Steel wheels vs Alloys on Saab 9-5

galwaytt

I want to change out of my 17" alloys on my 05 Saab 9-5 Combi for comfort purposes. I also think the car is way over-tyred as well, but that's another matter.

So, I was thinking of that alloy-look steel wheel that was on some Opels - anyone got a name/part no for it ?

Afaik I'm looking for 6 x 15, 5 x 110 ET49 dims, so hoping said 'alloy-look' wheel is that size. Failing that, I'll just use ordinary steelies.

If anyone can confirm that wheel info I'd appreciate it.

dr.fuzzenstein

Something like this?

dr.fuzzenstein

Try this crowd:

http://www.cokertire.com/wheels.html

You'll cut a dash and you don't want a crappy looking Saab, now do you?

colm_mcm

Would 16s from a 93 fit?

unkel

galwaytt wrote: »

I want to change out of my 17" alloys on my 05 Saab 9-5 Combi for comfort purposes.

Good thinking. The 225/45/17 on my 9-5 looked great but the comfort was pretty bad for a car that's built for comfort. Not for speed

Have you tried the standard 15" 9-5 alloys (with fat tyres)? Might get a set cheaply second hand.

galwaytt

galwaytt wrote: »

I want to change out of my 17" alloys on my 05 Saab 9-5 Combi for comfort purposes. I also think the car is way over-tyred as well, but that's another matter.

So, I was thinking of that alloy-look steel wheel that was on some Opels - anyone got a name/part no for it ?

Afaik I'm looking for 6 x 15, 5 x 110 ET49 dims, so hoping said 'alloy-look' wheel is that size. Failing that, I'll just use ordinary steelies.

If anyone can confirm that wheel info I'd appreciate it.

I agree, the 225/45-17 is not the most comfortable size. Why would you not just use 9-5 alloys? There are at least two sets of 9-5 wheels for sale on adverts with the right ET of 49 (one mine and I'd just like to get rid of them :-) ).

R.O.R

I think you mean the "Composite" wheels from the Opels. Were standard on the Insignia SC model up until the "New" Insignia was launched.

225/55/17 go on them.

They were coming on Astra's previously, so probably available in smaller size.



Think they were on Astra SC models in the previous shape, but no idea what size and can't make it out from that pic.


Probably best to pop in to Flemings to check sizes.

galwaytt

unkel wrote: »

Good thinking. The 225/45/17 on my 9-5 looked great but the comfort was pretty bad for a car that's built for comfort. Not for speed

Have you tried the standard 15" 9-5 alloys (with fat tyres)? Might get a set cheaply second hand.

Will the 15"s fit over the brakes ??

galwaytt

dr.fuzzenstein wrote: »

Something like this?

er, lol, but no

unkel

galwaytt wrote: »

Will the 15"s fit over the brakes ??

I have no idea. Just guessing here, but I don't think the wheel upgrade / spec upgrade came with upgraded brakes, so you could very well be lucky there. Did you ask on some Saab enthusiast forums?

from_atozinc

galwaytt wrote: »

I want to change out of my 17" alloys on my 05 Saab 9-5 Combi for comfort purposes. I also think the car is way over-tyred as well, but that's another matter.

So, I was thinking of that alloy-look steel wheel that was on some Opels - anyone got a name/part no for it ?

Afaik I'm looking for 6 x 15, 5 x 110 ET49 dims, so hoping said 'alloy-look' wheel is that size. Failing that, I'll just use ordinary steelies.

If anyone can confirm that wheel info I'd appreciate it.

Stoopid q here. So if the tyres on a Saab are currently 225 / 45 / 17 >> can these be swooped to tyre size : 225 / 55 / 15 or 16 - without doing more work ? i.e. Would I have to buy t otally new alloys and other parts also ?

Ded_Zebra

from_atozinc wrote: »

Stoopid q here. So if the tyres on a Saab are currently 225 / 45 / 17 >> can these be swooped to tyre size : 225 / 55 / 15 or 16 - without doing more work ? i.e. Would I have to buy t otally new alloys and other parts also ?

the 15/16/17 refers to the wheel size in inches that the tyre will fit onto. THere is no way to get a 15 or 16 onto a 17 inch rim.

from_atozinc

Ded_Zebra wrote: »

the 15/16/17 refers to the wheel size in inches that the tyre will fit onto. THere is no way to get a 15 or 16 onto a 17 inch rim.

Ok. Thanks.

Could a 17 inch tyre with a higher profile fit. Let's say at the moment it has 225 / 40 / 17. Could this be changed to a 225 / 55 / 17 ?

from_atozinc

from_atozinc wrote: »

Ok. Thanks.

Could a 17 inch tyre with a higher profile fit. Let's say at the moment it has 225 / 40 / 17. Could this be changed to a 225 / 55 / 17 ?

Anyone on this ?

dgt

from_atozinc wrote: »

Anyone on this ?

Use a tyre sizecalculator. It will give the correct plus size.

Do a google search and pick the best site. Plenty t choose from :cool:

from_atozinc

dgt wrote: »

Use a tyre sizecalculator. It will give the correct plus size.

Do a google search and pick the best site. Plenty t choose from :cool:

Ok thanks. I don't know what you mean by " plus size "

And don't really understand how to apply the tyre size calculator

OldGuysRule

I would also check the range of wheel sizes that Saab recommended for the car for general use. Going to a 15" wheel, even with correct sized tyres to match the diameter of the 17" wheel / tyre combo, may have a fairly drastic effect on the handling. Your insurance company may also query this in the unfortunate event of a crash. Non standard wheels etc. As said above, you are also likely to have issues with clearance around the brakes by going to 15"s

Saab generally had the 17" on the sportier 9-5s (Vector and Aero) with 16" wheels on those more orientated towards comfort (Arc amd earlier SE). Tyre choice is also important.

Perosonally, I would recommend finding a set of 16" Saab wheels and fit tyres geared towards comfort, ie lower weight ratings.

from_atozinc

OldGuysRule wrote: »

I would also check the range of wheel sizes that Saab recommended for the car for general use. Going to a 15" wheel, even with correct sized tyres to match the diameter of the 17" wheel / tyre combo, may have a fairly drastic effect on the handling. Your insurance company may also query this in the unfortunate event of a crash. Non standard wheels etc. As said above, you are also likely to have issues with clearance around the brakes by going to 15"s

Saab generally had the 17" on the sportier 9-5s (Vector and Aero) with 16" wheels on those more orientated towards comfort (Arc amd earlier SE). Tyre choice is also important.

Perosonally, I would recommend finding a set of 16" Saab wheels and fit tyres geared towards comfort, ie lower weight ratings.

Thanks.

Im not really too au fait with all this.
and Im a bit confused between the wording used : tyre, rim, wheel , alloy. ( probably different words used for same thing maybe )
I think there are 3 things that have to be considered.

1. The fitting that the wheel fits on ( attached pic )
2. The size of the tyre
3. The size of the alloy

If, for example, one was to move from tyre size 225 / 40 / 17 TO 225 / 55 / 17, would all of the above 3 things needs to be changed ?

OldGuysRule

First off, look at this site
http://www.driverstechnology.co.uk/Tyre-size-coding.htm
By moving from 225 / 40 / 17 to 225 / 55 / 17, you are significantly increasing the diameter / circumference of the wheel, thus your speedo will be reading lower than your actual road speed. In this case, the circumference would increase by over 10%

The first figure is the width of the tyre in mm, the second figure is a % fgiure noting the height of the tyre in relation to the width and the last figure is the diameter size of alloy / steel wheel section (in inches).

So, in the case above, the first tyre has a side wall which is 40% of 225, ie 90mm while the second is 55% of 225, ie 123.75mm. That is an increase of 33.75mm in the radius, but 67.5 in the diameter!

This will also raise the car 33.75mm further off the road.

This would not be a good idea. . . .

from_atozinc

OldGuysRule wrote: »

First off, look at this site
http://www.driverstechnology.co.uk/Tyre-size-coding.htm
By moving from 225 / 40 / 17 to 225 / 55 / 17, you are significantly increasing the diameter / circumference of the wheel, thus your speedo will be reading lower than your actual road speed. In this case, the circumference would increase by over 10%

The first figure is the width of the tyre in mm, the second figure is a % fgiure noting the height of the tyre in relation to the width and the last figure is the diameter size of alloy / steel wheel section (in inches).

So, in the case above, the first tyre has a side wall which is 40% of 225, ie 90mm while the second is 55% of 225, ie 123.75mm. That is an increase of 33.75mm in the radius, but 67.5 in the diameter!

This will also raise the car 33.75mm further off the road.

This would not be a good idea. . . .

Thanks , good input .

galwaytt

OldGuysRule wrote: »

First off, look at this site
http://www.driverstechnology.co.uk/Tyre-size-coding.htm
By moving from 225 / 40 / 17 to 225 / 55 / 17, you are significantly increasing the diameter / circumference of the wheel, thus your speedo will be reading lower than your actual road speed. In this case, the circumference would increase by over 10%

The first figure is the width of the tyre in mm, the second figure is a % fgiure noting the height of the tyre in relation to the width and the last figure is the diameter size of alloy / steel wheel section (in inches).

So, in the case above, the first tyre has a side wall which is 40% of 225, ie 90mm while the second is 55% of 225, ie 123.75mm. That is an increase of 33.75mm in the radius, but 67.5 in the diameter!

This will also raise the car 33.75mm further off the road.

This would not be a good idea. . . .

If you try this page it's even easier: input your existing tyres size, and the alternative, and it'll give you the answers incl speed adjustments. http://tire-size-conversion.com/tire-size-comparison/

Back on topic: thanks to Samih here, I got a set of std 16" 9-5 alloys he had in his garage for a reasonable sum, and promptly fitted them with a set of new tyres. Good god the difference. On the trip home, such was the silence I thought I'd gone deaf........car much, much nicer to drive too.

I personally think the increase ride height (modest) is a ++ in this country.

from_atozinc

galwaytt wrote: »

If you try this page it's even easier: input your existing tyres size, and the alternative, and it'll give you the answers incl speed adjustments. http://tire-size-conversion.com/tire-size-comparison/

Back on topic: thanks to Samih here, I got a set of std 16" 9-5 alloys he had in his garage for a reasonable sum, and promptly fitted them with a set of new tyres. Good god the difference. On the trip home, such was the silence I thought I'd gone deaf........car much, much nicer to drive too.

I personally think the increase ride height (modest) is a ++ in this country.

Thanks, was the main reason you changed the tyre size due to the harsh ride ?