What is the difference between 16" & 17" alloys?

Filikin

Hi,
I am thinking of getting a nearly new V50, upgrading from a 9 year old V40.
The V50 comes with either 16" alloys or 17" alloys.
Other than style (maybe 17" look nicer?) what is the difference? Will either size last longer, give me better fuel economy, resistance to potholes?

Mr.David

Filikin wrote: »

Hi,
I am thinking of getting a nearly new V50, upgrading from a 9 year old V40.
The V50 comes with either 16" alloys or 17" alloys.
Other than style (maybe 17" look nicer?) what is the difference? Will either size last longer, give me better fuel economy, resistance to potholes?

The 16"s will be better in almost every way excluding appearance. The ride will be better, tyres cheaper, more pothole protection etc.

Only downside is that the turn in isnt as sharp due to more compliance in the tyre sidewall. However unless you drive very hard, you would not even notice and the ride comfort gain will far outweigh this.:)

rebel.ranter

One inch more in diameter!!

16' 16 inches in diameter
17' 17 inches in diameter

The Overall radius of wheel & tyre will be around the same, the 17' wheel will have a narrower tyre wall to make up for the wider radius of the wheel.

Some would say that the 17' would be more uncomfortable, but that depends what car it's on. If the V40 comes with 16' wheels as standard I do not think the level of discomfort would increase dramatically.

The 17' would be considered more attractive.

The price of the replacement 16' & 17' tyres should be comparable. In fact I noted it was more difficult to get 16' tyres than 17' at a time when I had cars with 16' & 17' wheels. Also I found the 17' tyres to be marginally cheaper?

Berty

The 17" on the V50 do look nicer especially the 5 spoke design .The multispoke design is all good and well but its harder to clean. The Zaurak are the most common type of 17" on offer with Volvo Ireland and the Scotia are the other style. The scotia are harder to clean.

In the long run thats what you will notice most. You will also struggle with paying a little extra for tyres.

Usually the width of the tyre will be increased meaning more grip.

Both the 16" and the 17" on the V50 come with the option of polished look(bling bling) but depending on the colour of the car its not very advisable. The scotia looks the better of the two when it comes to polished effect.

sk8board

we have both 16's and 17's on 2 ford focus, and IMHO the 17" have a much better ride quality. They seem to smooth out the bumps a lot more. Its especially noticable on the roads I'm familiar with and drive every day; the 16's seem to find bumps where they don't exist.

I'd pick the 17's, but as someone pointed out, they are not cheap.

The V50 Sport spec has 18" (I think they are called Monza) alloys, which look the part, but a friend with one says they are only for the motorway driver, so probably wouldn't suit country roads.

heres one http://atsearch.autotrader.co.uk/ni/cars_popup.jsp?searchform=&modelexact=1&lid=search_used_cars_full&photo=1&state=block&sort=3&hassearched=Y&make=VOLVO&min_pr=75&source=0&model=V50&max_pr=&miles=1500&agerange=7&mileage=&postcode=sw19+3rq&variant=&bodyid=0&trim=&fuelid=0&colour=&transmissionid=1&keywords=sport&ukcarsearch_full.x=42&ukcarsearch_full.y=7&ukcarsearch_full=SEARCH&start=8&distance=40&adcategory=CARS&channel=CARS&id=200843321476538

very cheap to import the diesels too.

EDIT: btw, see in that link the pic of the Volvo built-in child booster seats, for those of us who need to know these things.

bazz26

17" alloys might not wear as well on poor Irish roads. They might be more prone to buckling due to having a lower profile tyre fitted.
17" tyres are slightly more expensive than 16" tyres to buy.
17" alloys may result in a firmer ride.

From an asthetics point of view though 17" alloy wheels are more appealing to the eye.

Anan1

Mr.David wrote: »

The 16"s will be better in almost every way excluding appearance. The ride will be better, tyres cheaper, more pothole protection etc.

+1

Top Dog

bazz26 wrote: »

17" tyres are slightly more expensive than 16" tyres to buy.

From my expierence this is not true. Not without having specific sizes to be able to compare prices. Some 16" tyres are more expensive, and some 17" are more expensive.

Just an example, the 205-45-16 tyres on our Golf are €110 a corner for a cheap-ish brand. The 205-40-17 Toyo Proxes T1-R's on our Sunny cost us €80 a corner. In this case the 17" is considerably cheaper given that its also a premium brand.

Also, friend recently replaced the tyres on his A4. 225-45-17 - cost him €170 a corner.

So before comparing the prices, get the sizes so you're more informed.

Ice_Box

The bigger the wheel the better the fuel economy.

blackbox

Ice_Box wrote: »

The bigger the wheel the better the fuel economy.

Not True.

You are assuming that a larger wheel will give a higher final drive ratio. This is not correct as, if properly designed, the 16" and 17" wheels will have tyres chosen to give the same outer tyre circumference.

There will probably be no noticeable difference in fuel economy, but if there is it is likely that the 17" will be wider with more drag and more fuel consumption.

Quazzie

The bigger the wheel the slower the car!

Top Dog

Quazzie2002 wrote: »

The bigger the wheel the slower the car!

Another urban myth really. Too many variables for such a sweeping statement to be true. Gear ratio's, engine power, tyre size. If a car is designed to run on 17's, then 15's might not be faster. Might be quicker to run out of gears due to affecting the gear ratio, but will also top-out at a lower figure too.

Also, if the wheel is specced to keep the rolling diameter the same, the difference in actual wheel rim size will have no effect on speed.

Mr.David

Ice_Box wrote: »

The bigger the wheel the better the fuel economy.

To add to what has been said about this not being true, a 17" will also probably have a wider tyre hence a higher rolling resistance=lower fuel economy. Also, a 17" is quite a bit heavier than a 16", more unsprung mass etc.

Quazzie

Mr.David wrote: »

To add to what has been said about this not being true, a 17" will also probably have a wider tyre hence a higher rolling resistance=lower fuel economy. Also, a 17" is quite a bit heavier than a 16", more unsprung mass etc.

And hence slower

Tabnabs

OP, I have the 17" Scotia alloys on my S40. I am told the ride is a little hard (coming from an Avensis driver ). The tyres are around the €280 to replace with like. Cleaning just requires a bit more attention, no biggie. If they come as standard, cool, if not, I would probably find a better use for my money.

Mr.David

Dyflin wrote: »

The tyres are around the €280 to replace with like.

seems cheap.....what tyes to you have? widow-makers?

E92

Anan1 wrote: »

+1

+2