General Good price?

[Melanabb]

Talked to Abarth dealers and they 'can't recommend anything other then 17" sold by them'- greedy b****rds, pretty sure insurance won't be pleased either if I go with something manufacturer won't recommend. I'm loosing the will to do anything at all. You would think dealers and insurers would be happy that people are safer on the road! Thank you to all that replied, really appreciated your time and effort

 

[306maxi]

Surprised to see that on the Grand Punto Sporting that 15s don't fit.

Looking at the brake disc sizes of the GP Sporting they are the same size as the A500 and 15s do fit but they are very tight. Picture attached courtesy of jonl of the other abarth forum. But there's probably other differences which I would not be aware of so I would have to believe you.

Since the Grand Punto Abarth has brake disc sizes of 305 compared with 284 of its smaller brother the difference of 21 should be easily handled by an extra inch so I can't see why 16s will not fit.

In relation to 'jumping through hoops' surely the narrow width tyre will be a better performer in the snow and should not be too hard to justify. For a £200 difference in price it might be worth the effort.

Maybe someone with an account could post on your behalf.http://www.abarthforum.co.uk/500-ab...d-fitting-smaller-wheels/msg148168/#msg148168

Wheel clearances are funny things.

On our Subaru there are a number of different braking systems available.

There's the standard 2 pot front 1 pot rear floating calipers which from memory are 276mm at the front and 266mm at the back. Easily fit under any 15" wheel.

Then there are the 4 pot front and 2 pot rear fixed calipers which were fitted to STI's and the like and are the gravel brakes for Group N cars so have to fit under 15" wheels. These only fit under specific wheels which have enough clearance between the caliper and the inner face of the rim and the spokes. They will fit under both sets of Speedline's that we've got, however with the standard wheels on the car, even if we were to space the rim out to get clearance between the spokes and the caliper, there simply isn't enough room for the standard 15" alloys to fit over the brakes. Front discs are 294mm and rears are 290mm.

Then there are Brembo's which are something like 330mm and need a minimum of a 17" rim to fit over and you've still got issues with clearing the caliper in both ways.

Long story I know, but I'm not surprised if I'm honest that some 16" wheels wouldn't fit over 305mm discs especially if the calipers are a bit chunky. Even though the diameter isn't exactly crazy, caliper clearance to the face of the rim might be an issue.

Only thing I can really suggest for melanabb would be to see if there's someone on the Grande Punto section who is nearby and has a 16" wheel laying about that could be test fitted.

Here's the clearance between just the disc and the rim of a 294mm disc and one of he speedlines I've got. The caliper is quite thick itself, so if we do fit those brakes there will only be a few mm of clearance!

 

[loveshandbags]

Talked to Abarth dealers and they 'can't recommend anything other then 17" sold by them'- greedy b****rds, pretty sure insurance won't be pleased either if I go with something manufacturer won't recommend. I'm loosing the will to do anything at all. You would think dealers and insurers would be happy that people are safer on the road! Thank you to all that replied, really appreciated your time and effort

Many thanks for the update Melanabb. To be honest I have a 'hidden agenda' in that I've been 'pushing the boat' on using a wheel size not in the manual. Essentially I'm looking to establish a precedence that gets the 'seal of approval'. Abarth are going to say you can only use 17s to cover themselves but there are a lot of guys out there doing things to their Abarths which are not recommended by Fiat. e.g. adding a TMC to an Abarth adds 2-3mpg if used sensibly but again not recommended by Abarth. It's all about sensible use but 205 width tyres sounds a little idiotic in poor wintery conditions.

Excuse my boldness but I would still recommend that posting for sure pig ironess.:devil:

https://www.fiatforum.com/500/166084-winter-tyres-people-going-97.html?p=2906096

Hi Michael,

Please see below terms and conditions for using winter tyres for the above policy.

Winter Tyres –Please note it is the clients responsibility to ensure the tyres on their vehicle are appropriate based on recommendations from manufacturer/tyre experts.



…

 

[306maxi]

Talked to Abarth dealers and they 'can't recommend anything other then 17" sold by them'- greedy b****rds, pretty sure insurance won't be pleased either if I go with something manufacturer won't recommend. I'm loosing the will to do anything at all. You would think dealers and insurers would be happy that people are safer on the road! Thank you to all that replied, really appreciated your time and effort

I would have a chat to a helpful GP owner on the forum with 16" rims and see if they can do a test fitting for you. Bear in mind that because your GP has vauxhall DNA, you won't be able to fit wheels from a 500 for instance.

I think you're going to have to be a pioneer. It really is one of those things that someone needs to actually do before people can be sure that it's doable.

Like I said above, caliper clearances are a funny thing and there are 16" and 17" Subaru wheels that don't clear the brakes that we've got for our Subaru which 15" wheels will fit over.

I wish I could have given you better news!

 

[loveshandbags]

Sorry for the bump, but found a good set of steelies not too far from me. I'm quite sure it will fit my Punto Abarth, but there is some wheel-speak which sounds like gobbledygook to me (spigots and centre bores...) I need someone with the knowledge (Maxi, Grimwau or Michael spring to mind) to tell me if it will fit. Before you ask, I did try the search but not quite sure what I'm searching for

Many thanks

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Four-16-inch-steel-wheels-Renault-Megane-Clio-Vauxhall-Corsa-Fiat-Grande-Punto-/300630908794?pt=UK_CarParts_Acc_Wheels_tyres_Trims_Car_Rims_ET&fits=Car+Make%3AFiat%7CModel%3AGrande+Punto&hash=item45feff9f7a#ht_500wt_922

I re-looked at that ebay item and the compatibility reckoner illustrates that it is suitable for the GPA. The offset of E49 may not be a big deal. The J width of 6.5 should be fine given that it would be taking a 195. Looking at the 500 in a 15 inch if an alloy is used the offset is E35 and in a steelie it is E40. So doing a guesstimate of E39 for the GPA it could turn this into E44 (Marea weekend that I have uses E43) so being a E49 should not be a show stopper.
So we are 'talking' £65 for a set which if you don't use can be dumped or sold off again or given back to the seller if they don't fit. My gut instinct would be to buy them and tell the insurance company you are fitting them (you have 3 days before the auction ends ). It would be much better to have a set of winter tyres shod in 16s than on summers on 17s in icy conditions. Sometimes situations involve taking the 'bull by the horns'.

My apologies Melanabb for being so direct.

 

[Melanabb]

No apologies needed Michael! Honestly, I'm inclined to do this as £65 is not much money in the scheme of things. The guy selling them is really nice chap and he has offered his advice and even offered 'try before you bid'! As its not so far from me I think I'll take him on this. I will let you know the outcome. Thanks again to all, especially Michael and Maxi for their time and advice

 

[grimwau]

No apologies needed Michael! Honestly, I'm inclined to do this as £65 is not much money in the scheme of things. The guy selling them is really nice chap and he has offered his advice and even offered 'try before you bid'! As its not so far from me I think I'll take him on this. I will let you know the outcome. Thanks again to all, especially Michael and Maxi for their time and advice

Good idea Mel, make sure you try it on the front though.

 

[Melanabb]

Good idea Mel, make sure you try it on the front though.

Thanks for the advice Tony, I'm not THAT blonde

 

[306maxi]

No apologies needed Michael! Honestly, I'm inclined to do this as £65 is not much money in the scheme of things. The guy selling them is really nice chap and he has offered his advice and even offered 'try before you bid'! As its not so far from me I think I'll take him on this. I will let you know the outcome. Thanks again to all, especially Michael and Maxi for their time and advice

Good stuff Be sure to post the results. It's only through trial and error that we find out what works and what doesn't. If I hadn't spoken to a guy from a forum in person and told him that I had some particular wheels sitting at home, I would never have known that they would fit over these brakes which are a common upgrade for Subaru's. Everyone else says that you need 17" wheels and that only certain 16's will fit.

 

[306maxi]

Good idea Mel, make sure you try it on the front though.

 

[grimwau]

Thanks for the advice Tony, I'm not THAT blonde

Izvinite!

 

[Melanabb]

Izvinite!

Classic!

 

[Melanabb]

Met with Gavin (the ebay wheel seller, see above) and we tried to fit the wheels. Good news is that 16" will definitely fit on Punto Abarth, bad news that the ET needs to be 36-39... The original wheels are ET39 with 7J. Hope this will help someone else... Will post here when I find the right wheels

 

[306maxi]

Met with Gavin (the ebay wheel seller, see above) and we tried to fit the wheels. Good news is that 16" will definitely fit on Punto Abarth, bad news that the ET needs to be 36-39... The original wheels are ET39 with 7J. Hope this will help someone else... Will post here when I find the right wheels

I could be wrong, but I don't see that being a major issue. it would be interesting to see whether the difference between the GP and the GPA in terms of suspension and drivetrain as to whether an offset of 36-39 is actually required, or whether that's just been done to make the track wider or to clear dampers.

The offset change is probably only there because the wheels are wider and there is a need to clear the struts. Basically, the wider the wheel, the lower the offset needs to be so the tyre doesn't hit the bottom of the suspension strut.

 

[loveshandbags]

Met with Gavin (the ebay wheel seller, see above) and we tried to fit the wheels. Good news is that 16" will definitely fit on Punto Abarth, bad news that the ET needs to be 36-39... The original wheels are ET39 with 7J. Hope this will help someone else... Will post here when I find the right wheels

Thanks for the update Melanabb. I'm assuming the ET39 7J is for the 17inch. I have a personal interest in this since the PE is the only Fiat car with the MA engine. And it also has the big turbo that is in the 695 so it has all the grunt it needs. 16inch wheels make sense as a set of winters.

Came across this ad as a Mito steelie and it was advertised as fitting a GP. Queried the ebayer awaiting an answer. I previously said that a Mito / Fiat 4x98 PCD will not fit onto a GP Hub of 4x100 so to double check this I have sent another query to this ad to see if the wobbly bolts will 'work the other way around'.

Here is another useful link on explaining all you need to know about wheels. Not too sure if it would be a good bed time read.
:idea:
Would it be worthwhile sending an email to mytyres given the range of steelies that they have to see what they would recommend. If you could get them to put it up on their 'drop down list' it would make the insurance 'issue' easier to deal with since it would be an 'Expert tyre' recommendation.

 

[loveshandbags]

I could be wrong, but I don't see that being a major issue. it would be interesting to see whether the difference between the GP and the GPA in terms of suspension and drivetrain as to whether an offset of 36-39 is actually required, or whether that's just been done to make the track wider or to clear dampers.

The offset change is probably only there because the wheels are wider and there is a need to clear the struts. Basically, the wider the wheel, the lower the offset needs to be so the tyre doesn't hit the bottom of the suspension strut.

Makes sense what you're saying Maxi. Do you reckon that the wheel should have worked ?

 

[306maxi]

Thanks for the update Melanabb. I'm assuming the ET39 7J is for the 17inch. I have a personal interest in this since the PE is the only Fiat car with the MA engine. And it also has the big turbo that is in the 695 so it has all the grunt it needs. 16inch wheels make sense as a set of winters.

Came across this ad as a Mito steelie and it was advertised as fitting a GP. Queried the ebayer awaiting an answer. I previously said that a Mito / Fiat 4x98 PCD will not fit onto a GP Hub of 4x100 so to double check this I have sent another query to this ad to see if the wobbly bolts will 'work the other way around'.

Here is another useful link on explaining all you need to know about wheels. Not too sure if it would be a good bed time read.
:idea:
Would it be worthwhile sending an email to mytyres given the range of steelies that they have to see what they would recommend. If you could get them to put it up on their 'drop down list' it would the insurance 'issue' easier to deal with since it would be an 'Expert tyre' recommendation.

Just to point out, a vauxhall wheel won't fit on a Fiat because of the centre bore which is 56.5mm as opposed to 58.1mm for Fiat's. You could have it bored out by a machine shop, but for the cost of that you could just buy some nice wheels off the shelf

You can put Fiat wheels on a Vauxhall?Grande Punto as you can use spigot rings to bring the centre bore down from 58.1-56.5mm and wobbly bolts take care of the PCD difference

 

[Melanabb]

I could be wrong, but I don't see that being a major issue. it would be interesting to see whether the difference between the GP and the GPA in terms of suspension and drivetrain as to whether an offset of 36-39 is actually required, or whether that's just been done to make the track wider or to clear dampers.

The offset change is probably only there because the wheels are wider and there is a need to clear the struts. Basically, the wider the wheel, the lower the offset needs to be so the tyre doesn't hit the bottom of the suspension strut.

Well, I can tell you that the brakes and calipers did definitely fit inside the wheel but brembos just protrude too much hence the ET 36-39. Admittedly, original wheels were ET39 but 205 in width and as I want 195 width I might get away with less exact ET. More investigation to follow...

 

[306maxi]

Well, I can tell you that the brakes and calipers did definitely fit inside the wheel but brembos just protrude too much hence the ET 36-39. Admittedly, original wheels were ET39 but 205 in width and as I want 195 width I might get away with less exact ET. More investigation to follow...

Oh sorry, I thought you said they fitted, didn't realise they were hitting the calipers Spacers are always an option, but that's a faff in itself.

 

[loveshandbags]

Oh sorry, I thought you said they fitted, didn't realise they were hitting the calipers Spacers are always an option, but that's a faff in itself.

IIRC the 695 has spacers fitted. And it has the hubs off the GPA and has the brembos.