This is an old thread, I know, but I'm doing a trawl of all of the contained wisdom on the Google site in order to answer several queries, came across it and thought I'd add my experiences to the melting pot.
When acquired, my H4 was running Ford 15" alloy wheelswith 195/50/15 profile tyres at the rear and 195/45/15 at the front - presumably to reduce the incidence of rubbing or binding on lock, I've no idea. The ride was "firm", the cornering almost adhesive-assisted but many bumps were very harsh. Over winter, I obtained five 14"x5.5J Ford steel rims (ex-Escort) and fitted them with 175/60/14 rubber, a profile which more closely approximates to the 185/55 fitted to oroginal sporty MkIII Fiestas, I believe. The effects have been marked and very pleasant, with far better soaking up of bumps, a less jarring ride (as you'd expect) and far less tendency to tram-line in the driving lane of the motorway. I am far from a sporting driver - sedate economy is more my thing - so the less go-kart-like cornering is no loss whilst a slight improvement in fuel economy and a possible improvement in the profile of power delivery is an agreeable bonus. One cautionary word, which I'm sure the majority know already but came as a lesson to me: the wheels were second-hand, carefully selected for soundness and lack of bumps or damage. However, the Escort used more than one offset of steel wheel and I initially ended up with three with a 43.5 offset and two with a 47 (or was it 47.5?) offset. As a query, does the higher number offset indicate a higher percentage of the wheel being in-board of the mid-line or out-board of it? Steve/The Blue Pig. On Sunday, 10 June 2012 15:48:06 UTC+1, Andrewow47 wrote: > > Hi I have recently purchased an H4 and will shortly be joining the > owners club. > > My question concerns suspension wheels and tyres. > > The car has a 1.6 zetec engine and is based on a 1995 Fiesta so guess > this is a Fiesta Mk3.5 but I am not sure. > > The tyre size is 16/215/40 which just seems too wide for the car, they > are virtually projecting beyond the wheel arches and the rears rub the > arches over bumps. > > I don't know what the suspension set is but the front ride height > seems on the high side and the rear is a bit low and the rear > suspension seems firm to say the least! In fact it really is spoiling > the car on normal roads, on the plus side it corners like a go-kart. > > I have read that the 'factory set up' was standard 1.6 Fiesta > suspension on the front and 1.1 on the rear, I have do to something to > improve the suspension as a matter of priority,I was thinking about > just buying some standard 1.1 springs/shocks for the rear and taking > it from there. > > There are also a fair number of alternative suspension manufacturers > such a spax, koni etc. who sell lower/stiffer/adjustable alternatives > and I don't know if this would be better? > > Also any guidance on wheel sizes/offsets and tyre sizes would be very > much appreciated. > > -- -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Quantum Owners Group" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected] To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/quantumowners?hl=en IMPORTANT NOTE: All information presented herewith is provided on an "As Is" basis, without warranty or the implication thereof. Neither the Quantum Owners Club nor the individuals associated with the Quantum Owners Club or in the preparation of the above information shall have any liability to any person or entity with respect to liability, loss, or damage caused or alleged to be caused directly or indirectly by the instructions contained within this or related message(s). --- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Quantum Owners Group" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/groups/opt_out.
