Rather than spend good money repacing sound original car wheels and tyres with 'bigger' ones that inflate your ego (but no one elses) why not spend the money on bringing your mortgage down ?

And if you havent got a house your buying then surely your priorities are a tad wrong ?

Beg to differ. some smaller wheels and tyres DO look out of place on certain cars.

I would actually like some smaller wheels (15") on the cruze as some current model astras have them fitted and it would make the ride a bit better than the 205/60/16s fitted. All those people spending money on their cars are paying 20%vat to hmrc so don't knock it.

And for those prudent enough to have paid down/off their mortgages, well, you have worked for your money, so it is yours to spend. One of my old friends has a 4.0 supercharged s type just for fun, a bmw 3 series petrol auto (work) (does not like diesels) and an audi tt for his other half. he pays to maintain them all, and pays the ved and insurances for them all, and i am certainly not going to knock his pleasures, especially after the amount in income tax he is paying in the first place.

DON'T forget if we all drive zero rated ved cars they'll only find another way to get us. Just be thankful for all those chinese shoppers in london over christmas. And certainly don't forget that someone paying £60,000 for a jag xj or somesuch is contributing £10,000 to the treasury.

Edited by oldroverboy. on 01/01/2013 at 20:00

Well said ORB, we by sheer hard work paid the house off way before time and don't owe anyone a bean, therefore that entitles us to spend our hard earned on whatever we want, preferably avoiding the excess greed of the wasteful overbearing nanny state as much as possible in the process such as the £470 VED catchment.

By the way as a general observation being debt free is an incredibly liberating experience, when no one including the govt has any power or hold you can say and do what you like so long as its not illegal, highly recommended.

The wonderful feeling of freedom as you pay the mortgage off early is incredible - it's hard work but I recommend it to everyone.

The experience does come second best though when you also aquire enough capital/savings to retire early - if you organise it right then you don't even have to pay any tax - legitimately.

I went from 16s to 18s on my A4 and I love it, I also have aftermarket lowered and uprated suspension on it too. Rides the same if not better than factory 'Sport' suspension due to progressive springing and better damper rates and of course looks great. I am all for it frankly, if its what people want from their car then dont knock it, better than undermaintained sheds rocking around! There is a reason why I drive a tastefully improved bright green Audi rather than a doom blue or mineshaft grey diesel Focus et al....but as I will always maintain, each to their own, do not judge lest ye etc etc.

Of course thats all true, but get into different brands of tyre within the same size and they will react differently too due to sidewall construction, weight of the case in relation to unsprung weight etc. I want the suspension to do the majority of work springing the car, not the tyres, thats why old Jags etc are actually pretty pants on rough roads, the suspension isnt absorbing and damping the jolts, its so soft because the baloon tyres at 26psi are, and their movement is somewhat unregulated.

I run 225 40 18 instead of 205 55 16, the sidewall difference is only 2.2cm with brand new tyres.

I know they are 'experts' but if the car feels better, grips better, stops and rides better..not on track or a totally smooth skidpan but on the road, then surely it is?

My 1989 Camry has 185 70 14s, now thats a sidewall....its rubbish compared to the Audi in ride and handling, both FWD medium saloons...is it the tyres or the car?

Its rubbish in the same way my dads xj6 is rubbish, rolling smoothness is good, as is low frequency ride, speedbumps etc, however high frequency/rapid impacts to the wheels not great, the damping isnt up to it, soft springs, soft dampers and soft, tall tyres that exaggerate it cant react quickly enough and it creates a pitching and rolling, wobbly sensation that doesnt inspire confidence. Im not saying they are worn out, you have to imagine the sensation rather than a comical movement of the car!

Motorway expansion joints are a good one, the Audi glides because the suspension and wheel set up is tuned to the weight of the car and all movement is well regulated, proven because you can hear but not feel them at all. The soft cars with big tyres I find less impressive, creating actually more body movement and less body control. However I prefer a fimer more controlled ride, other people like to float, its personal choice and im never going to argue with anyone who fits taller tyres to their car. Suspension tuning and matching of components can however yield good/better results, elimating undamped movement, ie tyre jounce is a part of that.