# Very Important Q7 wheel/tire info.



## ProjectA3 (Aug 12, 2005)

Our service manager went to his training class about the Q7 and he has this to report about going with bigger wheels/tires on the Q7.
If the Q7 comes from the factory with 18's or 19's you CANNOT upgrade to a wheel/tire that is larger than it came with from the factory. Audi is saying it boils down to suspension geometry and all kinds of in-depth things.
So if you get an 18" wheel, you can go to aftermarket, but it cannot be larger than 18". If you go 19" from the factory you cannot go larger than 19" with an aftermarket wheel.
But if you order the Q7 with 20" wheels you will be able to go to a larger 21 or 22" wheel as long as the rolling diameter is the same as the 20" 275/45/20 tire. So you could theoretically do a 21" in a 275/40/21 or a 22 in a 275/35/22 that should give you the same rolling diameters as stock (if my logic is correct).
What i don't understand is that the 15% of the parts the Q shares with the VW and Porsche, 95% of that 15% is suspension and brakes. So if you can go larger wheels on a VW or Cayenne, why would it be so different to do it on a Q7?
but just thought i would let prospective buyers and other dealers know of this.


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## 993 (Nov 15, 2005)

My Audi rep said a similar thing, too. When I placed my order last month, there were already few available Q7s heading towards my dealership, but they had 19" wheels. I wanted 20" and asked if I could just add the 20s when these cars arrived. He said they couldn't do it for reasons you just explained. I find it a bit odd.


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## QUATTR0 (Dec 1, 2005)

*Re: Very Important Q7 wheel/tire info. (ProjectA3)*

That makes no sense... i think it's just a marketing ploy to get you to order the 20" wheels from Audi.


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## V10 (Nov 15, 2004)

*Re: Very Important Q7 wheel/tire info. (QUATTR0)*


_Quote, originally posted by *QUATTR0* »_That makes no sense... i think it's just a marketing ploy to get you to order the 20" wheels from Audi.

If the overall diameter of the tire/wheel combination is the same...+1, +2, +3... then there should be no issue. If the 20" tire/wheel combination is a different rolling diameter then they may have made adjustments to the alignment to compensate...also if the tires are significantly wider on the 20's then there also could be some adjustments to alignment... Even if this is the case if you do swap to 20" you could certainly get an alignment to take care of any of this...


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## 993 (Nov 15, 2005)

*Re: Very Important Q7 wheel/tire info. (QUATTR0)*

Quattro wrote:
That makes no sense... i think it's just a marketing ploy to get you to order the 20" wheels from Audi.
Actually, I tried to order the 20" rims from Audi but they said they couldn't do it. Again, it does seem a bit odd.


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## TRegKnowItAll (Oct 2, 2003)

*Re: Very Important Q7 wheel/tire info. (993)*

I have ZERO confirmation from both my service department and those who have attended the Audi Q7 training...


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## AudiMechanic (Nov 28, 2005)

I have been to Q7 training and it is true. We were told that with the 20's your ok to go bigger. If you have the 18 or 19 and want to go to 20+ you need the spacer. Nothing was mentioned about going from the 18 to the 19.
When upgrading there is a spacer that needs to be installed between the rack and pinion and the tie rod itself. Its about 1/4" thick and is more or less a washer. According to the person leading our training course there are issues with rubbing when going to the 20's from the 18's or 19's. This spacer just keeps the wheels from traveling as far as they normally would, but without hurting the turning radius enough to notice it.


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## ProjectA3 (Aug 12, 2005)

*Re: (AudiMechanic)*

It has been figured out.
We just put a set of 22" 285/35/22's Giovanna wheels on our demo Q7. rolling diameter is the same.
cars coming in with stock 18" wheels will have to have the suspension readjustment. But vehicles with 19 or 20" wheels can get by without the suspension readjustments.


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## FineProperty (Feb 6, 2006)

*Re: 20's to 19's for winter*

My thinking would be that there wouldn't need to be an adjustment to go the other direction...20's ordered, then 19's in winter. You'd have extra clearance in the wheel well. Am I missing something?


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## ProjectA3 (Aug 12, 2005)

*Re: 20's to 19's for winter (FineProperty)*

i just looked at the new Q7 accessory catalog today.
there is actually a $14 item that are labeled something like "steering blocks" and it says for 19 or 20" wheels on cars ordered with 18" wheels. maybe its just to give more room for the car to turn without any rubbing?


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## TRegKnowItAll (Oct 2, 2003)

*Re: (ProjectA3)*



ProjectA3 said:


> It has been figured out.
> We just put a set of 22" 285/35/22's Giovanna wheels on our demo Q7. rolling diameter is the same.QUOTE]
> Lets see some pictures


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## audi_danny (Feb 12, 2003)

*Re: (TRegKnowItAll)*

you can put larger wheels on. but you need to strip down the rack to put in the spacers. aparently a 5 hour job to do. a lad i worked with got back from his Q7 training today and was talking about it. unfortunatly finished working there toady and cant ask any more questions.


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