20" Wheels on A5- thoughts?

[Stratman22]

This is a great forum!

Hello! I was hoping to get some feedback from other A5 owners on putting 20" wheels on their cars. I have a 13' A5 non sline with standard 18" wheels (245/40/18) currently. I want to put on some OEM Audi 20" wheels either (275/35/20 or 255/35/20).

I'm hoping I can get your thoughts on a few things I've read from searching this forum about putting on 20" wheels. I'm mostly worried changing the rolling radius this much is going to negatively effect my ABS, Quattro and suspension. The car is still under warranty and I don't want to mess with dealing with warranty issues. Is it suggested to put on the stock wheels before I do any service at the dealer? Has anyone noticed problems with their ABS, Quattro or suspension running 20''s? I spoke with my dealer and of course they all but said no, don't do it.

I understand it's going to lower my gas mileage, but is it significant? I'm going with OEM Audi wheels so they aren't reps that will weigh a ton, but I'm sure the will be heavier than my 18"s. I'm also prepared for the fact the ride will be a bit harsher and my speedometer will be off up to 5mph, does that also mess with the odometer? Will it read more miles or less miles than I've really traveled? That seems like that would be a bad thing over the time, either reading more miles or less miles traveled. Lastly, running 275 wide tires in the front, I shouldn't get any rubbing, correct?

I'm not a performance guy, I just love the look of a 20" on our cars so the loss in performance doesn't bother me. It's my daily driver, to and from work kinda driving.

If anyone has any ideas or thoughts on this, I'd love the feedback!

[Sweep]

I'm running 20x10.5 275/35/20. I have not had issues with abs or Quattro. Many others have run the same setup. Also have gone to the dealer with aftermarket wheels without problems.

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[T_Glass_27]

Im running 20x10.5 Niche wheels all around at a 27mm offset. 285/30R20 Nitto 555 G2 tires. Im lowered on coilovers pretty far and have some very minor rubs on hard turns with bumps.

[aboone]

These dealers.....clueless..smh! Do it, you will be fine. People have been swapping out and running OEM 19's and 20's for almost 10 years. The main thing to consider is the condition of the roads in your area. If they are pretty bad (potholes, uneven pavement, etc.) or there is a lot of construction then you might want to pass on 20's and go with 19's.


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[Vanimal]

20x10 on 275/30/20 tires. The VFF-103 wheels were "made" for the S5/A5. You'll be fine. Just don't put a larger wheel/tire in the rear apposed to the front. Keep the the same size and the Quattro will be fine . 100's of people here run 20" wheels.

Tell the dealer to stick to stealing people's money. They are good at that, not info on modding cars lol.

100's of people here run 20" wheels. The RS5 comes with 20" wheels stock. My S5 had 19" wheels stock and they looked small to me on the larger body of the 5. 20" wheels fit it perfect, not even close to being dub'd out.






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[yjypm]

Changing your rolling radius only affects the speedometer. ABS and Quattro can only be affected if you run staggered wheel+tire sizes. For example, running 245/30/20 front and 275/30/20 rear can damage your Quattro in the long run due to different rolling resistances and diameters between f/r axles.

[Stratman22]

Thank you! The A5 just look stellar with 20's, it balances out the big body and fenders. Thanks for the photos too! Y'all have killer A5's.

Agreed, I wouldn't run a staggered wheel, same size all around.

Larger rolling radius doesn't effect my odometer then? Just speedometer? I guess I assumed if it effects one it would effect the other.

I was worried about rubbing issue but I've heard that the wheel well on A5's are huge and can take a pretty damn wide tire. Sounds like I'll have no issues there either.

[Sweep]

Thank you! The A5 just look stellar with 20's, it balances out the big body and fenders. Thanks for the photos too! Y'all have killer A5's.

Agreed, I wouldn't run a staggered wheel, same size all around.

Larger rolling radius doesn't effect my odometer then? Just speedometer? I guess I assumed if it effects one it would effect the other.

I was worried about rubbing issue but I've heard that the wheel well on A5's are huge and can take a pretty damn wide tire. Sounds like I'll have no issues there either.

It will affect the odometer slightly since the diameter is larger the distance you travel per wheel rotation is also larger. This means that the odometer will be slightly less than actual distance traveled. Good for resale 😜


And yes no issues with rubbing and I'm slightly lowered. The suspension thread is a good resource to see how far people dropped without rubbing
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[jjh2oman]

Just to be clear, you can have 20" wheels with the exact same rolling radius. I'm not understanding why people keep saying the rolling radius is larger, unless you are not choosing appropriate tires to maintain the same rolling radius. With proper tires, zero change in odometer, zero change in speedometer.

[Stratman22]

Just to be clear, you can have 20" wheels with the exact same rolling radius. I'm not understanding why people keep saying the rolling radius is larger, unless you are not choosing appropriate tires to maintain the same rolling radius. With proper tires, zero change in odometer, zero change in speedometer.

My rolling radius would change, since I was running my stock wheels (245/40/18) and want to go larger with a (275/35/20 or 255/35/20). Correct?

[Stratman22]

It will affect the odometer slightly since the diameter is larger the distance you travel per wheel rotation is also larger. This means that the odometer will be slightly less than actual distance traveled. Good for resale 😜


And yes no issues with rubbing and I'm slightly lowered. The suspension thread is a good resource to see how far people dropped without rubbing
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Thanks for that explanation, I was thinking it would be better for me in resale if the odometer would read less, but I wanted to make sure I keep with my regular service schedule. I could probably calculate how many miles it's technically "off" so I can keep with my schedule.

[jmeenach]

My rolling radius would change, since I was running my stock wheels (245/40/18) and want to go larger with a (275/35/20 or 255/35/20). Correct?

https://tiresize.com/calculator/

[Sweep]

By the way Typo earlier. You will want 275/30/20, not 275/35/20. That's about 3% difference in circumference. I believe +/-3% from oem is ok. Don't go beyond that though

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[Feryunda]

I have HRE FF01 - 20x10.5 - et35 with 285/30/20 (Continental DSW). Also I have 5mm (f) and 7mm(r) spacers and no rubbing under any circumstances. Not even in my very sloped driveway. I have them for more than a year now....

What I like the better is the weight of the wheel/tire, being that big, didn't increase that much when I switched from my 18" (18x8.5) OEM. Just 2 ponds per corner and that is when I weighted the new HREs with new tires vs the OEM with half live OEM continental tires.



OEM 18" Wheels & Used tires:



HRE's and new tires:

[jjh2oman]

It doesn't always change coming from a lower size wheel, which is what I was trying to get at, it depends on the wheel/tire combo. Now in your case yes it would be larger coming from 18 with that tire,25.72 diameter, you'll have a larger radius (around 26-27) with no problems with ABS, Quattro, or suspension. Your speedo will be off a minor amount as others have mentioned. Coming from 19"s it isn't an issue finding appropriate 20" tire/wheel combos that maintain the same radius. Also the stock 20" tire is 275/30/20 for a 26.5 rolling diameter.

[Stratman22]

By the way Typo earlier. You will want 275/30/20, not 275/35/20. That's about 3% difference in circumference. I believe +/-3% from oem is ok. Don't go beyond that though

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I was worried about that. The rims I want come with 275/35/20 tires. Originally I wanted to go with 255/35/20, which was still over that 3% difference. I wanted a bit more meat on the wheel for ride comfort, so I was hoping to only drop from a 40mm to 35mm sidewall.

I get differing information on what I can change the rolling radius to. I've heard less that 1%, less than 3%, less than 5% is the way to go. I'm not even clear as to what bad things will happen to my car if the rolling radius is 5-7% larger? If it's just a speedo difference I'm ok with that, if it's going to hurt more of the mechanics and the longevity of the car then I'm more concerned.

Would it be better to go with a 19" and then just lower the suspension?

[Sweep]

Where are you getting this wheel/tire from? Can you just mount the proper sized tires and sell the 275/35/20s?

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[jjh2oman]

I was worried about that. The rims I want come with 275/35/20 tires. Originally I wanted to go with 255/35/20, which was still over that 3% difference. I wanted a bit more meat on the wheel for ride comfort, so I was hoping to only drop from a 40mm to 35mm sidewall.

I get differing information on what I can change the rolling radius to. I've heard less that 1%, less than 3%, less than 5% is the way to go. I'm not even clear as to what bad things will happen to my car if the rolling radius is 5-7% larger? If it's just a speedo difference I'm ok with that, if it's going to hurt more of the mechanics and the longevity of the car then I'm more concerned.

Would it be better to go with a 19" and then just lower the suspension?

Stick with the 20"s if you like that wheel, you'll kick yourself if you don't, just adjust your tire size. I used 265/30/20 Michelin PSS tires on my 20X10" wheels without any harsh ride. Most 19"s look small on the A5, but there are some that you'd swear are 20" and look really good. I've always heard 3% too. Btw, I calculated the mileage difference between the 18"s you have now and the 275/30/20's and it would be 151.63 more miles per 5,000 mile oil change.

[Stratman22]

I'd like to go with the S5/RS5 rotor wheels. Some say the 19" look like 20's since there is a lot of space in-between the 5 arm rotors. I've seen pictures of the 20's rotors and love how they look. But I love how the 20's looks. I've asked the guy that is selling them and he doesn't want to separate the wheels and tires buy I suppose I could sell the 275/35/20's and get the proper size. It sounds like I really need to go with a 30 sidewall though.

150 miles for every 5K isn't too bad. I'll only be running them during the spring/summer/fall.

If I go with a larger than 3% difference in rolling radius will I tell the difference or just the speedo/odometer? I wonder if the larger size will add too much stress to the whole wheel assembly?

It sounds like I have to find the right tire to keep that rolling radius under 3% difference is what I'm gathering.....

[jjh2oman]

I think you'll like the 275/30/20 looks as far as sidewall not being too chunky and not being too stretched, plus it's an easy to find size people have plenty of used ones for sale all the time, it's also within the 3% for whatever reason difference we hear about (haha, I'm not sure what bad stuff happens above 3%). You can get those and not worry, just drive the car and admire the beauty.

[marguello1220]

Stock 2016 S5 wheels 265/30 tires on my A5. I am lowered on H&R coils.

[Mops@Nemesis]

^That looks really good!

I did not read, but I've run 10-12 sets of 20" on the 5. I ran a 255/35 once, 265/30 once and 275/30 on the rest. Tons of pics in the Flickr link below.

[bamisthekey]

hey guys im kinda new here. i want to change my stock wheel and tires from 18-20. i found a package that i like and the wheel size is 20x8.5 and the tire is 265/30R20. is that good? also do i need spacers to have that "look" where are you guys buying your packages? im on carid right now. if there is any online shop better please let me know. thanks!

[Sweep]

hey guys im kinda new here. i want to change my stock wheel and tires from 18-20. i found a package that i like and the wheel size is 20x8.5 and the tire is 265/30R20. is that good? also do i need spacers to have that "look" where are you guys buying your packages? im on carid right now. if there is any online shop better please let me know. thanks!

Mops will hook you up for wheels and tires! Also we will need to know what the offset is on the wheels to determine what spacers you need.

[Mops@Nemesis]

hey guys im kinda new here. i want to change my stock wheel and tires from 18-20. i found a package that i like and the wheel size is 20x8.5 and the tire is 265/30R20. is that good? also do i need spacers to have that "look" where are you guys buying your packages? im on carid right now. if there is any online shop better please let me know. thanks!

8.5 is quite weak, but 265 on 8.5 is a great look. You'll certainly need spacers, but like Sweep said, we need the offset. It will be listed as et22 or +22 for example.

[bamisthekey]

thanks for the reply! what do you mean by weak? here are the specs (20" x 8.5", +35 Offset, 5x112 Bolt Pattern, 72mm Hub) also im going to lower my car with H&R springs

[Mops@Nemesis]

thanks for the reply! what do you mean by weak? here are the specs (20" x 8.5", +35 Offset, 5x112 Bolt Pattern, 72mm Hub) also im going to lower my car with H&R springs

Weak meaning with width it narrow, sorry. 8.5 ET32 is stock spec for example. So these wheels are already 3mm less, meaning they'll be 3mm more inset into the wheels wells than a stock wheel. You'd want 15mm front and 20mm rear spacers with those. A 9.5-10" width would be a better fit, but if you love these wheels, those are the spacers you'll want. You'll also need centering rings, as your car has a 66.6mm hub.

[bamisthekey]

oh wow i didn't know that. theres also a size 20x10 on the wheels im looking. it doesnt come with tpms tho so i dont know if that is really important? the other option is 20x10 5-114.3 with a 25 offset. its $500 more but is that better? do i still need the spacers and centering rings? and should i stay 265 or go 275?

[Mops@Nemesis]

oh wow i didn't know that. theres also a size 20x10 on the wheels im looking. it doesnt come with tpms tho so i dont know if that is really important? the other option is 20x10 5-114.3 with a 25 offset. its $500 more but is that better? do i still need the spacers and centering rings? and should i stay 265 or go 275?

You have a '13, so you don't need TPMS no matter. You need 5x112. 20x10 ET25 is perfect BTW. With 10", 275 is optimal.

IMG_3691 by Audiyos, on Flickr

[Stratman22]

Stock 2016 S5 wheels 265/30 tires on my A5. I am lowered on H&R coils.

Sweet car! How's the ride on those 30's?

[Stratman22]

Does anyone actually know what the problem is with changing the rolling radius to more than 3%?

[bamisthekey]

actually i have a 2011. ok sounds good to me. i dont have to get the spacers and the center rings now. also do you recommend any tires? the dealer selling it to me said he recommends continental dws for an all weather tire.

[Mops@Nemesis]

actually i have a 2011. ok sounds good to me. i dont have to get the spacers and the center rings now. also do you recommend any tires? the dealer selling it to me said he recommends continental dws for an all weather tire.

2011 is the same. No TPMS sensors. Is there a 5x112 10"? I hugely support the DWS recommendation. I run those on both of my vehicles.

[bamisthekey]

no its only 5-114.3 is that an issue?

[Mops@Nemesis]

no its only 5-114.3 is that an issue?

Huge issue. Deal breaker. What is the wheel? I'll have a look.

[bamisthekey]

appreciate it http://www.tsw.com/alloy_wheels_rivage.php

[Mops@Nemesis]

appreciate it http://www.tsw.com/alloy_wheels_rivage.php

TSW actually shows inventory on the site. Really cool. Select inventory, Rivage, 5 bolt and 112 PCD, and you can see all offerings. I see a 8.5 ET20. Much better. I'll post a pic.

[Mops@Nemesis]

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[scmtkings4]

2011 is the same. No TPMS sensors. Is there a 5x112 10"? I hugely support the DWS recommendation. I run those on both of my vehicles.

Hey can you elaborate on this? I have a '14 S5, you're saying tpms sensors aren't used for each wheel?

How does the car sense low pressure then? Through ABS or something?

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[bamisthekey]

oh they do have it? wow thanks! now I just have to find a dealer that sells them coz most of them are out of stock. Thanks so much for all the help and info!