Evening all,

A set of rare'ish genuine Ford alloys has become available on eBay that I've been looking at for some time. They're 17", my Titanium currently has 16" alloys.

The new set comes with tyres - 1 needs replacing, the other three all have a tread of between 4mm -> 6mm.

My question is, I do over 100 miles a day traveling on dual carriageway and motorway. I'm apprehensive to upgrade mainly due to economy, comfort and the price of 17" seems to be reasonably more than their 16" counterparts.

Would it be foolish for me to upgrade given the mileage I do daily - it is a difficult decision because they drastically improve the look of the vehicle (in my opinion obviously)?

Any comments appreciated.

I wouldn't of thought that the ride would be that much different?

As for tyre price, prior to buying mine I was comparing tyres for myself & friends VW Golf (17") & found that on over 90% of tyres that the 17" for his were cheaper than the 16" for my focus! (sure they hike up the price for the more standard sizes).

Anymore suggestions?

The change in tyre profile ultimately affects the economy and comfort you wish to keep , but the difference between a R16 - 205/55 and a R17-205/50 is only around 10mm in tyre depth so the effect will be negligible.

obviously , going for a 18" alloy with 40 profile tyres would feel like driving on a snooker ball :-D

go for it , the improvment in your cars "visual impact" is worth the trade off.

the price for tyres will be higher, but apart from that i have had no bad effects in ride quality going frmo 16 to 17". makes a big difference to the look

go for it. you wont notice the change in ride much but will notice the smile on your face once they are on :D

When I had my old focus(tit) I was on 205/55/16,the roads seam to be quite smooth,but now, focus (tit x) I'm on 215/50R/17 the roads seam a lot harsher. Even though I'm using the recommended pressures.

The change in tyre profile ultimately affects the economy and comfort you wish to keep , but the difference between a R16 - 205/55 and a R17-205/50 is only around 10mm in tyre depth so the effect will be negligible.

obviously , going for a 18" alloy with 40 profile tyres would feel like driving on a snooker ball :-D

go for it , the improvment in your cars "visual impact" is worth the trade off.

Thanks for all the comments chaps. The tyre size on these is 205/40/17, does that change things a bit?

I vote to go for them as well. The drive difference is not very noticeable and it certainly isn't worse. The change in looks is big though. I also switched from 16" to 17" (only for summer, I'm keeping the 16s for winter) and the looks are great - check my gallery - first pics are with 16"s, others are with 17"s.

I would change the tyres though. Completely. One thing is, that recommended dimensions for 17" are 205/50 - 40 might be slightly less comfortable, and another thing, you don't know how those tyres were driven...so just to be safe on the road. ;)

The tyre size on these is 205/40/17, does that change things a bit?

Yes , these tyres are too "thin" for a mk2 focus , and will give a harsh ride.

Ford use 205/50 profile tyres for factory fit 17" alloys , so stick to the same tyre size where possible

do you have a link or picture of the tyres? which ford do they come off?

i believe all the 17" alloys that are for the focus are 205/50/R17

These are the alloys ;

http://m.ebay.co.uk/itm/FORD-GALAXY-FOCUS-MONDEO-TRANSIT-CONNECT-C-MAX-S-MAX-17-inch-ALLOY-WHEELS-/181880714907?nav=SEARCH

They look good for the price , all depends on whether you can budget in the cost of more suitable size tyres.......

Hmm, that's now the issue. At least £220 worth of new tyres. Would all tyres need to be 205/50?

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Genuine-Ford-Focus-17-inch-Zetec-S-Alloy-Wheels-/141779694022?hash=item2102ba71c6

these look better to me , and come with continental tyres in the correct size............

It was specifically those alloys I was after. If I have to fork out a fee houndred on 4 new tyres I probably won't bother buying them. Can 205/40 be run on a Focus or is not advisable?

They can be run with those tires…it's not like the car would drive very differently…they're just not the size that's recommended by Ford for this size. It would be much worse if they would have been wider or narrower…if you just buy one new tire, you'll be fine, but after a season or two I would change all of them completely. And yes, all tires have to be the same size. And when buying new tires, you should get the recommended size, I don't know how it's in the UK, but this is also something that's checked by MOT here in Slovakia...

You need to check the rolling circumference as this will determine how much your speedo could possibly be incorrect by ie you may think your doing 70 but may really be doing 80

Thanks all for the comments. Will have to think about this a little more. Largely due to the cost of 17" tyres and uncertainty surrounding the tyre size. If they were 205/50 or 205/45 then I would've snapped them up.

Can afford the alloys but not additional tyres unfortunately.