# Will 225/50R17's fit okay?



## huie1983 (Jan 15, 2013)

Guys, 

Picked up a set of 2012 17" GLI rims for my 2012 Sportwagen S to replace the 16" steelies/caps. 

Looks like 17's on the Sportwagen usually have 225/45r17 tires. To improve ride quality a bit would 225/50R17's fit okay? 


Thanks


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## 01jetta01 (Aug 15, 2009)

considering that you didn't drop you car and are at stock ride height then it should fit fine. although, now the tires will have a bigger circumference and your speedometer will be under/over reading your actual speed.


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## huie1983 (Jan 15, 2013)

Thanks 01Jetta, I'll keep the speed difference in mind. 

Do you guys think running a 50 series tire compared to a 4 series will make a improvement on ride quality? The selection of 50 series is not as great as 40 and cost a bit more... 

Thanks again


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## Airy32 (Nov 15, 2007)

I'm not a Mk6 expert but, that may be a little too much increase in diameter to work - nearly a full inch larger. I know on a Mk4 it would be too tall. Another option would be to try a 235/45. It would give you a bit more sidewall without going too far. And yes, any increase in sidewall height would make some improvement in ride quality. Sometimes the load index will increase when changing tire size also which might affect ride as well but that will vary by tire brand/model, as will sidewall stiffness in general. 

I would never worry much about speedo accuracy as they all read a few % high from the factory. You could go up quite a bit in size before it would throw it off to the point it would indicate slower than actual speed.


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## 01jetta01 (Aug 15, 2009)

huie1983 said:


> Do you guys think running a 50 series tire compared to a 4 series will make a improvement on ride quality? The selection of 50 series is not as great as 40 and cost a bit more...
> 
> Thanks again


I think u meant a 45 series. From my experience a quality brand tire will have better ride quality than a cheaper brand. 50 series is only one size up from 45 series so it would generally depends on what tire u planned on getting. 

Considering that both 50 series and 45 series are the same brand and type of tires then the 45 series will be a bit harsh due to the smaller sidewall but u'll get used to it after a while. Tirerack.com offers reviews from customers so that's a site to go to. IMO I wouldn't worry too much about the 50 series vs 45 series unless u have a bad back or old; I would look more into the quality brand.


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## huie1983 (Jan 15, 2013)

01Jetta- you are correct, I meant a 45 series tire, was typing without my morning coffee!  

I don't mind a firm ride so I think I am going to stick with a 45 series that has received good reviews. From what I have read so far the Continental DWS are a good bang for the buck. 

If anyone else has real world experience running a 50 series I'd love to hear it!


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## afawal2012 (Jan 9, 2013)

huie1983 said:


> 01Jetta- you are correct, I meant a 45 series tire, was typing without my morning coffee!
> 
> I don't mind a firm ride so I think I am going to stick with a 45 series that has received good reviews. From what I have read so far the Continental DWS are a good bang for the buck.
> 
> If anyone else has real world experience running a 50 series I'd love to hear it!


Do you have a separate set of winter tires?

If so, I would go with the Conti DW. Awesome tires, and I don't think the price difference is too big.


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## huie1983 (Jan 15, 2013)

Yep, I have a set of Bridgestone Blizzak WS-70's on the stock steel rims. That was my main reason for picking up the 17's, so I don't have to swap tires back and forth. Plus, they look WAY better. 

Also if anyone is wondering about the Blizzak's. For the price, I'd go with the General Artimax winters instead. Honestly for how much the Blizzak's are and the technology they claim to pack in them, they sure aren't as grippy as I thought they'd be. They do the job but just marginally better than an all season in my book...


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## hop2it (Jul 6, 2010)

they should fit ok, However the rule of thumb is that you shouldn't go more than a 3% diference in diameter. You would be at 3.5%. Your speedometer will read 65 and you will actually be doing 67.3. type in tire size change and go to tacoma world they have a nice chart for this. stay away from the DWS, I had then on my 225/45/17 and kept getting tire bulges hitting very small road imperfections. This did not help on my 16inchers.


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