Will 16" or 17" wheels clear the brakes on the R36?

[profrat]

I scuffed the standard alloy wheels a little with snow chains last week and i'm not too keen to use them again.

One alternative is to fit smaller, narrower, steel wheels with snow tyres so I can fit chains if needed more easily as well.

But it occurred to me that 16" or 17" wheels my not clear the large brakes. Does anyone know?

Thanks.

[Umai Naa!!]

Some 17s do, I believe.

[snerlo]

I bought snow socks for mine. Have you thought about them. That way you dont feel the bumpy ride either.

[profrat]

That would be great but they are not permitted to be used here at Mt Hotham. It's diamond pattern chains only.

[snerlo]

Oh, that sucks. Ive only driven once with chains and they were the normal ladder style on the back of a falcon. My god, it was torture! Cant comment on the ladder style.

[profrat]

The Diamond pattern chains I have used are excellent. Very much better than the old ladder chains. Unfortunately, they are an absolute pain in the arse to fit and they have scuffed my wheels slightly. On the old XR6T I had the same issues but fitted standard steel wheels to the rear when I knew I would need to fit chains. I am happy to use some 16' or 17' narrower wheels and tyres all 'round, if I they fit, just for the snow trips. And if I can do that I might as well fit specific snow tyres and hopefully never have to use the chains anyhow.

[snerlo]

Have a look on the R36 forum from overseas mate. There are a few guys that have R36's and they have specific winter tyres that they fit in the snowy months. There should be some answers there.
Passat R36 Forum - R36Owners.NET - Passat R36, 3.6 V6 DSG • Index page

[profrat]

Cheers mate. I had a look, nothing yet but will register and ask the same question. There is some discussion of snow tyres for 18's but that still ,eaves me with very tight chain clearance. I would prefer to be able to fit 7" x 17's or 16's if they clear the brakes. I'm trying to find out if the 17" steel Transporter wheels fit the R36 as well.

[Umai Naa!!]

Transporter is 5x120.

[dylan8]

Changing wheel diameter isnt going to change how the chain fits unless you decide on a smaller tyre also

[brad]

The front rotors are 345mm. Rears are 310mm
16" won't fit.
17" only just fit over the 340mm Golf PP / Octy Mk3 vRS brakes - you have to be careful which balance weights you use (depending on width, offset & spoke design). I'd think 17" are marginal but does it list 17"s on the fuel filler flap as a winter tyre?

Re chains: A lot of my mates carry chains to satisfy the regulation which says you have to carry chains (it doesn't say you have to fit them) and they use snow socks or similar. Do the rules at Hotham say carry or fit?

[snowtyres]

Diamond pattern chains are now mandatory for all vehicles entering the Mount Hotham Alpine Resort. Ladder chains, spider chains and snow socks are not permitted to be used at any time.

[profrat]

OK. The tyre placard in the fuel filler lists 235/45 - 17 as alternative so I knew 17 would fit. I found and bought a set of 17" x 7" alloys from a Golf.
They fit fine.
They have 225/45 - 17 tyres on them. One is new, Two less than 1/3rd worn. One US. I bought a second hand tyre for that wheel.
These tyres are slightly smaller by about 3% so I can adjust to the speedo error easily with the GPS.
They also give me better clearance to fit my chains and I can use my RUD matic chains which are better quality and easier to fit and remove.

The smaller wheel and higher profile tyre do help. They allow the chain to sit more on the side of the tyre instead of the wheel rim.

I was going to fit Snow tyres in 215/55 - 17 but at nearly $400 each it is totally out of the question not matter how good they are!

I found good 'All Season' tyres available in that size (also easy to get chain clearance and correct overall diameter) that have a good snow rating on tests but I think I will just stick with the tyres the wheels came with and see how they go. I probably won't need to use them again this season now anyway now it is starting to warm up again. The need here is usually only for a few weeks from June to July. It would be extremely unusual if I needed to fit chains to AWD on the Omeo side of Mt Hotham after that.

BTW. T4 transporter steel wheels were apparently 17" and 5 x 112. But I did not find any before I found the alloy wheels at a very good price.

[snerlo]

Good work mate. Bit stupid about the ban on snow socks at Hotham. Considering that overseas deals with a lot more snow than Australia does, you would think that they would look at it a little more closely. Geeze we are behind the times here sometimes!!

[snowtyres]

Mount Hotham snow chain information
Mount Hotham - Wheel Chains

http://www.mthotham.com.au/plan-my-trip/travel-to-hotham/by-road/driving/images/2015_Chain_Determination_Signed.pdf

Textile or fabric snow socks, (Auto socks or Rud Soft Spike etc), are not approved for use as a snow chain in Victoria for 2WD, 4WD or AWD vehicles or in NSW for 2WD vehicles.
In NSW, a textile or fabric snow sock can be used on any vehicle other than a 2WD because, because at this time, there is no requirement to use any snow chain "or traction device" at all on these types of AWD/4WD vehicles.

http://www.rms.nsw.gov.au/documents/roads/safety-rules/standards/vsi-57-driving-in-ice-and-snow-conditions.pdf

Snow socks that comply with the test procedures V-5121, and are marked V-5121, are defined in V-5121 as a 'traction device' & NOT a snow chain, never have been a snow chain, never will be a snow chain.

The only test standard for snow chains is V-5117 and V-5119