what size were the original tires ? 1997 850R Wagon (turbo)

[john2006]

Hi All,

I'm a new owner of a 1997 850R Wagon with 33,000 miles.

First of all I was really impressed with the quality of information that I could find on this site. Excellent Job !!!

I bought the car with 235/45/17 tires on it and of course they are rubbing when I turn (both left and right) so I've been planning to get a new set of tires that match the factory specs.

Last night I've hit a very deep pothole (Chicago has really bad roads) and cracked the front-right rim so I've decided to make the change now and replace all wheels with the standard size.

The problem is that I'm not sure what is the standard size for an 1997 850R Wagon (turbo). I suspect it is 205/45/17 but how can I be sure that the new wheels will fit well and not rub ?

Many people recommended http://www.tirerack.com but I'm a bit confused about the multiple rim brands. Any suggestion about what rim brand to buy ? The most important criteria is to be resistant to potholes

Thank you!

[MadeInJapan]

I have edited my post because I said your wheel size was 16 and I was corrected by JRL. They are 17's for "R's" The specifications you want are 108X5 lugs, Yes, Tirerack has some great deals. If you go here, you can actually see the different rims they sell on your car. Some nice looking wheels for less than $100 each. You can also check ebay and www.swedespeed.com classified section or www.volvospeed.com and click into their message board section and then go to the "for sale" or "auction" section as many people are always selling Volvo OEM wheels in these places.

[JRL]

The 855R OEM tire size is 205/45/17 on 17x7" wheels
I run 215/45/17s on my 850 R with very good results, no rubbing and with a slightly softer/better ride.
235 is a real stupid tire to put on, way too big.
Sometimes you can get away with 225/45/17 but it's close.
Standard wheel was the 17" Volan and looks great on an R wagon

[JRL]

Dave ,16's are NOT STANDARD, 17s are.
THIS IS AN R!

[MadeInJapan]

JRL...obviously you know more about the "R"s than I do.

[john2006]

Thank you for the advice !
I've got a new set of rims and tires from tirerack.com
- Sport Edition D3 Rims (17x7)
- 205/45ZR-17 Avon Tech M550 Tires

installed them last week-end and they look great on the car. It feels so good to be able to turn all the way in the parking lot without any rubbing at all !

[Johnny Cook]

I just bought a 1997 850 Base Wagon and its wheels are 16” Dia. The present set of tires are Mich. 195/60R15.
I really don’t understand tire sizes, etc. These tires appear to have a very low profile and a nice tread, but I would like to get something that might ride a bit quieter and softer. These tires handle great and I don’t want to totally sacrifice control for comfort, but a softer ride would be nice.
I presently run the recommended 36 psi front and rear.
Anyone’s advice or direction is greatly appreciated.

[vjaneczko]

The sound is related to the tire; I noticed my Pirelli summer tires were 'louder' than their all seasons (probably because they're stickier). For a softer ride, I noticed a firmer (or is it more firm?) ride when I went from 15" to 17". My thought is that it's mostly because of the middle number of the tire size, known as the Aspect Ratio. In your case it's the 60.

To help understand a tire size, check this page: http://www.discounttire.com/dtcs/infoSidewall.dos

A lot of websites of tire shops will ask you to rate the importance of comfort, noise, treadlife, etc. to help select a tire for you. Take some time and compare the tires you have with some that the website suggest. Good luck!

[rspi]

If you have 16" wheels and 15" tires something is way wrong. I don't think it's possible to put 15" tires on 16" wheels. Look in your fuel door and go with those size tires. Just look for a tire that is rated to ride quiet, like most Michelin's are. MX4's.

[JRL]

I presently run the recommended 36 psi front and rear.
Anyone’s advice or direction is greatly appreciated.

Too high
Try 32-33 all around