Reminds me of someone who ordered a Vectra SRi instead of a Vectra Design, because it "looked sportier" and then complained about the hard, unforgiving ride and just wouldn't accept the suggestion they'd ordered the wrong model for their needs.

I always buy cars based on "functional specification" - but I realise I'm in a small minority.

turbo11 - Amen! I like lots of kit but not the wheels that go with it.

Some manufacturers give the buyer a choice of wheel/tyres size.

Take for example at the Vauxhall Astra, some models come with 17" alloys as standard. It is however possible to order 16" steel rims with higher profile and slightly narrower tyres which significantly improve both ride comfort whilst at the same time reducing road noise to almost zero and offer a small fuel saving as a result of the narrower tyre. The 16" tyres start from 205/60/16 and go to 215/60/16, the Astra owners manual contains all the details as does the brochure, so it's only a matter of taking a closer look at these documents prior to making the final decision to purchase.

In addition if a vehicle comes supplies with low profile alloys rims they can be replaced with smaller alloy or steel rims, then a higher profile tyre can then be fitted thus improving comfort etc. as described above.

Much depends on what a particular vehicle manufacturer allows. They will have data on suitable rims/tyres for any given car and a call to their customer services or their garage servicing department can provide useful intel.

"..parks by ear..."

Excellent expression!

Chap who lived down our street had something like that on his Ford Anglia - looked ridiculous too!

My car runs on 15" alloy wheels. They seem to be a bit of a rarity these days, and they don't look as good on the car as the 16" or 17" rims would. But the compliancy the extra rubber gives is really handy on the pretty awful road surfaces I have to drive on. On dual carriageways tyre roar isn't an issue, and they performed much better in the snow this winter than an identical car with the low-profile tyres and bigger wheels. Win win!

Edited by robjamac on 22/04/2011 at 11:39