Different width wheels and different sized winter tyres

GarMani

I am looking for a second set of wheels to get 5 winter tyres for so that I can keep swapping them over myself.

My tyres are 205/60 R15 and the wheel is width 6.5J for a 2011 Skoda Octavia 1.6TDI 4WD.
I found some 15" wheels in 2 different breakers in Cork and was told that their wheels: R15: 6J would be fine on my car. I swapped one temporarily onto the front and it turned OK. They were then telling me that with these wheels I would have the options of several different sizes of tyres that were more popular and hence cheaper. I expressed concern that it could affect safety and any finely tuned instruments in the car such as the speedometer, odometer, ABS, cruise control etc. Both told me that 6J and 6.5J wheels shouldn't make any difference to me. Is this true?

If you recommend that this is ok, which should I go for?
Also I had the option in one breakers of steel wheels from a 2011 Octavia while the other breakers had alloy wheels from a 2000 Audi. The guy with the older wheels claimed most of their cars are at the end of their lives, while the 2011 wheels could have sustained damage in a crash.

If I were to buy the R15:6J wheels, what size tyres would suit best?

Are second hand wheels generally structurally ok if they look ok to the naked eye? Will they have micro-cracks which could affect safety?

I'd appreciate any advice.

I had been buying part-worn tyres for years in Kellehers in Cork, as they will keep swapping them over and back for you as long as you keep buying their replacements there. But now I have a much newer car and it has 4WD, so I may as well splash out on new tyres.

GarMani

actually, I think the FAQ section of eiretyres.com answers much of this for me:

It’s important to to keep to the same OE (original equipment) tyre size and rolling circumference when fitting new tyres on vehicles fitted with ABS or ASR systems, otherwise this could lead to system failure. You should always check with your garage, the tyre manufacturer and/or your insurance company to ensure that any different tyre dimension has been approved for fitting to your vehicle.

joujoujou

As long as all 4 wheels have the same (or very similar) circumference, it won't affect ABS (and other traction systems) functionality.

You can check yourself how much different tyre size would affect speed/odometer readings, just use any tyres online calculator, for example - www.voxwheels.com

And I'd strongly recommend not to buy 2nd hand winter tyres - rubber compound used on them ages quickly, so if tyres are more than 2-3 years old (even if have a lot of tread left) their performance in cold weather conditions would be a no no.

GarMani

Skoda concluded:
"Either of the below specifications are suitable to fit on your car.
With the 15” 6J here is the tyre size: 195/65 R15 V
With the 16” 6.5J here is the tyre size: 205/55 R16 91V"

I also asked if should I use 2 or 4 snow chains, as it is my first 4x4 and Skoda said:
"Skoda stipulate that snow chains can only be used on the front wheels."

So I bought second hand 15" 6J wheels, from a scrapped Skoda Octavia with a burnt-out interior, not crashed, for €35 each and then new Michelin Alpin tyres from Alan's tyres in Sallybrook in Glanmire, Cork (just beyond Grandon's garage) for €85 each.