>Mostly the ride feels a little rough, especially when accelerating
>rapidly... The looks couldnt hurt either, the tires just feel a little
>week for the kind of thrust it has...
Wider tires do not increase the adhesion patch (amount of tire
contacting the road). They just change the shape. While making the
wheelbase wider might have some effect on lateral stability, it also
loads the bearing and suspension differently and is not a great idea.
Shortening those sidewalls (wider tires) would decrease "ride" as most
would refer to it. A smaller diameter wheel (16") would make the ride
better and perhaps soften some of the problems you have. All this
assumes that you keep the outer diameter of the tire constant - which
you should shoot for with reasonable accuracy.
But, I think "ride" is the wrong term for what you are experiencing.
What are the issues? Wheel hop under acceleration? Torque steer
(tramlining)? If so, there are other improvements you can make that
will correct those issues. I don't think larger wheels will help
anything.
x_coder@hotmail.com - 17 Feb 2006 00:31 GMT
I sort of understand. What is the reasoning behind some cars having
wider (not larger in diam, but wider) wheels? Like an M3?
Fred W - 17 Feb 2006 13:40 GMT
> I sort of understand. What is the reasoning behind some cars having
> wider (not larger in diam, but wider) wheels? Like an M3?
Better lateral traction. This allows you to pull more g's in the
corners before you lose grip. It will not increase forward / reverse
traction (actually may decrease it in some cases) and so will not
improve acceleration or stopping distances.

Signature
-Fred W
Bob - 17 Feb 2006 16:58 GMT
>Better lateral traction. This allows you to pull more g's in the
>corners before you lose grip. It will not increase forward / reverse
>traction (actually may decrease it in some cases) and so will not
>improve acceleration or stopping distances.
Noting that the M? is designed around these tires and with the change
in profile taken into account. So, if the wheel bearings will have an
increased load in one direction, the specs may be changed. Likewise
the wheels will be properly offset to meet handling goals and perhaps
a bit of the rest of the car redesigned to accommodate... with an
aftermarket change you cannot easily make these changes. Likewise, the
spring and damper rates may be adjusted to help compensate for
problems the lower profile tires and increased HP in am M? introduce.
BOttom line - it's a package deal!
That leads me back to my previous point - you may be better served by
stiffer springs, a steering stabilizer, bushing changes, etc as
opposed to adding wider tires. Even just a change of tire might "fix"
some things. Remember that every suspension change is a compromise -
increase one feature, reduce another.
ShazWozza - 17 Feb 2006 03:39 GMT
> Wider tires do not increase the adhesion patch (amount of tire
> contacting the road). They just change the shape. While making the
[quoted text clipped - 12 lines]
> will correct those issues. I don't think larger wheels will help
> anything.
Wider wheels/tyres will result in the steering being more prone to
tramlining effects. As well, a wide low profile tyre will tend to break
away suddenly when it is at the limit of its adhesion, whereas a tyre with
more sidewall height will be more progressive in the loss of adhesion.
Paul Halliday - 17 Feb 2006 08:39 GMT
>> Mostly the ride feels a little rough, especially when accelerating
>> rapidly... The looks couldnt hurt either, the tires just feel a little
>> week for the kind of thrust it has...
> Wider tires do not increase the adhesion patch (amount of tire
> contacting the road). They just change the shape. While making the
> wheelbase wider might have some effect on lateral stability, it also
> loads the bearing and suspension differently and is not a great idea.
On the C900, using, say 205/55 on the R15 rather than 195/60 left me
skittering on hard corners and more "groove wander" on the flat. I went back
to 195/60 and won't be doing that again :)
I would think on the Viggen, which is already running on a lower profile and
larger wheel than the standard 9-3, any adjustments to the wheel profile
would produce much the same feeling.
Paul
1989 900 Turbo S
http://saab.go.dyndns.org/