205/55/16 will they rub

[rosscanning]

Hi everyone,

Hope all are well and trying to stay positive.

As title above will 205/55/16 rub on 7J wheel if the will how please? Full lock, rears will catch arches?

Thank you in advance

Ross

 

[damadgeruk]

Yes they'll rub. Maybe only on lock or heavy over bumps though they will rub(I'd still be tempted as they're SO cheap). @Pinkythelabrat is the only person I know who has used recently as has @Skipton01 (maybe not so recent). Also will depend on your suspension age, height etc.

 

[carlston]

185/50R16 tyre has an outside diameter of 591.4mm

205/55R16 has an outside diameter of 631.9mm

So 205/55R16 has an outside diameter that is 40.5mm bigger than 185/50R16, or a radius that is 20.25mm bigger.

205/40R17 has an outside diameter of 595.8mm and is close to rubbing. So 205/55R16 which is an Audi A3 size tyre will rub very badly. Probably both top and side.

Also, the load index of 205/55R16 tyres is 91 (615kg). This is too high for the lightweight Audi A2. Hence why people who run 185/50R16 tyres which have a much lower load index of 81 (462kg) find the handling so sweet. So ideally you want a load index of about three-quarters the load index of the 205/55R16 tyre, ie. a tyre fit for a lightweight Audi A2 not a heavyweight Audi A3.

People have even had the lower sidewalled 205/50R16 rub on the Audi A2. If you really want 16 inch wheels, perhaps try 195/50R16...but 15" wheels such as 185/60R15 ride so much better.

See this link for standard 15"/16" alloy rims for the Audi A2

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Wheels, brakes Aluminium rim hub cap 15

www.oemepc.com

The 5.5Jx15 ET34 rims shown in the above link could be a good option for 185/60R15 tyres. Standard is 175/60R15 on those rims.

Or perhaps 6Jx15 ET29 rims for the 185/60R15 tyre size from the Audi A1 as shown in the below link

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Wheels, brakes Steel rim aluminium rim hub cap 15

www.oemepc.com

A third option for 185/60R15 tyres on the Audi A2 could be 6Jx15 ET35 rims from the new Skoda Scala

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5.5J rims would give slightly better comfort than 6J rims when fitted with 185/60R15 tyres as the narrower rim helps the sidewalls to flex more easily, but 6J rims would give the sharpest steering/handling. Car manufacturers in the past, have used both 5.5J and 6J rims with 185/60 tyres.

 

[Howey]

Regarding having tyres with greater load rating,i find my galaxy far better with commercial compared to standard extra load (95) tyres, weather the A2 is detrimentally effected is an interesting thought (i dont get out much lol)

 

[rosscanning]

Thank you thank you guy for replies.

Yes 205-55-16 are cheaper but not worth it if they rub. I’ll price up 195-55-16 all weather tyres

 

[A2Z]

I tried 205/55 16 on a tdi 90 sport many years ago that came as standard fitment on some TT alloys and yes they rubbed on full lock at the front and caught on the rear when the car was fully loaded or when going over speed bumps.

They were quickly taken off and also looked a bit like balloons and didn't look right either.

I would be careful of going anything 55 profile on 16" rims as with 195/55 you are going up a category on both width and sidewall depth from standard which is a no no in my book and would also cause your speedo to under read.

205/50 would be fine and would suit the 7j rim better than 195/50 which is slightly narrow for a 7j rim imo (but would be ideal on a 6 or 6.5j) and would offer no curb protection either on the 7j ?