chrismurphy

Looking to replace my Contis (finally). To get something a bit wider with the same ground clearance I would get 225/50's but I'm wondering if anyone has input on a slightly shorter sidewall by going to a 225/45 or 225/40.

thanks,

chris murphy

CK

Besides. Any improvement in handling would be marginal at best and degraded at worst. The engineering folks at Audi have probably designed the proper geometry with a particular wheel diameter in mind.

You'll be taking your chances when you "plus size" the wrong way. Also, have you considered the appearance of the car? You might not care. But if you do, you might want to avoid the low-rider appearance; with tires that don't fill out the wheel well.

ajp

you will also screw up the gearing....etc...

DocWyte

Totally disagree. There are plenty of good reasons to go from the stock 205/55 to a 225/50.

The % difference in the tire size is negligible. The speedo and odo will be off by such a small amount you won't be able to notice.

The benefits are a much larger footprint yielding much better handling, the smaller sidewall will give better transient response.

Audi went with a 205-55 for ride and noise purposes, not performance.

Doing a +1/2 has the added benefit of not going out and spending a load of cash on a new set of wheels. The 225-50 tires are a very common size available from several different manufacterers for a reasonable cost.

Wheel gap won't be any worse than if you went to a 225-45-17 wheel/tire combo.

If you don't feel like dropping the cash on a true +1 fitment with wheels and tires, this is a good way to improve handling without breaking the bank. It'd be better if the stock wheels were 7.5" wide, but you can fit a 225 on a 7" wide wheel without ballooning the tire all that much.

I say go for it!

CK

I was talking about the 225/40R16. I should have been clearer. (my apologies) Also, keep in mind that most tire shops will not warranttee anything that is way out of whack in terms of plus sizes. Try getting a dealer to put on a 225/40R16 on an A4 and they'll either laugh at you or they'll install the tires with no warrantee or liability for the product.

Plenty of people have installed 225/50R16 onto their A4 with good results. I can't recall anyone going with a smaller sidewall than that. Any (ie 235) wider on the stock rim will cause weird effects. Going from a 50 profile to a 45 will produce marginal benefits. Going to a 40 profile on the 16" rims is simply nuts. But heck, it's your money; spend it the way you choose.

chrismurphy

225/40 = nuts: that's fine, that's what I wanted to hear, I didn't say I was going to do it