I bought a mk3 highline the other year with 195/45 stretched onto 9x16's. It took a lot of getting used to on corners - seems to 'flex' a little before it sets itself in to the corners. Once I got used to it it was fine - you could throw it around. I think you'd have to go some to get a tyre off the rim tbh - if it's pumped up properly then I'd say it's very hard to do - no matter how stretched it is. That's the other annoying thing with stretched - you have to pump them up HIGH every other bloody week. The car's gone now, but I would do it again if I had the right motor. Matt.
ive got 205/40's on my 9x16's no problems at all, looks pimpin' and just that little extra arch clearance its not going to get the best out of any tyre, but its not unsafe imo
Here's some fairly extreme stretching! 19x9.5j with 225x35x19 tyres stretched over, personally I don't like the look, but each to their own I suppose, to me this doesn't look very safe!
There's a chap on another forum who almost had a nasty accident due to a rear tyre failing. Reason for tyre failure is unknown or not stated in the thread, so I questioned whether the fact that they're stretched could have contributed to this. The response was that something along the lines of "Japanese cars do drifting with stretched tyres, so it's safe". If you have the tyre stretched within the allowed limits then great, but otherwise you're a danger to yourself and other road users. I don't give a sh*te how many people have done it without problems. Run tyres that may pop off the rim if you give it some stick or if the pressure gets a bit low? Stuff that. Trev
when you go the tyre manufacturer and ask for advised rim dimension for the fitment, they say these dims for a reason. looking "good" (subjective as f c u k) crosses into the dangerous and for what? To me it looks daft, risks rim damage, and if driving an actual car, risk of tyre falling off bead and deflating rapidly... = accident
Looks are subject to opinion, but I've never seen the point in putting on rims that are far too wide for the car (paying extra for the privilege) and then putting on too-narrow tyres that won't help the handling, will wear unevenly, are probably dangerous, and would give your insurance a reason not to pay out. I've got another great idea... let's all spray our brake discs with WD40 because it'll make them glisten in the moonlight, and really look cool with the ambulance lights flashing off of them... Grow Up!
Wasn't there a Dutch Mk1 cabriolet, which had chromed discs? It had to be trailered everywhere because the chrome would have discoloured or flaked off, if it was driven, or something?
^^ Yip seen that in a recent mag. Bit too OTT for my liking, but then again I'm not a glass case car lover.
OK So my question is: Why do some people perceive that stretched tyres on wide rims, look good, given that there is no basis for increased performance etc?
Used to have some 8.5inch wide rears on my E30 with a 195 stretched on it, looked nice because the wheel came just to the edge of the arch and then the tyre tucked in enough not to hit the inner arch. That went sideways alot thanks to the M50 lump i put it in, and never had any trouble with them.
The main reason people stretch tyres is to aid arch clearance. Im not against a mild stretch but when things are taken to the extreme and you have an inch of wheel pertruding each edge of the tyre its getting silly imo.
Each to their own though isnt it. If people want to take the risk in running highly stretched tyres then let them, this argument has cropped up many times on many sites. The people that run them will argue until they are blue in the face that they are safe, those that are against them will do the same to prove they arent safe.
It goes back to the original question which you haven't yet answered: WHY does it look good to you? When all it looks to me, is unsafe?
