Hello, I have a pretty solid base of knowledge when it comes to mechanical aspects of a car, but I am an ABSOLUTE NOOB with the more cosmetic stuff, especially putting different wheels on a car, so heres the case.
I own an all wheel drive car with dinky 16 inch wheels. I found an absolute bargain on a set of wheels, though they originally weren't what I had in mind since they are 18s and I was looking for 17s.
The problem is is that these wheels are staggered slightly, and I know that would make the AWD system off itself. Could I use different front and rear tires to adjust for this? I am also expecting that I may need to put spacers on, but I am not sure as of yet. I know the wheels fit since they are manufactured by the car brand my car is, they have the exact same bolt pattern.
Are there any good guides anyone can recommend for me on the internet? I want to learn more before I dive deep into this, because I could resell the wheels for good money but I would rather put them on my car because the stock wheels are flat out ugly.
I want to make sure I don't mess with performance too much negatively and I don't want to mess with my speed readout and odometer's accuracy.
Thank you.
use this calculator to compare wheel/tire sizes
https://tiresize.com/calculator/
Keep in mind that more wheel = less tire + less air. That means less cushioning and a rougher ride.
Make sure your new wheels have the same bore size and bolt pattern. Don't go too crazy with the offset , or you'll have rubbing issues on fenders, suspension parts, brake calipers etc. And stay within about 3% for the diameter or it'll affect your performance.
You can look all these terms up (bolt pattern, offset etc.) online.
AWD & ABS will be fine as long as all your tires are the same size.
Thank you for the useful info.
The problem is that the wheels are staggered, meaning the front and rear wheels are slightly different sizes, so do I have to have different tires in the front and back in order to compensate for the difference?
Yes. Rule of thumb for AWD is diameters all within 1/4 inch
So I'm still a little lost on the exact tires I should get. I currently have 205/55/16s on my 16x7 wheels. The replacement wheels are 18x8.5 in the front and 18x9 in the back. The car they were originally on ran F 245/45/18 and R 265/40/18.
I called a tire and wheel shop and they said I could run 225/40/18 on all fours and just run them stretched in the back, does that sound right? Im gonna call more shops tomorrow when theyre open.
yes tires can easily accommodate that 0.5 inch difference in width
Thank you for your help 😉