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Replacing Standard Ford 15" Alloys With Ford 17" Alloys On 2013 Petrol Zetec


hampshireman
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Hi everyone, I'm a newbie just joined so bear with me please if I sound like a twit/monga etc or I've posted in the wrong section(!) :blink:

Ok, my question is this: I've just bought a brand new Zetec 1.25 (the facelifted version with the humungus front grill, does that make it a Mk8?) and while it is an excellent car so far (light years from my old 1999 Zetec), I feel the wheels could do with an improvement - they look a little piddly if you get my drift?. The car came standard fitted with 15" 5 spoke alloys (Ford code 1 817 616) with 195 55 tyres. I've looked on the Ford UK website and have seen a set I really like; a 17" 8 spoke job (Ford code 1 817 293). Using the tyre size change calculator on etyres website, it turns out that fitting 205 40 size tyres to the 17" alloys will keep the overall diameter of the wheel at exactly 596mm so no probs as regards to gearing or speedo accuracy. I have also found that the offset on both types of alloys is exactly the same: ET47.5mm so in theory, no probs there either (I think?). My question is this - does anyone know if I can simply buy the new set of 17" alloys and fit them in place of the standard 15" ones (seeing as the 17" alloy is fitted as standard to higher spec Fiestas) or will I/could I run into probs as regards to fouling the wheelarches or suspension strut etc? I know the overall width of the wheel with the new alloys and tyres will increase by 10mm but would I still be ok? Any thoughts anyone?

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It should be perfectly fine as long as all the fitments are correct. I went from 15s to 17s on my corsa no problems!

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Hi HShaw - what do you mean "all the fitments"? I thought it was just a case of taking the 'old' 15" off and putting the new 17" on its place - is there anything else? :unsure:

You also said you went from 15s to 17s on your Corsa - was that standard Vauxhall alloys or aftermarket ones?

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It will be fine :) You may need new nuts for the alloy wheels + 4 locking wheel nuts.

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iNath, any particular reason for the new nuts?

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Hi HShaw - what do you mean "all the fitments"? I thought it was just a case of taking the 'old' 15" off and putting the new 17" on its place - is there anything else? :unsure:

You also said you went from 15s to 17s on your Corsa - was that standard Vauxhall alloys or aftermarket ones?

I just meant the things you already mentioned. It'll be a straight swap :)

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HShaw - ok, things sound like I should be ok then. Just waiting on iNath to tell me why I'd need new wheel nuts for the new alloys :rolleyes:

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HShaw - ok, things sound like I should be ok then. Just waiting on iNath to tell me why I'd need new wheel nuts for the new alloys :rolleyes:

I don't think you do going from alloys to alloys. I know you do if you go from steelies to alloys as the nuts are slightly different. I didn't need new nuts in my case at least!

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HShaw, yeah that's what I thought - maybe the 17s metal around the bolt holes is a bit thicker than the 15s perhaps?

Anyway, whats your take on ride quality if I decide to go for 17s with 205 40 tyres? I've just read some other posts on here and a couple of people say its horrendous! They feel they have to get out and check their wheels everytime they go over a bump or pothole cos they think their alloys have been buckled :wacko:

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Sorry to say mate but that's pretty much what I feel too haha. My fiesta has 17s with 205 40 and it is a fairly hard ride but it's not that bad. You'll notice the difference but soon get used to it :P

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Hmm, maybe I should kick this idea into touch then, no point in having a firm/hard ride on a car that sounds like a hairdryer and couldn't pull the skin off a rice puddin :mellow:

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Haha! It's all about looks, end of the day we're all driving to the same speed limit. Might as well stand out a bit whilst doing it! ;)

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Yeah, I get where you're coming from but doing a hundred miles a day to and from work might get a bit tiresome crashing and banging over every catseye/white line/gap in the tarmac, never mind the ruddy potholes :(

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Ah yeah fair point haha. Compromise and get a set of 16s? Nice middle ground!

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Hmm, think you might be right there bud but the Ford alloys I like don't come in 16s - I've just looked - doh! :blink:

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If you need different wheel nuts for steel wheels,how do you fit the steel spare,do Ford supply a different set of nuts with the wheel,

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If you need different wheel nuts for steel wheels,how do you fit the steel spare,do Ford supply a different set of nuts with the wheel,

I used the same nuts used for the alloys when using my spare. I may be entirely wrong here, just going off experience from a friend who went from steelies to alloys on his fiesta as he needed a new set of nuts.

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Using alloy nuts on a steel wheel and vice versa is not practical as a reaction occurs causing them to 'weld' on after a while.

All wheel nuts are actually steel but ones for use on alloy wheels have a collar on them to act as a barrier.

Short term use on a steel spare is fine but long term is not advisable.

Also check that the right shape nuts are used, some wheels have a flat flange and some have tapered ones.

faq10-1.jpeg

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Using alloy nuts on a steel wheel and vice versa is not practical as a reaction occurs causing them to 'weld' on after a while.

All wheel nuts are actually steel but ones for use on alloy wheels have a collar on them to act as a barrier.

Short term use on a steel spare is fine but long term is not advisable.

Also check that the right shape nuts are used, some wheels have a flat flange and some have tapered ones.

faq10-1.jpeg

Couldn't have said it better myself :)

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I'll just weigh in on the whole "harsh ride" debate.

I had my mk7.5 Fiesta delivered on 17" inch wheels with 205/40-17 tyres, and initially it was quite harsh. So eventually I figured I'd check the tyre pressure, and it was WAAAY too high. According to the manual it should run on 2,3 / 1,8 bar (front / rear) when it's mostly used by one or two persons (front seats only)

However the pressure was 2,8 bar both front and rear! After lowering the pressure to the recommended one, I'd say the ride is far softer - heck it's better than that in my Civic (2008 model)

I'm currently running on 195/45-16 winter tyres, and whilst it's slightly softer, I'd say the difference is negligble.

So for anyone feeling the ride is too harsh: Check your tyre pressure :)

I just wanna add one last thing: I live in Denmark, and AFAIK the roads here are in better condition than the ones in UK, so bear that in mind when reading the above. (I rarely see actual potholes, mostly "holes" are no more than 1inch deep around here)

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Stoney871 - I think you've got hold of the wrong end of the stick slightly with my question/problem - I'm going from alloy to alloy, not steel to alloy - the wheels that came standard on my fez are 15" alloys. Good explanation though :)

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On a side note you can always keep the 15inch for winter tyres (AFAIR they're approved for winter usage) :-) Though you'd need new rubber ofc.

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