21 replies to this topic

[rp850]

OK, here we go...

95 850 Turbo Wagon (not an R) 16" Columba wheels Bilstein struts, oem springs and front end parts in good condition

Ran Michelin 205/55-16s for several years no rubbing problems whatsoever.

Based on that, I bought Kuhmo ASX in the same size. I now have all the typical rubbing problems outlined on the Bay13 205-55 vs 205-50 page. Shame on me but I never thought that page applied to me because I didn't have an 850 R and I never had any problems running the 205-55s to begin with.

To my surprise, when comparing the specs of the actual diameters of the tires, the Kuhmo is .2" more than the Michelins were!

I went back and reread the Bay13 page and it seems like now I need 96+ fender liners?

What's my fix here? New liners, roll the fender (ugh), ignore it? What do I do?

Thanks!

[7 VII 7]

depends on how bad the rubbing is... I had rubbing on my 205/55/16s and it was not bad at all so I did nothing.

[Black Betty]

try 5mm spacers

[Che'_Moderator]

ANY rubbing is BAD.

Tire sizes and specs all vary. When you buy you can look at the spec sheet and compare rolling diameter and overall width for a general idea. If you are rubbing all you can really do is add spacers or change the tires. That or add the rack limiter

[--Aaron--]

I may be missing something here but why not just buy an OE size to begin with?

[speedn_j]

--Aaron--, on 07 July 2009 - 08:35 PM, said:

I may be missing something here but why not just buy an OE size to begin with?

the 55's are more common and alot cheaper. try finding a descent snow tire in 50 series. i ran 55's on my 850 for a long time with zero issues.

[--Aaron--]

speedn_j, on 07 July 2009 - 10:02 PM, said:

the 55's are more common and alot cheaper. try finding a descent snow tire in 50 series. i ran 55's on my 850 for a long time with zero issues.

That aside it does not change the fact that when going with a bigger, non OE size rubbing is an obvious risk.

[TxS70]

Ive got a 97 sedan with 205/50/16 G-force sports. They rub at FULL lock, but most people will just tell you "Dont turn it full lock"

SOOO I stopped turning it full lock, and, Voila! No rubbing!

[Korruption]

8505speed, on 07 July 2009 - 10:07 PM, said:

Ive got a 97 sedan with 205/50/16 G-force sports. They rub at FULL lock, but most people will just tell you "Dont turn it full lock"

SOOO I stopped turning it full lock, and, Voila! No rubbing!

Funny how that works...

[rp850]

Thanks for all the replies.

The rubbing is slight and I am getting it on the inner part of the liner at full lock (not a problem because I try not to go to the steering stops). More troubling is that it's rubbing on the outer lip of the liner where it's riveted to the fender.

I actually dremeled down the rivets slightly which helped a lot but it still has a slight rub if the car really leans hard into a right hand corner. Left hand turns are not too bad.

To reply to the post about why did I not buy an OEM size to begin with - Quite simply I'm an idiot Seriously, I didn't think it was a problem because my old 205-55s did not rub and I kind of thought 205-55 was a 'quasi-OEM' size since so many people ran them without problems. Learn from my mistake people!!

I'm not sure how a spacer would help since that would put even more of the tire over the outer lip of the fender, right?

Biggest things I learned with this little debacle is always go by the factory specs and not all 205/55-16s are created equally.

I guess I will run these tires until they wear down a bit and hope that will help a little. Either that or wear down the fender liner, whichever comes first!

The Bay13 page seems to suggest that a 96 fender liner might solve the problem on a regular 850. Anyone have experience doing that?

Thanks again!

[Che'_Moderator]

rp850, on 08 July 2009 - 01:23 AM, said:

The Bay13 page seems to suggest that a 96 fender liner might solve the problem on a regular 850. Anyone have experience doing that?

Thanks again!

Those tires are gonna rub with out spacers. Just get 5mm spacers and be done with it

[Mr. Norm]

How worn are your springs? My 55 series never rubbed, until they started to. And it got worse and worse. Installed a fresh set of springs and now they don't rub anymore.

[rp850]

My bet is that the springs have never been changed. I am sure that would help.

Sorry that I'm not getting the spacer solution but if the wheels are pushed 5mm out past the fender, how does that make the rubbing on the edge of the fender liner where the rivets are any better? I could see how it helps on the inside of the liner near the strut, but not the outer part of the liner where it meets the fender lip. My guess is that it would probably make that even worst since it would put more of the tire in contact with the fender lip.

[Che'_Moderator]

If you are rubbing the quarter panels with a stock car and that size tire something is wrong with your car.

[misa]

speedn_j, on 07 July 2009 - 10:02 PM, said:

the 55's are more common and alot cheaper. try finding a descent snow tire in 50 series. i ran 55's on my 850 for a long time with zero issues.

Me too.It came with 205/50/16 from the factory,but i switched to 205/55/16 because of bad roads.

[Che'_Moderator]

misa, on 08 July 2009 - 11:08 PM, said:

Me too.It came with 205/50/16 from the factory,but i switched to 205/55/16 because of bad roads.

You could have just purchased a higher load tire and stayed OEM size if that was your worry

[rp850]

Che,

Certainly could be true that something's wrong with the car but not necessarily. Definitely agree that new front springs would probably help. However, if you look closely at the photo on Bay13, there is a red circled area by the fender lip that is the exact same spot as where my tire is rubbing. Bay13 makes no mention of anything else wrong with that car which leads me to believe this is all tire-size related.

My question still stands...does installing 96+ wheel liners solve the problem of running 205/55-16s on a non-R 1995 850?

Thanks.

[Platinum850Wagon]

Got a '96 wagon with 55's on it. It rubs at full lock. Don't think those liners will help you.

[Black Betty]

Mr. Norm, on 08 July 2009 - 02:33 PM, said:

My 55 series never rubbed, until they started to.

quote worthy

[rp850]

Thanks everyone. I think I will just live with it for now since it's not rubbing too bad and I don't see any tire damage or anything like that. Learned my lesson...205/50-16s next time around.