275/40 or 245/45 on 20's

[DaveF]

I've been running 265/40's for the past year and they look fine to me, but I've not had a lot of life out of them (probs 9K) and I do find them harsh in terms of road noise and feel. Can't decide whether to stick or change??

Another question....what tyres do people use?

 

[Jason Stancliffe]

I had 275/35 on my 20s on my T5.1, and found the ride harsh, especially over potholes. Moving to 275/40s improved things significantly. For my van, the Speedo went from under-reading, to being spot on. There was a bit of heat work needed on the arches though, but otherwise I'd recommend 275/40s on UK roads.

Hi
I have been running 275/40/20’s for 3 years now
Had a slight rubbing on full lock when first fitted, but otherwise fine
On -40 h&r springs
T30 highlife
Speedo reads spot on with sat nav
Standard 3mph lower
So no leeway on speeding!

 

[BognorMotors]

Tyres rubbing on full lock is not a good thing!

 

[Jason Stancliffe]

Tyres rubbing on full lock is not a good thing!

HAD a slight rubbing on full lock 3 years ago
No longer catches after initial scuffing
Only on drivers side
On second set now
No probs anymore
Just letting people know my experience
of these tyres

 

[DaveF]

@BognorMotors Oli, what tyres do you fit to your 20's? Not happing with these Yoko Advan ones, would prefer something with a bit more life!

 

[Euan Holmes]

I've been running 265/40's for the past year and they look fine to me, but I've not had a lot of life out of them (probs 9K) and I do find them harsh in terms of road noise and feel. Can't decide whether to stick or change??

Another question....what tyres do people use?

I'm running 275/40 Fulda SportControl 2's, and they're really quiet, lasting well, and great on rolling resistance. Got them for £115/tyre. Best rated 275/40s I could find.

 

[BognorMotors]

HAD a slight rubbing on full lock 3 years ago
No longer catches after initial scuffing
Only on drivers side
On second set now
No probs anymore
Just letting people know my experience
of these tyres

Best to heat the arches out the way. Takes ten minutes.

 

[BognorMotors]

@BognorMotors Oli, what tyres do you fit to your 20's? Not happing with these Yoko Advan ones, would prefer something with a bit more life!

I’ve run nangkang as-1’s a couple of times and they work well and are well priced.

Bilsteins and ARbs really work the tyres hard. We’ve been messing around with pressures of late and are trying 36 all round which seems to help.

Back tyres on TSI did 7000 miles of that makes you feel any better

 

[F2JON]

Agree. My current T6 is the same, it under-read Vs the Speedo on the standard 17s, now reading accurately, checked against rolling GPS. Weird but true.

Agree with 275/40 or 275/35?

 

[DaveF]

I’ve run nangkang as-1’s a couple of times and they work well and are well priced.

Bilsteins and ARbs really work the tyres hard. We’ve been messing around with pressures of late and are trying 36 all round which seems to help.

Back tyres on TSI did 7000 miles of that makes you feel any better

Cheers - was thinking to try Nankang as-1's. Strange that your back tyres wore out at 7k - mine are lasting longer than the fronts...maybe I'm hitting the corners a bit harder!

I agree on the pressures too - ran mine at 40psi all round and the wear is mostly across the centre of the tyre, so probably over-inflated. I'll probably run at lower pressures with the new tyres (was thinking 38 but might try 36 first and see how that runs)

Still going to stick with 265/40's too - love the way they look

 

[BognorMotors]

The TSI was fully lowered on B14's, so the tyres really do work hard, just raising it 10-20mm makes such a difference in ride comfort and also how the tyres wear

 

[Karl 1976]

Don't do it till warranty runs out or will be void if u have a problem

 

[lucas3232]

The TSI was fully lowered on B14's, so the tyres really do work hard, just raising it 10-20mm makes such a difference in ride comfort and also how the tyres wear

Tyres rubbing on full lock is not a good thing!

Hello Bognor motors
Looking for some advice on what size tyres you would recommend on a set of velare 04 20 s
8.5 fronts and 10 back will be on b14 and do not want and tyre rubbing looking for wider rears would you recommend these wheels for a t30 panel van used for work
Many thanks

 

[BognorMotors]

275/35/20

 

[marmite monster]

275 40 20 rubs on full lock and under compressions with a 9x20 et 45 wheel

 

[BognorMotors]

Just as a note on this. VW have just launched an approved 20” wheel - which is the supermetal trident. Even though the wheel is good for T32, they actually only officially recognise it for up to t30 as a wheel/tyre package with the 275/35/20 tyre.

 

[Monkster1]

Hi all, I too have been recommended to go for 275/35/20 for my set up. I've got 4 original Range Rover 'style 511' ET53 8.5J alloys which are the dog-leg double 5- spokers. I bought them 2 years ago while they were available as I knew I'd get a van at some stage The reasoning / theory I was given was the 275 width is to maintain some tyre wall protection of the rim. I asked about 245's but the 245's wouldn't be physically wide enough to match a 9'' rim (although mine are 8.5J). As such you would get tyre 'pull out' at the rim and I personally would avoid that look from an aesthetics point of view. The 35 profile as already stated is the rolling circumference to maintain a reasonable speedo reading.

Now I'm not trying to teach you guys to suck eggs as we all have our own ideas and choices of what we like - This is also my own learning curve. That said, you do see some vans which have been severely over-wheeled and /or over tyre'd and they really stick out (no pun intended). I see this thread is over 2 yrs old and it seemed daft to start another of the same theme.

I haven't had my wheels shod yet as 1) not sure which tyre make to go for and 2) not had chance to try them on the van with the spigot rings etc to make sure they fit nicely against the hubs and callipers and 3) I'm thinking of fitting H&R 40mm coils first with the original suspension as my van is only a year old. I've never seen a van with RR style 511's on but I'm hoping they'll look nice.

So all this dribble is a lead up to ask you guys to show us some nice wheel arch shots tagged with the wheel name, diameter and tyre / size info.

 

[Gilo17]

So a 275 will fit a 8.5j?

 

[365DAS]

I’m having a nightmare trying to decide what wheels and tyres to go for.

So I really want a staggered set up but not keen on running the same tyre size on both 8.5j and 10j (some tyre suppliers are saying that 275 are too wide for 8.5j). I know I can achieve the “equal” look by going 245/45 fronts and 275/40 rears though I personally prefer the look of the 275/35 on a 10j but the nightmare starts trying to get the correct load rating for something smaller for the 8.5j.

What’s everyone’s thoughts...

275/35/20 all round on the staggered set up and get over the difference on the look

245/45 and 275/40 and have the extra protection with the increased tyre walls. Will I have an issue on full locks still with the 245/45 and will I be limited to what I can do in terms of lowering?

Or finally, scrap the staggered idea and go 8.5j all round and have the 275/35/20 tyres?!

 

[Euan Holmes]

Some will disagree with me, but having tried numerous setups, I've settled on the same tyres all round, and spacers out the rears. Easier to have the same 4 tyres in my opinion, little point in wide tyres at the rear, more drag, road noise, and lower mpg....
I'm on 275/40 Fulda Sport controls. They're the max approved width for the Bola B22, but the slight extra width has saved the alloy a few times! There's no arch rub either at full lock, I'm lowered modestly on B14s currently. for lower profile tyres, they do handle better, but you have to dodge potholes, and the ride was generally worse all around.
So, having tried the different setups, if handling and cosmetic look are your thing, go staggered and low profile, but if it's practicality, ride quality, and cost control, go bigger profile and four the same.
The Fuldas had the best tyre ratings I could find in load rated 20s, and they're 23k miles in and plenty left (I do mainly motorways).
Good luck anyway!