Has Anyone Got A Spare Set Of 16" Alloys For A Mkiii?

[Scorpiorefugee]

I took this thing out for a trip yesterday and the wife was almost physically sick because of the bouncing about. OK! The roads round here can be a bit rough but it was never like this.

Bl00dy Fords! :10:  :10:

[gregers]

are yours 18's?

i know with mine they some times tram line.

[Scorpiorefugee]

No mate. Just 17" with what seem to be solid rubber (Run Flat) tyres.Slightly better in the Summer but awful in the Winter. I am seriously considering a new set of 16" and normal tyres or normal tyres on the 17" even though the current ones still have 4 or 5 mm. Either way, row 3 seats are going to have to come out to make space for a spare. They're pretty well useless anyway. It is getting seriously embarrassing to ask people to get into it. The daft thing is that most of the problems seem to come from what the lunatics consider to be improvements about 2 years ago.

[davewill]

Hi  My "new Gal"  (13 plate Titanium, with 17") rides quite well really. Its not got run flats on, just the factory fitted Goodyear 225 50 R17

 

Maybe changing from run flats to "normals" will help? 

[Scorpiorefugee]

Thanks Dave, That's the first bit of encouraging information I've had. One thing puzzles me. I thought run flats were standard fitting now. However, from what you say I think it is well worth taking that path first. 

The 2 tyre fitters I have used exclusively for the past 40 years have both advised against the change without a spare and then we start that argument all over again. I'm happy to get rid of row 5 and buy a matching wheel & tyre but didn't want to set off in the wrong direction first. 

Ron.

[gregers]

ive got a full sized alloy spare,strapped to 1 of the middle seats,most of the time my rear most seats are folded down,but i wouldnt take them out just in case i need it as a 7 seater,make sure you get a decent lifting weight jack etc.

mine are just normal tyres but they are 18"s.

[Scorpiorefugee]

Thanks Gregers, I think I'll just get a couple of Avons on the back first. They always gave a smooth quiet ride with loads of mileage on the MKII & MKI. No hurry yet - I want to get the throttle problem fixed and some more cushions for the bl00dy seats first. I got one made for the drivers "Sports seat" which has made it a lot more pleasant to drive so I might just keep it yet.

[gregers]

wouldve thought your piles might of given you a bit more support?

 

i am surprised you find it really uncomfortable,

wonder if chrispy's is the same,i dont think it is as im sure he wouldve posted similar findings as yourself.

ive never driven 1 so i really havnt got anything to compare,

but there were differences between my smax and the missus 1.

hers had standard wheels and mines running 18's,but general consensus was,that both cars were generally very comfy.

[chrispb123456]

Am sure it is posted on here somewhere, is definitely on the other popular sites.

Low profile tyres allways going to be very precise on the steering but down on the comfort, that coupled with the hard seats gives an uncomfortable ride on some of our not so good A roads.

Talking about spare wheels do we really need one, can agree with all the for an against arguments but in reality I had my MK2 for nearly 8 years now it's been passed down to my eldest daughter, in that time the spare wheels only been off the car once to fit the towbar.

 

The Mk3 has had a slow puncture which I lived with for a few months but as it's a Motability car and has just had a new tyre fitted by kwik fit for nothing (all part of the Motability scheme) so personally I would go without the spare, tyre company's are all geared up to do roadside/home changes, alright it may cost you if your unlucky enough to get a flat, but carrying a spare wheel in the back with a jack and wheel brace clanking about cause there's no real place for it for me is a no no.

[Scorpiorefugee]

Thanks Chris, all good comments which I agree with. My main concern with the spare argument is that on the rare occasions when I have needed one it has been a case of needing a spare wheel with no other option and the lack of one would have meant a very costly and inconvenient alternative. 

On a more general issue, My choice of vehicle may seem a little OTT as we are retired and hardly ever need more than the front seats and space for luggage and two sets of golf gear. Having done around 250K in MKI and MKII in 7 years and enjoyed being able to drive one around for up to 16 hours a day with no fatigue the choice was inevitable. I did look around at other makes/models but I had difficulty getting into most because of sloping roof lines and the other options were ugly 4WD brutes so in the end there was little choice. Sadly, when it comes to comfort, relaxed driving, ride quality, fuel consumption and general cabin ambiance, the MKIII is a country mile behind the earlier versions but still better than the competition so that seems to be the trend.

All in all, I guess it's tyres, cushions and rose coloured glasses then put up and shut up. 

[Scorpiorefugee]

Good news at last. Now that the winter festivities are out of the way I finally got around to doing something about the tyres. Back wheels done first and than a repeat of the journey as reported at the beginning of this topic. The difference was astounding and the wife came home with a smile on her face instead of looking decidedly green. Back this morning for the fronts and it's almost as good as the old MKI.

Gregers did comment about tramlining and I had only been a bit aware of this but yesterday (before the fronts were done) on a flat piece of road it suddenly decided that it would rather like to have an intimate conversation with a gate post and nearly wrenched the wheel out of my hands. (2 handed full fist grip!)

I now have 4 new tyres (Landsail) for much the same price of one of the awful runflats, all of which are now on the tyre fitter's dump still with 5mm of tread.

 

Hopefully, with a few cushions I can now get my passengers out of the Picasso and back into a Galaxy.

[gregers]

thats good news m8ty.

[Scorpiorefugee]

Thanks Gregers. It's almost as good as a LWB Transit now so progress at last. :lol:  :lol:  :lol:

[gregers]

unnerving when it tram lines though aint it ;)

mind you i only thought it would effect bigger wheels,maybe its the strengthened side walls of the run flats??

[Scorpiorefugee]

Gregers,

It was your comment about tramlining which made me realise just how bad the steering was. I hated driving the thing because, quite apart from the stalling and a horrible throttle/clutch feeling which always made me feel like a learner driver, I was always conscious that it needed constant attention to avoid ending up wandering off line or out of lane. The steering seems very high geared which does not lend itself to comfortable long distance travel and that combined with the run flats and rock hard seating meant that we were only using it to store the golf equipment and take us to the golf course 3 miles away. The new tyres have improved it immensely but it is still a very long way behind the old MK1 and the second row seats are little better than a park bench. It was encouraging to read that there had been some updates to improve the turbo lag etc. but it will have to go a long way to compete with the smooth progressive power and economy from the MKII 115 unit.

 

My son brought my old MKII Ghia over for Xmas and I took it for a little drive. He had to drag me out of it!

 

I read a report that someone claimed it was a lot better than his Audi Q something or other. It doesn't say much for Audis does it? 

Edited January 19, 2014 by Scorpiorefugee

[gregers]

I read a report that someone claimed it was a lot better than his Audi Q something or other. It doesn't say much for Audis does it? 

 

er no it certainly doesnt.

[Scorpiorefugee]

This does get better. I have just returned from a 250 mile round trip on mixed roads. I said earlier that the change of tyres had improved the ride and steering. Today has proved just how bad the run flats were. The car now feels totally different and I found myself going into bends now with a feeling of confidence that I haven't experienced since I handed over my old MKII and that is on the cheapest replacements available. I now realise that the car with the run flats was actually dangerously unstable on anything but a dead smooth dry surface. I had tried them at the recommended pressures and above and below.but there was no stage when the car felt safe. The tyres when discarded were still with 4-5 mm tread undamaged and evenly worn. My next step is to go back to the fitters to check the make but I believe they were fitted as original equipment as the car had only 8000 miles when I bought it and has done less than 4000 since.

Run Flat tyres on these Galaxys are seriously dangerous and should be banned!!!!

[Scorpiorefugee]

A last comment on this.

The run flat tyres which I scrapped were Goodyears, a make I've always avoided based on experience many years ago although the old G800s in the late 60s were brilliant in snow. 

The overall ride is still much improved albeit still very firm and hoppy. I think this may be partly due to the increase to 225 from 215 on the MKII and 205 on the MKI.

This could also be a factor in the fuel consumption as the MKI was by far the best and the ride was also better as was the tyre life. Strangely, the all round road holding and confident feel also seemed better in the MKI, especially in conditions other than dry and smooth. The final insult is that the tyres were about half the price but I suppose it's all in the name of progress. :5:  :5: