got a set of standard 16's on my 99uk at the moment altho when the tyres need changing i have a set of prodrive 17's to go on that are in the garage currently.
Ive noticed prices are cheaper for a 205/40/17 than a 205/45/17. whats the difference with having the slightly lower profile ? are there any implications/good points, bad points from having less tyre wall ?

thanks in advance

paul

 

Well, you are changing the rolling diameter by 10mm as for your profile of 40 your tyre profile is 82mm, and for the 45 profile, your tyre profile is 92.25mm, so i am not sure how much this would effect your speedo readout?

 

ah hadn't thought of the speedo ? would it be a negliagble difference ? the tyres on the wheels are worn out but are 205/45/17.

what effects would there be on the handling if i put the 40's on ?

 

Fit 215/40/17's like most other Scoob owners

 

ok some ideas

anyone else got a thought on this please ?

 

This might help a little.

http://www.miata.net/garage/tirecalc.html

see the effect on your speedo

 

it shows changed from current wheels to others will cause my speedo to underead by less than half a mile an hour at 100mph.

what handling or other reasons are there when fitting slightly lower profiles. basically if im saving 25 quid a corner and going for a 40 over a 45 then is there any prob with that ?

 

Stick to 205/45 or 215/40 only. Is it worth scrimping slightly on tyres.... if the answer is yes i suggest you look for a car other than an Impreza.

Tony.

 

PS mytyres.co.uk have Toyo T1-Rs for £70 or £73 each delivered for the above profiles.... if you can get tyres like that for £25 less i'd be surprised.

Tony.

 

ok cheers for the details, i just couldnt see what difference having a lower profile on the same size would do, whether it would be better or worse. just for example i got quoted 59quid and 75quid for the difference in profile, that was on yoko a539's.

I dont want to be scrimping on tyres but couldnt understand what problems if any would be thrown up from changing profiles.

I also thought having 215's would cause an issue with some sort of roll on the tyre from the slight extra width

 

215's aren't wide enough to cause an issue. 205/45 is the size recommended by Prodrive, but the choice of tyre was limited in this size so many went to the nearest option 215/40. However there is much more choice in 205/45 these days, such as Yokohama Parada Spec 2 , Michelin Pilot Sport 2, Pirelli P-Zero, Toyo T1-R, Dunlop SPs etc etc... but they are slightly more expensive normally than the 215/40.

I'm sticking to 205/45 (need a new set soon)... but wouldn't consider the A539 (had these many years ago on a previous car). I see those as more of a budget tyre. If you like Yokohama try the Parada Spec 2s which seem well recieved. Or go for Goodyear F1s, Bridgestone PPs, Michelin PS2s, Pirelli P-Zero Neros etc.

Tony.