high speed fuel economy. My (and this is a personal 'my') only
alternative without changing the wheels (bbs 15x6.5) gave me what I desired
in the handling and road feel department.

Again, I personally don't think that in stock form the 200 can really use
all that (215)traction effectively, particularly on the stock wheels. The
predictability of the car in relation to my driving style, combined with the
minimal speedo error and undiminished fuel economy on the highway made the
195 an unbeatable compromise (IMO ;-) (Pretty good in the snow too)

I would also venture to say that on a track, my lap times on the 195s would
be better than  on 205 or 215 of similar aspect ratio. (Again - 'my' and in
'my' q)

I settled on the A520 Yokohama 195/60-15VR because of the aggresive tread
and sticky compound. I really enjoyed them but wore them out very quickly
(mostly due to an alignment problem since fixed)

I'd really like to try a variety of different wheel/tire combos on my car to
get a feel for the various options. I know that 225/60-15 on 6.5" rim is not
a combination that I would like, but 225/50-15 on 8", or 215/50-15 on 7", or
215/45-17 on 8"... these would all be very interesting to have a go with -
on my own car.

Might be a fun idea for a q-lister event. Couple of old airports around that
would rent runway space for some organized fun; Bunch of 5000tq/200tq (or
90, 4k, A4...)owners get together and swap wheels for a try at something a
little different?

I'm game.

Cheers!!

Peter Berrevoets
1990 200TQ
Toronto, Canada



> >-----Original Message-----
> >From: quattro-admin at audifans.com
> >[mailto:quattro-admin at audifans.com]On
> >Behalf Of Motor Sport Visions Photography
> >Sent: Wednesday, January 17, 2001 5:01 PM
> >To: quattro at audifans.com
> >Subject: RE: [NAC] wide wheels with rather narrow tires
> >
> >
> >I'm not sure I agree that going down one tire size (from 205/60 to
> >195/60) is the appropriate answer. Stock tire size for the
> >5000cstq/200q
> >is 205/60/15 on either the 15x6.5 std wheels or the 15x7
> >Fuchs. Way back
> >when I ran 215/60/15 VR Gatorbacks on my long gone 1987 5ktq
> >avant and
> >with those tires on the 6 1/2 wheels had no problems with
> >sidewall flex
> >(ultra-stiff sidewalls for tires of that era...this was a
> >decade ago).
> >
> >Even though I have 15x7 Fuchs on my current 5ktq, one of the
> >things I do
> >when shopping for tires is to feel how stiff the sidewalls are. The
> >range from ultra-soft (relying more on air pressure) to
> >ultra-stiff when
> >comparing brands and types is quite vast.
> >
> >In any case I really do not see a compelling reason to
> >deviate from the
> >factory 205 size down to 195. OTOH, I do know of one q-lister who
> >dropped from 205/60 to 205 (or was it 215)/50 on his Fuchs wheels and
> >loved it, but that would be summer only or mild climate advice of
> >course.
> >
> >Mike Veglia
> >Motor Sport Visions Photography
> >http://www.motorsportvisions.com