# TTRS winter wheels, looking for some 18 inch options that FIT!



## sr_erick (Mar 17, 2008)

My current set of 18 inch winter wheels that I used on the TTS do not fit on the TTRS. They hit the front calipers. I am looking for an 18 by 8 inch wheel to run some 225 width winter tires on. Anyone have any ideas on where to look for wheels that will fit? Any input would be greatly appreciated.


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## tdi-bart (Feb 10, 2011)

i already have tires for the stock wheels


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## - Jeremy - (Feb 23, 2006)

I think a few people (myself included) are considering this option:

http://www.ecstuning.com/Audi-TT_MK_II-TTRS-2.5T/Wheels/Aftermarket_Alloys/ES2143408/

With a 35 offset, there should be no problems with clearance. I already have some 18x225 Dunlop 3D's, so now I just need to buy the wheels.

- Jeremy -


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## TT--AUDI--S4 (May 11, 2004)

*Winter Tire Setup*



- Jeremy - said:


> I think a few people (myself included) are considering this option:
> 
> http://www.ecstuning.com/Audi-TT_MK_II-TTRS-2.5T/Wheels/Aftermarket_Alloys/ES2143408/
> 
> ...


Yep, I had those exact wheels on back order till I decided to take Tire Rack's advice and wait for wheel fitments to be tested and released to the public. Tire Rack plans to do this by late December or January for different wheel sizes and offset fitments. :banghead: (oh well)

Also, after some thought, instead of going with a dedicated winter tire and wheel setup, like I have done several times in the past, I ended up getting the 255/35 Michelin PS A/S tires for the stock wheels. We'll see how it goes. Not as confident-inspiring as dedicated snow tires, but I potentially can run them into the warmer months of the Spring without worrying about swapping out as temps rise (a consideration for snow tires that get very soft and sloppy when temperatures rise). 

_Food for thought..._
In Central Ohio, winters (in general) are not that rough. Historically we get bad winter storms 2-3 times per season, and even when that does happens I've able to get around fine with my GTI that had A/S tires and FWD. I figure with AWD, I should be fine, too. Also, as eluded to above, I don't feel in a rush to get the summer tires back on in March, only to have another snow fall hit in late March or early April, making a summer-tire commute a bit dicey. 

We'll see how this theory ends up. :snowcool:


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## sr_erick (Mar 17, 2008)

I am going to need something a lot sooner than Dec / Jan. Early to mid November is when the snow starts falling here and I don't want to be stuck on summer tires in an ice storm like I was last year before I had a chance to put my winters on.

I will give ECS a call and see if they can verify any wheels that will fit the car.


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## sr_erick (Mar 17, 2008)

I've been in touch with Alzor Wheels and they say that these wheels should fit. http://www.ecstuning.com/ES2143421/

Seems very reasonable.


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## - Jeremy - (Feb 23, 2006)

Can someone measure the clearance between the face of the caliper and the back edge of the wheel? Hoping for at least 10-20mm.

- Jeremy -


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## Dr. Bill (May 15, 2011)

- Jeremy - said:


> Can someone measure the clearance between the face of the caliper and the back edge of the wheel? Hoping for at least 10-20mm.
> 
> - Jeremy -


It's 4.5mm on mine (from the face of the caliper to the back of the spokes). At least as far as I can tell - it's a very small area to get a caliper into and measure accurately. The tip of a pinky finger barely squeezes in there.


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## - Jeremy - (Feb 23, 2006)

Dr. Bill said:


> It's 4.5mm on mine (from the face of the caliper to the back of the spokes). At least as far as I can tell - it's a very small area to get a caliper into and measure accurately. The tip of a pinky finger barely squeezes in there.


Oh, ****. Definitely need to keep around a +50 offset then. Probably best to keep it at 52 like stock, just in case the spokes deform a bit on cornering.

You could use an 8" wheel with a +45 offset with a 5-10mm spacer to make it look good. This is approach I would take if I can't find a good looking 8", 52ET wheel.

- Jeremy -


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## sr_erick (Mar 17, 2008)

Just an update on what I did for TTRS owners looking for winter wheels. I did decide to go with the Alzor wheels I had eye'd up earlier this month for winter use.

http://www.alzorwheels.com/wheel-style-618/

I got the 18x8, ET45 set. I didn't know if they would fit, but they do. the ET35 would work perfect. In my case, the ET45 wheel does fit (at least this style does) but just barely. Actually, it is so close I would not recommend running this particular style wheel in ET45 without a spacer. With 5mm spacers they would work fine, but I had some 10.5mm spacers and they work perfectly in that setup. This allows for enough space for the wheel weights as needed.

As for the wheel quality, they seem top notch in my opinion. Just as good as any other replica wheel out there for the price. The internal diameter allows for a few mm of space between the calipers and the wheel.

For tires, I decided to run some Michelin Pilot Alpin PA3's this time around sized at 225/45R18.


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## m3cosmos (Apr 28, 2011)

I was thinking about the same thing but decided to buy the new Jeep Wrangler LOL! My WRX had 6" of clearance and i almost got stuck in my neighborhood roads and I cannot imagine the TTRS with less than 4". Great car for areas with light snow but if 6" of snow is likely i'd be carefull. 

I wouldn't advise anything in 18" unless it's OEM. THe problem with just clearing the calipers is rocks will end up scratching it all up. Just something to think about.


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## Tampavw (Nov 16, 2006)

http://forums.vwvortex.com/showthread.php?5449862-FS-Audi-A4-S-Line-with-Titanium-Package.


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## - Jeremy - (Feb 23, 2006)

http://www.ebay.de/itm/4-Alufelgen-...0859465133?pt=Auto_Felgen&hash=item336c3ffdad

I think I'm just going to get these for now. I really want the Alzor wheels from ECS in ET35, but the wait is too long. Besides, I can always get the Alzor's for next winter instead.

- Jeremy -


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## Michael Bee (Nov 4, 2004)

OEM wheels from your Audi dealer will fit the best.


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## sr_erick (Mar 17, 2008)

Michael Bee said:


> OEM wheels from your Audi dealer will fit the best.


1) Audi USA really dropped the ball. There are still no "official" winter wheel / tire packages available for the TTRS. Pretty stupid to sell a car around here without proper wheels to be used for winter.

2) Even if I can get OEM wheels in the size I want that fit, I'm not about to dish out $800+ per wheel just to have an OEM set. Replicas work just fine, especially for winter use. You just need to do enough research to know what you're buying will fit.


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## sr_erick (Mar 17, 2008)

- Jeremy - said:


> http://www.ebay.de/itm/4-Alufelgen-...0859465133?pt=Auto_Felgen&hash=item336c3ffdad
> 
> I think I'm just going to get these for now. I really want the Alzor wheels from ECS in ET35, but the wait is too long. Besides, I can always get the Alzor's for next winter instead.
> 
> - Jeremy -



They say they are available on the 15th of Dec. Is that different for you? Are you looking for a darker wheel? Here is what the replicas look like on my car. Same style as your eBay link, but brighter.


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## - Jeremy - (Feb 23, 2006)

sr_erick said:


> They say they are available on the 15th of Dec. Is that different for you? Are you looking for a darker wheel? Here is what the replicas look like on my car. Same style as your eBay link, but brighter.


Yeah, they say 15 Dec, but that's around the day that I expect to be picking up the car. Then they won't show up at my APO until January due to Christmas. I suppose I can drive on the summer tires until the wheels arrive but I've already waited so long for the car. With my luck, it will snow on the day I take delivery and stop on the day I install Winter tires. So I wanted to install the Winter tires on the day after I take delivery 

I suppose it's not a big deal. I can always take the bus or drive the Biggie Cooper on snow days. But, like I said, I'm pretty sure that the weather will turn to crap as soon as my car arrives for the duration that it's still on Summer tires. I guess I've already waited this long. A few more weeks won't kill me, right...? :screwy:

And, yeah. I wanted a darker wheel or the Titanium version of the OEM.

- Jeremy -


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## sr_erick (Mar 17, 2008)

Haha, I know how you feel!!! If you're really looking to drive once you get it, I'd have a set ready to go!


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## - Jeremy - (Feb 23, 2006)

By the way, I spent a few minutes in CAD to figure out acceptable offsets for winter wheels. This may not make much sense, but I just did it for myself so no explanation was required. I figured I'd share it and someone might find it semi-useful.

Black is stock 19x9" ET52. Red is 18x8" ET45. Green is 18x8" ET35.

Without knowing the true geometry of a wheel, it gives a rough idea of what should be possible for brake clearance. As was mentioned before, 18x8 ET45 is cutting it really close to the caliper. IMO, 18x8 ET35 is the safest size to use.

- Jeremy -


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## sr_erick (Mar 17, 2008)

Yes, for 18x8 wheels, ET35 should work most of the time, but the design of the wheel will ultimately determine if it fits or not. In most cases, it will be fine.

I used this offset calculator to determine how far the wheel would fit out vs. stock. It gave me some more confidence in purchasing.

http://www.1010tires.com/wheeloffsetcalculator.asp


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## - Jeremy - (Feb 23, 2006)

I couldn't wait any longer for ECS to get the Alzor 18x8 ET35's in stock. So I ordered some different wheels off German Ebay instead. They're replicas of the stock 18's in Europe with a satin gray finish. They call it Daytona Gray, which it might be, but it's not glossy. I'm actually really happy with them. I think they'll look good for winter wheels. I also ordered the Audi "spider" lugnut cover thingy and some metal 66.6 -> 57.1 center rings.

Details:

Mfg: Wheelworld
Model: WH11
Color: Daytona Gray (satin)
Size: 18" x 8"
Offset: ET35
CB: 66.6mm
Bolt: 112mm

- Jeremy -


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## Black BeauTTy (Jun 11, 2011)

Nice score! That could be a wicked winter setup for me. I've never gone monochromatic on a car. Shipping to US would leave a mark though.


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## DrDomm (Feb 16, 2003)

Here's a pic of the replicas I had on my TTS, now on the RS. These are 19x8.5.


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## - Jeremy - (Feb 23, 2006)

Well I've got the tires mounted and the center caps ready. Now I just need the ****ing car... :banghead:










- Jeremy -


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## Stevelev (Mar 4, 2004)

^ "LIKE"


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## aaronr (Mar 19, 2004)

*Borbet LV5's*

18x8 Et35 with 245/40-18 Blizzaks. Worked great today in the snow!

http://www.tirerack.com/wheels/Whee...V5&wheelFinish=Anthracite+Painted&showRear=no


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## parshi (Oct 31, 2012)

Nice Blue color... But I have already same wheels...


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## MoreGooderTT (Aug 20, 2011)

Here's a handy tool for checking out wheel offsets, clearance and such:
http://www.rimsntires.com/specs.jsp

Be careful. The lower the offset the further out the wheel will be. A 35 offset might be fine as far as rubbing goes, but you can't just add a spacer to put it to OEM spec of 52. You'd be going in the wrong direction. You would actually need to have the wheel machined down to accomplish that, which probably wouldn't make for a safe wheel.


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## kziggy (Oct 24, 2012)

*Ttrs wheels*

Just mounted (4) 18x8.5 5-112 ET38 Rial Sport Wheels with Blizzak 245/40R18 WS70's on my 2012 RS. They have plenty of clearance, look great and not a bad price for a winter set up.


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## keepryt (Aug 25, 2012)

Here's my nightmare with 19" winter wheels from tirerack. I ordered Enkei Tuning Raijin-19 in black, 19x8 with 255/35-19 tires. The first set was et45 and hit the front calipers. Returned those for the second set (et35) but they mounted one of the left side tires backwards. After fixing that I discovered this set rubs on the rear fenders when you hit a bump! 
Hopefully I can get this wheel in 18" that fits because they look awesome.


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## NamJa (Jul 31, 2012)

keepryt said:


> Here's my nightmare with 19" winter wheels from tirerack. I ordered Enkei Tuning Raijin-19 in black, 19x8 with 255/35-19 tires. The first set was et45 and hit the front calipers. Returned those for the second set (et35) but they mounted one of the left side tires backwards. After fixing that I discovered this set rubs on the rear fenders when you hit a bump!
> Hopefully I can get this wheel in 18" that fits because they look awesome.


This is the exact reason I just ordered wheels and tires from Audi; I don't have time for this! I'm willing to give up a bit of style (though not much; I like the Audi wheels) and perhaps a bit heavier wheel in order to have them fit for sure. Maybe when I retire I'll play around more with this kind of thing


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## keepryt (Aug 25, 2012)

NamJa said:


> This is the exact reason I just ordered wheels and tires from Audi; I don't have time for this! I'm willing to give up a bit of style (though not much; I like the Audi wheels) and perhaps a bit heavier wheel in order to have them fit for sure. Maybe when I retire I'll play around more with this kind of thing


Where can you get OEM 19"s for a decent price in the US?


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## i0n (Oct 29, 2012)

Has anyone considered Enkei RSM9s? They're almost identical to the stock wheels (only difference is an offset of +50 instead of +52), they look great, they're not too expensive, and best of all they only weigh 20 lbs each!


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## NamJa (Jul 31, 2012)

keepryt said:


> Where can you get OEM 19"s for a decent price in the US?


I wanted and bought 18's so I could get slightly taller tires for the winter. My concern was then the clearance of the rotors, since not all 18's will fit over them.

There's a guy on this board who will sell you OEM black rotor wheels for around $2k (I forget the exact price). I paid about $3.1k for the wheel/tire package. Not exactly cheap but again, I was looking for EASY!


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## ADK RS4 (Aug 16, 2007)

i got mine on tirerack. 18inch set came to 1600 shipped with wheels and tires. very very happy with the setup thus far. went through my first blizzard conditions this weekend up in the adirondacks. was perfect.


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## R5T (Apr 7, 2010)

sr_erick said:


> My current set of 18 inch winter wheels that I used on the TTS do not fit on the TTRS. They hit the front calipers. I am looking for an 18 by 8 inch wheel to run some 225 width winter tires on. Anyone have any ideas on where to look for wheels that will fit? Any input would be greatly appreciated.


Borbet LV5.


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## keepryt (Aug 25, 2012)

I got a set of 18x8 Enkei Tuning Raijins (et 35) today but they don't fit either. The wheels weights on the front touch the calipers and the rears rub during cornering. 
That's my 3rd set of wheels from tirerack that don't fit:banghead: 
I'm ordering the 18" Borbet LV5s, hopefully 4th time's a charm!


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## sentari (Dec 4, 2011)

I sent my 8 piston brake diagram to Neuspeed and they verified they would fit. And my brakes are likely far larger than the TT-RS.. Cheap, light and perfect for a few months in the winter. 


http://www.neuspeed.com/101/24/0/2500/880704s-rse07-light-weight-wheel.html#popUp[products]/2/


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## R5T (Apr 7, 2010)

- Jeremy - said:


> Well I've got the tires mounted and the center caps ready. Now I just need the ****ing car... :banghead:
> 
> 
> 
> ...


 What's wrong with the car. ?


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## pal (Aug 16, 2000)

Borbet LV5 pics on TTRS 

http://forums.quattroworld.com/tt2/msgs/24662.phtml 

http://forums.quattroworld.com/tt2/msgs/24659.phtml


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## R5T (Apr 7, 2010)

pal said:


> Borbet LV5 pics on TTRS
> 
> 
> 
> ...


 very cool picture, car has a very nice stance with the LV5's


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## keepryt (Aug 25, 2012)

I just got the Borbet LV5s in 18" et35 but the right rear rubs the fender which is odd since two other forum members have no problem with these. I wonder if there's something wrong with my car? The right rear only rubbed when I hit a large bump or took a tight left turn, specially uphill. I only drove it about 3 miles. The Enkei tuning raijin 19s and 18s also only rubbed the right rear. The stock 19s never rub however in the 3K miles I've had the car. Looks like I need to buy some stock wheels.


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## JohnLZ7W (Nov 23, 2003)

keepryt said:


> I just got the Borbet LV5s in 18" et35 but the right rear rubs the fender which is odd since two other forum members have no problem with these. I wonder if there's something wrong with my car? The right rear only rubbed when I hit a large bump or took a tight left turn, specially uphill. I only drove it about 3 miles. The Enkei tuning raijin 19s and 18s also only rubbed the right rear. The stock 19s never rub however in the 3K miles I've had the car. Looks like I need to buy some stock wheels.


Different tires will have different section widths too. It might just be that whatever tire you selected is just a tick wider and rubbing.


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## R5T (Apr 7, 2010)

keepryt said:


> I just got the Borbet LV5s in 18" et35 but the right rear rubs the fender which is odd since two other forum members have no problem with these. I wonder if there's something wrong with my car? The right rear only rubbed when I hit a large bump or took a tight left turn, specially uphill. I only drove it about 3 miles. The Enkei tuning raijin 19s and 18s also only rubbed the right rear. The stock 19s never rub however in the 3K miles I've had the car. Looks like I need to buy some stock wheels.


Tire make can be the cause of that.
Same size don't mean same widths, some tire build wider then others in the same size.


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## SheaAllan (Dec 14, 2012)

I'm having an issue with my TT RS winter wheel/tire setup and this seems to a decent thread discussing such.

I purchased these wheels:

http://www.replika.ca/component/pag...acturer_id,0/option,com_virtuemart/Itemid,55/

in 18x8.0 with a 45 offset with Yokohama Winter Drive 95V 225/45R18 tires.

They were balanced and mounted but when I drove the car I noticed a 'clicking' sound coming from the front left tire consistent with the rotation of the wheel. Turned out the weights used to balance were rubbing against the caliper. They moved the weights to the center of the wheel on all 4 tires so that they no longer hit the calipers, but when driven at speeds > 125km/h, I get a very noticeable vibration in the steering wheel and seat indicative of a tire imbalance.

Does it make sense that being unable to put the weights at that location would prevent a proper tire balance?

Are any of you aware of a wheel for which there is enough clearance between the TT-RS caliper and wheel for the balancing weights? I'd like to keep the tires if possible. (Although the dealer said I could return the whole setup because they did a test fit and gave it the ok before I bought them - they did the test fit without the wheel weights).

I like the look of the Borbet LV5's - would the tire I have work with those?


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