VW Polo : Tyre & wheel upgrade thread

[e-katz]

Hi All,

I have a 2011 Polo Trendline with stock tyres - JK Vectra 175/70/R14. I would like to upgrade my tyres as well as my rims to alloys. Need clarifications on the following:

1. What tyre size is recommended? Is 185/60/ R15 the right upsize?
2. Will there be a substantial difference in ride comfort or fuel economy if i move to alloys? Otherwise I would just want to upsize the steel rims to 15".

Please share your thoughts.

Thanks!

[mohandasnikhil]

Originally Posted by e-katz

Hi All,

I have a 2011 Polo Trendline with stock tyres - JK Vectra 175/70/R14. I would like to upgrade my tyres as well as my rims to alloys. Need clarifications on the following:

1. What tyre size is recommended? Is 185/60/ R15 the right upsize?
2. Will there be a substantial difference in ride comfort or fuel economy if i move to alloys? Otherwise I would just want to upsize the steel rims to 15".

Please share your thoughts.

Thanks!

As quoted by me earlier in the forum I upgraded to 195/60 R15s Yokohoma ES 100. The car has seen a definite improvement in the handling department feeling much more planted around corners. The Polo steering has felt too light for me always, and the fatter rubber stiffens this up a wee bit, which I prefer. There is hardly a noticeable difference in the FE department, but because this car is primarily the missus' drive I haven't checked exactly how much of a dip in FE the tyres have caused. But I really think the upgrade is worth it. I changed to alloys as well, and ride comfort remains similar to 14" steel rims. So even if you don't go with alloys apart from the looks department there isn't much difference.

[e-katz]

Originally Posted by mohandasnikhil

As quoted by me earlier in the forum I upgraded to 195/60 R15s Yokohoma ES 100. The car has seen a definite improvement in the handling department feeling much more planted around corners. The Polo steering has felt too light for me always, and the fatter rubber stiffens this up a wee bit, which I prefer. There is hardly a noticeable difference in the FE department, but because this car is primarily the missus' drive I haven't checked exactly how much of a dip in FE the tyres have caused. But I really think the upgrade is worth it. I changed to alloys as well, and ride comfort remains similar to 14" steel rims. So even if you don't go with alloys apart from the looks department there isn't much difference.

Thanks Nikhil, please share the price details for the tyres and alloys (brand/model as well).

[gkoneti]

Michelin launched 185/60 15 size in XM2 model. Time to celebrate. Hyderabad quoted prices are 5100 per piece. Hankook also has this size. Price quoted 3800. Goodyear DP series seems to be improved now and the company is trying to push this model for this size. Prices are around 3600.

I think 185/60 is a good size for polo and believe this is a proper size. Only issue was with apollo tyres.

Bridgestone b250 model is 4750 and er300 is 4850. Now this is decent range for Polo. Happy motoring. I am planning to change my stock apollo tyres which ran for 36000km and need change. Michelin would be my choice. But will try for better prices. If you know somebody with good prices, let me know.

[mohandasnikhil]

Originally Posted by e-katz

Thanks Nikhil, please share the price details for the tyres and alloys (brand/model as well).

Can't remember the exact prices, but if I'm not mistaken the entire alloys and wheel package ended up costing me around 31k. The alloys were Prestige (Chinese) but have the VW Monogram on the centre cap.

[e-katz]

Originally Posted by gkoneti

Michelin launched 185/60 15 size in XM2 model. Time to celebrate. Hyderabad quoted prices are 5100 per piece. Hankook also has this size. Price quoted 3800. Goodyear DP series seems to be improved now and the company is trying to push this model for this size. Prices are around 3600.

I think 185/60 is a good size for polo and believe this is a proper size. Only issue was with apollo tyres.

Bridgestone b250 model is 4750 and er300 is 4850. Now this is decent range for Polo. Happy motoring. I am planning to change my stock apollo tyres which ran for 36000km and need change. Michelin would be my choice. But will try for better prices. If you know somebody with good prices, let me know.

Are you putting this on stock rims? Or are you going to upgrade to alloys? Please share your buying experience

[gkoneti]

Originally Posted by e-katz

Are you putting this on stock rims? Or are you going to upgrade to alloys? Please share your buying experience

Hi I already have 15 inch alloys on my car. Finally went with Goodyear DP series. But beware of the version of tyre you are buying. It seems there are many OEM DP series tyres originally made for Etios, Manza, Vista, Polo are floating in the market. These are T rated tyres. There are better H rated tyres available. Since these oem tyres are cheap dealers seem to be buying them in big lots and selling them at 3500 per piece.

Would love to try Michelin next time. I got an final offer of 5100 per piece for xm2. Having said that DP series is also good. For city driving there wouldn't be much noticeable difference.

[shireeshjacobs]

Hi,

May seem a daft laddy question, but wanted to check if these wheels would be ok on my 2011 Polo comfortline

17" Ten hole 100/114 PCD Alloy wheels

The ad says it will fit Polo, but i'm not sure.

I'm actually keen on wide tyres (i.e. width of the tread area).

Also, I don't care about low profile tyres, any thickness is ok.

Any thoughts? I know the good advice is to stick with highline version of tyres, but if i was looking for a wheel and tyre upgrade, what is the maximum width I could go without damaging the tyres/ car in anyway

[abattoir]

So I had upgraded to 205/60/14 on my Polo TDI. I have done 10k kms post the change. Here is a picture. 205 fits well and provides good ride quality if anyone is contemplating.

[Chiro]

Hi,
I have a 2011 Polo 1.6 and planning on upgrading the tires. Read this thread and still somehow confused as to which size to go for. I see other members have upgraded to both 195/60 and 195/55. Any feedback on how the experience is post this upgrade? Is the nosie quotient same or it increases?

Any feedback will be helpful

[noopster]

I changed the stock Aceleres to 195/60R15 Yoko dB series after 31,000 km on my Vento. It is a marginal upsize of 10mm but it does the job. Noise depends on the tyre quality as well and I have not had a problem now going on 20,000 km.

Fellow member Amey has upgraded to 205/55R15 Yoko S drives and says that they are a very good size to counteract the rather light steering of the Vento. However because these are "sporty" tyres they tend to get a bit noisier later in life.

You cannot really go wrong with A drives or dB if you're opting for Yoko: both are comfort-oriented and fairly noiseless.

[F2005]

Hi All,
I am getting my Polo 1.5 TDI highline next week. It comes with 185/60 tires.
Planning to upgrade to 205/55 Yoko S drives.
Please let me a shop in Bangalore which takes the stock tires and provides a competitive price for the Yokos.

[bharatsomany]

Although I cannot help you find a shop in Bangalore, I thought I'd point out that you could also consider 205/55R16.
It's a standard size for the Jetta and has much better tyre options and ready availability too.
7x16 wheels would be a good match if you are considering this.

[F2005]

Thanks, I went to Madhus and changed to 205/55 R15.. The car looks sexy now

[bharatsomany]

Originally Posted by F2005

Thanks, I went to Madhus and changed to 205/55 R15.. The car looks sexy now

F2005,
What did the set cost? and what value did you get for trade-in?