Technical Article - Alternative to Metric TRX Wheels for 505s

When we bought our well maintained 1984 505 STI sedan last year from PCC member David Howe, we were told that getting tyres to fit the metric sized factory alloy wheels was expensive and difficult. How true. In fact, we could only locate the metric Michelin TRX tyres via Vintage Tyres in Melbourne - at a cost of around $400 each. So, I did some research and decided to purchase some aftermarket alloy wheels. The advantages of the modern alloy wheels, apart from being standard size and good looking, is that they are much harder than the old alloy wheels and less prone to developing flat spots. They are also accepted by the insurance company which likes Peugeot 505 rims to be a maximum of 6.5 inches wide. 

Choosing an aftermarket wheel was easy. I could find only one manufacturer and one style of wheel to suit - Performance Wheels' Superlite 15 x 6. I shopped around and ordered a set of four from a discount tyre retailer in Phillip for $220 each. I then chose to get the tyres from QuickFit as I wanted Michelins or Kumho tyres which were not available from Discount Tyres. A mini disaster then ensued as the wheels did not fit the car (one rear wheel was hitting the brake calliper). I feared the worst as the wheels had tyres fitted and were therefore not returnable to the original supplier. I was in a quandary- who would fix the problem? Quickfit who had fitted tyres to incorrect wheels despite my instructions to ensure the wheels fitted before the tyres went on? Or the discount tyre retailer who supplied the wheels in the first place? As it turned out, the discount tyre retailer did not want to know about it at all. However Tony at Quickfit investigated the problem and discovered that the wheel factory had supplied the incorrect offset.

So after a couple of weeks wait, a new set of wheels with the correct offset were supplied and fitted. I chose 206/65 Kumho Powermax tyres which fill out the guards nicely and give the car a muscular stance, as the photo shows. The Kumhos were rated highly by Choice magazine and were $15 cheaper than the equivalent Michelins (OK, I'm not a real purist!). While I was not overly impressed with the discount tyre retailer's handling of the incorrect size problem, they did have the best price for the wheels. However I can thoroughly recommend QuickFit for professional and knowledgeable service as well as a good price on tyres.

So far, so good. The only problem I have encountered is that when there is a load on the left rear wheel (eg fast corners or passengers) the wheel occasionally scrapes on the rear mudflap near the top of the wheel travel. This is caused by a combination of the offset of the rim (which makes it sit out about 1cm wider than the standard rim) plus the extra 1cm of tyre width. But it's a minor annoyance and does not cause any damage to car or tyre. A 195/65 tyre or a lower profile tyre may help. If you have the old metric wheels, the Superlites are a good way to add life, value and even better looks to your 505 and ensure that future tyre procurement will not be an issue.

Stephen Alegria

February 2004