Tyre help! (Oh how original) But seriously!!

[mattchu]

Okay so I've been going a little crazy with my current situation. Here goes.

I bought a set of Chicago (optional) Alloys off a Passat that was being wrecked for parts. I paid $700 for 5 wheels and tyres. Reason being is that these rims were badly damaged, and not even from the accident, just from the previous driving of the car as all 5 (!!) wheels were similarly damaged. No surprise the car was written off. Here is some pictures of the damage.





Anyway so they're going to repaired for a pretty penny, but its worth it because I'm so in love with these wheels. The tyres that came with the wheels were a pair of Dunlop SP Sports that had little tread left and gouges in the tires where the rims were hit. So these would need replacing. However I was left with a pair of Kumho Ecsta SPTs that are in good nick that I can still use (along with the 5th with a pretty much brand new Dunlop).

Now herein lies my problem. These tyres are 235/40-18 in size, the standard tyre size that came with these wheels on the Passat. I'm not sure if these will fit on my car? I drive an 06 Jetta TFSI currently running 225/45-17s. The spare doesn't really fit and pushes my boot floor up a bit. I read that the optional 18s that came with the Jetta (Charlestons) were fitted with 225/40's so I'm thinking this might be the appropriate size I should be using? My dad reckons there will be rubbing if I put the 235s on. Which is an absolute pain because this means I will have to go and buy 5 brand new tyres which would set back the fitment of my wheels even further (due to lack of finance). My plan was to put the Kuhmos on the front and put some cheaper tyres on the rear to try and save some cash.

So my main question is do people think I will rub with the 235s? Anyone out there with a fitment like this? I'm not even sure 225's will fit on the Chicago's. The specs of the wheels are as follows - 18x8, et44. I've double and triple checked the stats that these will fit on my car and have seen them on another Jetta. I've been going crazy trying to find out if they will actually fit or not for sure but I've come up with nothing solid to support either. I'm going to (multiple) tyre places tomorrow to seek their opinion but I just want to see if anyone has a Jetta on 235s, or knows of someone who does or has any (meaningful) advice.

If you've gotten through all of this kudos! Sorry about the ranting its way too late. Cheers guys

[Diesel_vert]

A bit of trial and error might be called for here.
If I were I you, before going to any tyre/repair shop, I would just fit the wheels as is and observe what happens.

And yes, 225/40 R18 is the optional OE fitment. The tyres can be fitted on 8.0 J x 18 wheels without issue.

[mattchu]

A bit of trial and error might be called for here.
If I were I you, before going to any tyre/repair shop, I would just fit the wheels as is and observe what happens.

And yes, 225/40 R18 is the optional OE fitment. The tyres can be fitted on 8.0 J x 18 wheels without issue.

I might just do that, get a couple of friends round to help out and see how I go.

I went past a Bob Jane today and they said they wouldn't fit 235s on my car because legally if I'm pulled over and I get a defect they could be partly responsible. How true is this?

[Diesel_vert]

I might just do that, get a couple of friends round to help out and see how I go.

I went past a Bob Jane today and they said they wouldn't fit 235s on my car because legally if I'm pulled over and I get a defect they could be partly responsible. How true is this?

They would know that:

235/45 R17 tyres should not be fitted on a 7.0 J x 17 wheel.

235/40 R18 tyres should not be fitted on a 7.5 J x 18 wheel.

Doing so otherwise would render the vehicle unroadworthy. Problem is, the majority of Jetta Turbos are factory-equipped with the above wheel sizes, so fitting 235/45 R17 or 235/40 R18 tyres on a Jetta is a no-go unless you also purchase new (wider) wheels. They probably saw your car and just made an instant assessment.

However, equipping 235/40 R18 tyres fitted on a 8.0 J x 18 wheel on a Jetta is permitted within the scope of the regulations and will not affect its roadworthy status.