Tyres for these wheels

[Spencey]

Hey Folks,

My wife and I recently bought a LWB Medium roof Transit to convert to a day van/camper for us and our sled dog. The van is just back from the shop and is looking good and I've been buying bits and pieces ready to finish her off (drl's, stereo, seat covers, etc.).

My biggest purchase, other than the conversion is a set of wheels:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/190995748342? ... 1497.l2649

They are 5x160 18" 7.5j offset 48 rated at 1250kg per wheel, can anyone tell me what the best size of tyres would be to keep the speedo reading correctly and if anyone has any preferences from experience.

Cheers in advance, will get some pics up shortly.

Dave

[Spencey]

Just got a reply from the bloke that sold me the alloys, he's suggesting 235/50/18 or 255/45/18. What would be folks preference on here and is there anything else I need to think of when choosing tyres? Obviously I want something that doesn't break the bank but is up to the job. I usually buy through blackcircles but has anyone got any better recommendations?

Cheers
Dave

[g-man]

the 235/50 seem to be favourite on here.....weight rated

[Eggski]

Belly has had both sizes on a sportvan and says the 50's gave a better ride.

[Spencey]

Cheers for that, scratching my head now on the load rating. Shes a 115 T300L lwb medium roof and although I can find tyre size in the manual there is no note of load index. The tyres on give a rating of 104/102. I see for the sport van they note tyre size as 235/45 R18 98LI (XL). Would a load rating of 98 be ok or do I need to go higher?

[ake]

Cheers for that, scratching my head now on the load rating. Shes a 115 T300L lwb medium roof and although I can find tyre size in the manual there is no note of load index. The tyres on give a rating of 104/102. I see for the sport van they note tyre size as 235/45 R18 98LI (XL). Would a load rating of 98 be ok or do I need to go higher?

No, the Sport van tyres barely make the rating for a 260. Your must match or better the load rating of your existing tyres. Don't use anything less than a 50 profile tyre either, or the ride quality will be poor, and the tyre life will be short.

[Spencey]

Cheers ake, think ive found tyres that will suit these now. Final question before I can get them wrapped in rubber and fitted, the wheel nuts look a bit corroded and I'd like to fit some lock nuts to keep the wheels safe. Where can I buy wheel nuts and a set of locking nuts for the mk7?

This forum has been a massive help so far and im sure I'll have loads more questions yet to come. Thanks guys!

[Tango330]

Cheers for that, scratching my head now on the load rating. Shes a 115 T300L lwb medium roof and although I can find tyre size in the manual there is no note of load index. The tyres on give a rating of 104/102. I see for the sport van they note tyre size as 235/45 R18 98LI (XL). Would a load rating of 98 be ok or do I need to go higher?

There should be a black sticker on the van (drivers door pillar handle side) which gives axle loadings. Take the highest value and divide by 2 that gives you your load per wheel. There's a table here that gives you the index for tyre load you need:

http://www.tyresave.co.uk/tyreload.html

Some tyres have a double index, i.e. two indices separated by a slash, e.g. for mine 113/111.

Best of luck

[Spencey]

Found some lock nuts at fordpartsuk just wondering if I can use the old steel wheel nuts on the alloys and just bung on the black caps to keep them looking tidy? Just worried as the holes on the alloys have a conical end if you know what I mean. I've not taken a nut off to check yet if they are conical or flat at the base.

[Spencey]

Don't want to bigger up the wheels for the price of some new wheel nuts.

[Tango330]

Found some lock nuts at fordpartsuk just wondering if I can use the old steel wheel nuts on the alloys and just bung on the black caps to keep them looking tidy? Just worried as the holes on the alloys have a conical end if you know what I mean. I've not taken a nut off to check yet if they are conical or flat at the base.

Mine are defo flat Mate think most of the Mk7s are.....

[Spencey]

So it sounds like I need to look for lock nuts and wheel nuts with a conical end things are never straight forward are they...

[Spencey]

I think these might be the ticket, just need to see if the company can supply them as sixteen with four lock nuts. Do these look right to anyone else before I go buying them.

[Spencey]

Helps if I post a linkhttp://pages.ebay.com/link/?nav=item.vi ... 0863626723