Chris James

Hi Rob, There are some really helpful sites on the internet that can steer you through the minefield of offsets, wheel widths, tyre sizes and profiles www.willtheyfit.com and www.wheel-size.com to name just two, but there are others. They are relatively straightforward and you are asked to specify your current set up and then you can input your favoured sizes and the site will quickly tell you how your favoured sizes will fit and importantly sit on the vehicle. You can input as many size options as we want and as many times as you want, I was over a 12 months trying to find alloys and tyres to fit my S7 and eventually with the help of aforementioned sites I eventually found a set of wheels I liked and that would fit. No spacers, just extra length wheel bolts (from H&S) to accommodate the different offset. The other thing to bear in mind, but on an A6 (not an S6) I think you should be ok, is the physical size of the front brake callipers. For me this was an additional problem. Anyway like you, I wanted alloys that filled my arches, that didn't stick out and didn't look ridiculous. I hope I achieved it, but its very subjective!!! Hope this is helpful & best of luck

Hi Gareth, Agreed and well said👍

Hi Tom Have you tried PAGID, my Audi specialist will be fitting new discs to my S7 and says PAGID are made to OEM Spec and usually way cheaper than Brembo. It maybe worth giving them a try?

Hi Martin, Very smart car, look after it👍

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My point exactly, unless going into storage or taken out of use.

Steve, I have done similar with my S7 and relied on guidance from easily accessible websites that ask you for your original set up together with your proposed set up, and then show you the impact that the change will have on clearance, speed variants, etc. etc. I found these sites invaluable and have now completed my upgrade and all is fine. Give sites a try like: www.willtheyfit.com or www.thewheelcalculator.com

Alex, If your car is in regular use and is not modified or highly tuned, I think using E10 is probably fine and would make little or no difference to the cars performance. However, if your car goes into storage or is off the road during the winter months, then using E5 is a better bet. It contains less ethanol than E10 and ethanol creates condensation which over time can damage fuel lines and potentially cause corrosion in the fuel tank. Hope this is useful.

Mark, Not sure when you intend buying your replacement tyres, but Asda Tyres (sounds daft I know, but I've bought tyres from them before and been pleased) seem to have some good deals currently. They have all brands and will deliver to your door for you to arrange fitment (my choice) or will arrange fitment for you at your local tyre premises. Worth checking their prices

Hi Gareth, These days it seems that everyone is getting less for their money, I guess it includes tyres as well!! Regards Chris

Your always safe with Michelins, the only reason I steered away from them was because of potential tyre noise. Check out their db. rating as not all versions of Michelins are the same. Grip, handling and wear will be good I'm sure.

Mark, For my S7 I've recently bought 275/35/20 Bridgestone's as they were rated at 69db compared to the Pirelli's at 73db. I know that doesn't look like a lot of difference, but there is a lot of rubber on the road and when fitted to 4 wheels, believe me it does make a difference. Grip and handling in both wet and dry seems fine.

Unfortunately, I think your probably right.

Hi Cliff & Gareth, Many thanks for your messages. I fully appreciate how difficult it must be to try and discourage the non-response from members who have been given, what's supposed to be, helpful assistance! Anyway, as you say lets hope it will improve one day Regards to both Chris.

Hi Simon, Following the message I sent you above re your hot starting issue, I was wondering if my reply had been any help to you?

Hi Simon, S8 V10, very tasty! Interestingly I have an S7 with the V8 4.0 Twin Turbo unit fitted, but I too have a hot start issue. If the car has been used and brought up to normal operating temperature and then shut-off for anything more than around 5/10 minutes max, it doesn't like starting cleanly. It does always start, but not as it should and I dont feel fires on all 8 cylinders immediately. It doesn't take many seconds, maybe 2 or 3, to settle itself down, but I don't feel its right. I have discussed the issue with my local independent Audi service centre and they initially thought all signals point towards the crankshaft position sensor. This I asked them to replace with a new genuine Audi part, but much to their surprise and my disappointment it didnt fix the problem, but looking on the positive side and embarking on what is now an elimination process (but a costly one) that particular sensor can be forgotten about. The service centre are now feeling that the fuel pumps are possibly making the mixture too rich when the engine is being started hot and whilst the car will start from cold perfectly, even after standing for a week or two, the service centre are thinking that the mixture is too rich when starting from hot. This theory is also supported by the fact that if i open the throttle, not fully, but a good half, when starting from hot, the engine fires up more quickly than no throttle at all which can take 3 or 4 attempts. In both scenarios the engine does not start cleanly, just more quickly with the throttle open. Currently I am at the stage of using the car as is because everything else is great, and when I've done about 500 miles since the service centre cleared any stored codes etc, I've been asked to return the car to see if any new codes have been stored. At the moment the service centre who are Audi specialists and very familiar with their various engines, feel that it could be that the fuel pumps that could be giving trouble on hot starts. Does any of this sound familiar to you and can you relate to any of the issues that I'm experiencing?

Mmmm, I cant help with that I'm afraid, but maybe a1 owners will reply to your message.

I'm not sure where you have looked on the web, but if you check out www.willtheyfit.com it gives you diagrams of offset, poke, inset, speedo error, rolling radius & more for different wheel sizes. The way it works is by you telling them what you have fitted now and then you input all the sizes your considering. It will show you how the different sizes of wheel will sit on the car, the impact on the speedo readings etc, etc, etc.

Hi Frank, I agree with all the comments you've received so far, but cant emphasise enough the importance of the offset. I have gone through a wheel changing exercise myself on my Audi and it took me months and months to find wheels I liked and that would fit. The offset can determine where on the hub the wheel will sit and whether its likely to fowl any brake or suspension components. Fortunately there are easily accessible websites that can give you a guide indication of how your new wheel will fit, they will ask you for your existing wheel fitment and the new wheel fitment your proposing. They will ask you for the existing and new wheel radius and width, and also existing and new tyre sizes. They will also ask you for the offset of both existing and new wheels. The offset is often referred to as the 'ET' followed by 2 numbers and this is usually stamped in the wheels casting on the back of the rim. Just as an example my existing wheels had an offset of ET31 (stamped on the reverse of the rim) and the new wheels I was proposing had an offset of ET40. If you want a smooth and not so bumpy ride, try and and avoid tyres with a profile of less that 40. Hope this is helpful

With most issues I try to steer clear of dealerships (other than some parts obviously) and try to find independent specialists who know the cars like the back of their hands. They tend not to charge quite so much and are enthusiasts about their specialist mark. Do you have access to any in the Winchester area? If you have they maybe worth contacting instead of the dealers.

Good Morning Martin, Was the replacement pump a main dealer or aftermarket item? I only ask this question because I had the same issues with my S7 and the independent garage I took it to gave me the option of both, but did explain that aftermarket pumps can give up quite soon - maybe 12 months or possibly sooner after fitting depending on make As a consequence I opted for the main dealer pump and yes it was dearer, but not by a huge amount and its still working! Best of luck sorting it Chris