Rims 16" / 17"

[BIG DOG]

 I'm looking for some input as far as what you guys have done for rims . I bought my 850r without the factory 17" rims the guy had a set of 15" rims on it so I'm looking at my options for rims. Now I'm on the east coast and my roads are atrocious ! I have driven on Arizona roads    ( pimple free for miles ) and you guys would have no problem running 18" wheels me I know I can't. I know now there is at least a dozen holes in the six minute drive to town that could potentially blow out my tire and has on my other Volvo with 16" tire. You get real good at avoiding pot holes believe me this is why the previous owner put on 15" with a meatier tire to soften the ride. I would like to go to a 17" pegs or comets I'm lowers of IPD springs with IPD sway bars and I realize I'll have to probably go with a 205 / 215 45 17"what are your guys experiences with them in harsher conditions or would I be better off to get a set of meteors ( like a comet) 16" with a 205/215 50 16" and live with the handling loses but gain a better ride and not be pounding the car as bad. As always your thoughts ideas and suggestions are appreciated!

Thanks!

Car is new to me 850R wagon IPD lowering springs and Sway bars

[Seaway]

I run 16's for exactly this reason. My car is lowered and 17's made for a harsh ride and I spent more time dodging holes than seemed reasonable. 

[BIG DOG]

Seaway,

What rims and tire combo do you run? I ran 205/55/16" on my turbo 5spd lots of rubbing. The 205/50 16 seemed to fit better would like to get to a 215 maybe.

[tuner4life]

I have the perfect comparison for you. I live in rural Northern Indiana where pot holes are everywhere and never seem to get fixed. I currently own a 1997 850 with 15" steelies (stock suspension), a 1998 V70R with 16" Meteors (stock suspension), and a 1998 C70 with 17" Comets (lowering springs). 

 

 

 

 

The 850 rides very smooth and quiet with the 15" steelies, the quietest/smoothest of the 3. The downside is that it is not very sporty feeling. There is more body roll than the others, the tires just don't have as much grip or as solid of a feel when cornering. My wife doesn't really care so I never modified that one. I wouldn't be able to stand it if I had to drive it every day.

The V70R has 16" Meteors and seems to be a decent balance on our terrible roads. It is still harsh at times on the worst roads, but any car probably would be. It handles better than the 850, but still driveable in any conditions. My wife drives on the Meteors in the winter and we are not worried about bending a wheel. Still plenty of tire between the road and wheel. (gonna get some 17"s or 18"s for the summer)

The 1998 C70 has 17" comets (and BG lowering springs). It is night and day compared to the other 2 handling wise. smooth roads are great, exit ramps are great, steering is very responsive and it is much more fun, plus the wheels are the best looking option. 17" just seems like the "right" size for these cars.. You definitely want to avoid potholes at all costs though. I'm used to driving lowered cars and dodging road hazards so it is not that big of a deal for me. Plus we don't drive this car in the winter.

A friend of mine did just ruin a tire and possibly a wheel on his 850R with 17" Volans due to a pot hole, so there is that.. If I had to stick with 1 set of wheels year round I would probably go with 16", but ideally I would have a set of 17" for the summer and a set of 15" with snow tires for the winter (pot holes less visible, harder to dodge). Also remember that the bigger wheels and stiffer suspension will transmit more abuse to the chassis components and will wear them out faster.  Sorry if that was hard to follow.. I'm still pre-coffee this morning.

[gdog]

@tuner4life: Thanks much for your in-depth review but not really a fair comparison to your three different wheel sets IMO.  An more honest contrast would be to swap each wheel set onto the C70 with the sportier suspension.  You mention body roll above; that's much more a function of sway bars, shock firmness, springs, etc. than tires.

My 855T came with POS aftermarket 16" wheels w/205/55 tires, but i hated the look (and they wore through the fender liner) so bad I swapped the wheels with 855 NA when I sold it and put the 15" steelies from the NA onto my 855T.  Always figured I'd eventually find some good clean used columba's or something and get those on there; hasn't happened so far.  Yeah sure, some pegs, or almost any other alloy wheel would look better on my car, but for me (and Mrs Boss) it's hard to justify that much money in rims and tires for a DD that's driven all the time in darkness and bad weather.  So in the meantime I've convinced myself that these wheels help give it that "sleeper" look.. 

And while I don't track my car, I can pass with confidence other cars on hwy sweepers at considerably over the marked speed recommendation..  would it handle better with less sidewall?  Of course, but my setup makes me happy; very much enjoy driving it on my daily commute.. 

FWIW

[tuner4life]

Gdog, I had at one point switched the wheels between the 850 and the C70 for a couple days and while yes, the C70 suspension is definitely setup better, a vast majority of the difference in ride quality was due to the different wheels/tires. The 850 felt like it was on rails (even with stock suspension), and the C70 felt squishy and far less confidence inspiring in corners. It was smoother/quieter on the highway though with the smaller wheels.

[NB-V70R]

Tire sidewalls rolling over often feels like and presents the issue as body roll. So the smaller wheels will feel more "wobbly" and the body will roll about more on the taller sidewalls. When I switched from 16s to 18s it felt like I had installed sway bars. The body roll from tire rollover was significantly reduced. I could use some more camber though because my autocrossing still revealed some quite worn outer sidewalls from hard cornering.

[TryingBe]

I use 205/50R17 tire with my S80 interceptor wheels.

 

[gdog]

Interesting..

tuner4life: what size tires are you running on the 16" wheels?  And do they rub?  Thanks.

[tuner4life]

7 hours ago, gdog said:

Interesting..

tuner4life: what size tires are you running on the 16" wheels?  And do they rub?  Thanks.

205-55-16. No rubbing at all at stock height. I'm sure it would if lowered.

[BIG DOG]

Hey all thanks for the replies but you guys don't make my decision any easier! . This isn't a daily driver won't be driven in the winter so I really think I want 17" as much as I might regret it for the ride but should love it for the handling. With it lowered 225/45/17s fit without too much rubbing? Anyone got a set of comets for sale?

 

[gdog]

1 hour ago, BIG DOG said:

Anyone got a set of comets for sale?

LOL, yeah this thread got me hunting for some comets too; that would be my first choice.   But the canopus wheels are an intriguing look too IMO..

[partsguy]

My 850R runs 17" Neptunes with 215/45/17s. PA roads suck too, but Neptunes are stronger, I've hit holes twice that took out the tires and nothing happened to the wheels. 

I do have a set of OE 17" Pegs if your interested, PM me.

[gdog]

Interesting and relevant thread; FYI

especially Burn-E's link

http://www.caranddriver.com/features/effects-of-upsized-wheels-and-tires-tested

[BIG DOG]

So doing some tire comparison a 225/45/16 would probably work out pretty good . Same side wall as 225 /45/17,  3/8" diameter less than stock 205/45/17 Which would help with it being lowered and a bit more width. However hardly nobody makes that size and def not the Michelin super sport pilots which is what I want.