Hi
I have a 2001 S80 which has the smaller wheels (16 inch I believe but I'm not sure). The newer cars seem to have much larger wheels which equivalent tyre thickness - ie they fill out the rim more - so the rolling diameter must be greater. Would it be possibly for me to get fix wheels such as these fitted on my car and would I have to get the speedo recalibrated or would there be too much that needs changing (eg ratios of final drive might be different).
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Keep your 16" wheels.
They really suit the S80.
Trust me; I have tried many S80 models in many guises over the years since they were released, and this fact holds true for all of them.
Even the factory optional 17" wheels with 225/45 tyres completely ruin the lovely ride comfort and give no discernable performance advantage. As for the 18" Nebulas, forget it!
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I might add that when my father purchased the S80 2.4 170 new in 1998 that he still has today, the salesman specifically talked him out of choosing 17" wheels even though there would have been a few notes in it for him. Dad has never regretted the decision.
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What can I say , I'm shallow and like the look of the larger wheels :) Actually , I prefer lower profile tyres because I've always felt that in a blowout you're safer since theres less tyre flapping around and the rolling diameter isn't reduced as much so giving slightly better control. I'm not really too fussed about ride comfort since I don't do too many miles anyway.
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Well, he blowout excuse appears a little dubious but of course whatever you do is your choice! :-)
Before you jump though I will add that as well as the various S80s I have driven over the years, in our family we have Dad's S80 with standard suspension and 16" wheels with 205 section high profile tyres, my brother's V70 with standard suspension and 17" wheels with standard size 225/45 tyres, and my V70 with lowered sports suspension, self levelling, and 17" wheels with standard size 225/45 tyres.
Dad's S80 has by far the better ride comfort and my V70 by far the better handling at the expense of lumpiness at lower speeds and fidgeting on country lanes when unladen. Bro's V70 with its mix of standard suspension and 17" rims crashes and thumps over bumps but offers no handling advantage at all. Even if I only drove it 5,000 miles a year if I had his car and then tried one with 16" rims with the standard suspension I would wish that I had it too.
BTW, if you do go down the route of 17" rims with standard fit suspension you will find the Goodyear Eagle GSD3 225/45 tyre to make the best of the mixed bag; they offer excellent handling / dry grip / wet grip / quiet running / relatively long life characteristics and will make about the best fist possible of bump absorption with your suspension setup.
Good luck whichever way you go.
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