i had my car serviced last week and person servicing said your alloys are too big..?

Question

will this affect the cars performance? i drove somewhere on wednesday journey was only 45 mins and i felt the car wasnt smooth at all, i felt the car was getting hot from inside but temperature gauge was fine. Before i had it serviced there wasnt enough oil init but after service there was. I feel really upset as i bought this car in july its a x reg vauxhall astra. All my other cars have been unreliable plus im a girl off 22 and only driver in house.

advise please

thanks xx

Answer 1

what size are they? I can tell you if you say what size of alloy.

Big alloys will slow down the car
The tyres cost more and
There are more suspectable to damage.


There should have been some things that where done when they were fitted,

If the alloys are a lot different from the standards, the tyres should be a low enough width to compensate.
If there is clearance issues the arches of the car should have been modified.

Answer 2

the main problen you have to worry about with bigger than standard wheels is it puts more strain on the wheel bearings and the front ones are quite pricey to be changing every 20k miles the rear ones arent so pricey as they are easier and therefore done quicker

the next big problem is that you may not get your full turning circle as the tyres may hit the inside of the wheel arch before the steering wheel has stopped turning

i have looked on my computers car database and it 16s are the biggest you can go without modifyin the wheel archs

il tell you what i tell all my customers who have big alloys on their car "sure the alloys look gud but the car company made them 14 inches in size for a reason so that the car performed the way it was advertised" some car companies even void the warrenty on new cars if the alloys are bigger than standard wheels

sure all young people like u and i love to have sporty cars but you dont have to wreck the mechanical bits on your car to make it look sporty

i say sell the alloys u have and go for at least an inch smaller ideally 15 or 16 inch - you will see a difference

ps just a quick extra note if your vauxhall says the word "ECOTEC" anywhere on the body or the engine - these cars use oil and therefore make the engine oil level go down so check it every week and only do it on level ground ie not on a hill and when the engine is cold

Answer 3

Well... In order for a wheel to fits the car properly, as the Alloy size increase, the Rubber tire size have to decrease. The thinner the Tire is, the more airpressure you need inside the tires.
So yeah... if ur alloy is too big, you would run into following problems.
A: Rubbing, the wheel have direct contact with the ground or the Fender, if ur wheel size is really "too" big.
B: rough ride quality, because as the tire Size decrease, air pressure increase, the less impact it would absorb, which means the impact would directly goes to the wheel... Unfortunately, metals are not flexible at all... that means, the impact would directly goes to the Driver's seat... so, yeah.... i guess thats what lead to ur "not so smooth ride"

Does this decrease the car's performance? No! it atually increase its performance, as for cornering and going straight on a "flat" road.
Whats the trade off? i described it earlier, The RIDE QUALITY going to suck!

And about the temp gauge... have you notice it read the temperature outside of the car? and yes, cars are always hotter than outside temperature. Because the Vent goes thru the Engine bay, which is always Hot... THus, it blows warm air. If you have air conditioner... turn it on... It does not waste more gas or wear out anything, those are rumors, dont believe it. The car would be slower w/ A/C on... thats about it...

Reliability wise, next time you buy a car, go for a Toyota. Yeah... some ppl has complains about them, but overall, they are the best.

Got more question? email/msg me or jsut post it up on Q&A again...

Answer 4

All wheels have an axis. Looking from the top of the wheel this axis may be nearer to the inside of the wheel, in the centre or towards the outside. This is referred to as a wheel's inset or outset. If the inset is too big the tyre will rub on the suspension and the wheel bearing will fail early. If the outset is too big the tyre will protrude beyond the bodywork, which is illegal and the wheel bearing will fail early. If the diameter of the wheel is too big and it has a standard profile tyre on it then it will almost certainly hit the bodywork and your speedometer will not be accurate. If the wheel is too big and has a low profile tyre on it, that maintains the same 'rolling radius' as the standard setup, then it may not hit anything, but it must run an increased pressure in order to keep the footprint on the ground large enough. This increase in pressure gives you a harsh ride. As various muscles in your body tense and release in order to maintain balance and to keep body parts in position in the car then a harsher ride causes you to get hot and fatigued more readily, due to the minor yet constant exertions.

Answer 5

If your wheels are too big for the car, like lots of little boy racers like to do, the performance suffers and so does braking and handling. If no mods have been done, you may find you cannot put the steering on full-lock.

My best advice to you is to eBay the wheels and get a decent set of standard alloys which for a x reg Astra is probably 16 inch. But check that with Vauxhall first.

BTW Tony, Skoda's are just VW's with another body.... So they are not rubbish.

Answer 6

It's ok if thier too big,, as long as they don't rub the wheel wells when truned all the way, or bump the top of the wells when you go over a bump. Check your oil every other time you gas up, or about once a week, you should have some one show you how to do that if you don't know. Ask around to friends and co workers if they know a honest mechanic, and send it in for service every 6 months.

Answer 7

Regardless of performance and maintenance issues you need to find out if the wheels are standard Vauxhall fit or not. Your insurers should have asked you "Is the car modified in any way?". Wheels count here. If you have a bump they will find out and can deny your claim. If they are non standard tell them immediately.

Answer 8

you ought to the two study the thank you to serivce a automobile your self, or get a chum to do it for you/instruct you elementary the thank you to do it. it is easy, that's barely the unfamiliarity of it that places you off doing it your self! i will service the two my Mercedes or my Alfa Romeo for nicely decrease than 60 kilos of high quality areas, and that's an entire service - not what some garages call an entire-service! that's nicely worth me understanding the circumstance of the products I do away with, and understanding that I actual have executed issues to my delight. I do have an incredible German mechanic, who does something too in touch for me, yet that's not plenty presently particularly. returned to servicing. i think in case you are able to placed a clean plug on a toaster, then you definately are able to servicing maximum varieties of motor vehicle!

Answer 9

yes it can affect the performance of the car. 17" or bigger are fantastic to look at but 16" are better for handeling. Next time u go to a garage try and take a male companion with u so they dont try n bump you!! good luck

Answer 10

It would only affect it it they were rubbing against your wheel arches or vibrating and making your bearings overheat ?, Over sized wheels will give you slower acceleration but higher top speed and will cut you fuel bill a little at cruising speed.

Maybe they need balancing at a tyre and wheel specialist ?.