I have changed from the original Continental Cross Contacts 235/60 R18 which by now were old & now much noisier, to 255/60 R18 Pirelli Scorpion AT Plus which being new are very quiet as they have lots of sipes in the tread.

Both of us have had the same thoughts, the car seems more stable with the extra tyre width, and the extra wall height does give a more cushioned ride against our shocking roads. We are surprised that increasing the tyre diameter from 739 to 762 mm made this much difference in ride quality. Very happy with the new tyres for city driving. Still have to test them out for what they were designed for, in the bush!

Another advantage with the wider tyres, I won't be "machining" off any more aluminium rim against our very high curb & guttering which happens to every car down under!

Previous & current tyres are run at 34 PSI cold, so about 38 - 39 when warmed up. http://www.freel2.com/forum/topic32292.html Procrastination, mankind's greatest labour saving device!

Acoustic insulation ARB TPMS 3xARB air compressors After cooler Air tank On-board OCD pressure air/water cleaning Additional 50L fuel Carpet in doors ABE 2x1kg Waeco 28L modified fridge Battery 4x26ah Solar 120w Victron MPPT 100/20 DC-DC 18amps 175amp jumper plug Awning 6x255/60R18

Less stiff and a bit less efficient in cornering

I run 275/45/20 Cooper Zeon LTZ AT/Sports tyres.

Another additional benefit of wide tyres is that you get extra cushioning over the width (the cushioning doesn't have to all be in the sidewall height).

And I've got to say, I don't find the ride harsh at all. FL2 now gone and have a couple of items left for sale:-

Brodit active iPhone holder + Brodit dash clip,
Bluetooth Music Streaming Module.

JulesK wrote:

what was the outcome?

I actully ended up putting conitys all the way round again. and then three weeks later, a set of 17@s came up near me for £150 collected, went round to have a look and bought them They had nearly ne General grabbers on them all. Have been running them for about 3 months now with a view to running them down and maybe putting winter rubbers on whenn they get a lot lower.

Ride wise, 17@s are by far a smother ride, a lot more comfortable but, i miss the Bling /nice set of the 19's. the jury is still out

Thanks for that it's good to know an outcome
Still debating whether it's worth the outlay to get some 17's as I am on 18's. Cannot think there's much difference. If it wasn't so bad it'd be funny.

🐑
Freelander 2 HSE auto 2014 ( Florrie ) ..... Try again.
Freelander 2 GS 2012...... Gone.

For me I would choose the 17's. In my opinion they give a much smoother ride.

I had a set of 18" Diamond cut ones that had loads of tread from a previous LR so when my standard 17's had no life left on the tyres I put on the 18's to get my money's worth (not that us Scots are tight you understand!).
The 18's at the same pressure were a much more harsh ride so when they got near the minimum tread I had to make a choice of which ones to give the new shoes to. Both sets of wheels were starting to look shabby and I decided that I would get the ones I was using powder coated and I'm so glad I picked the 17's.

The smoothness was noticeable instantly as soon as I pulled away from the tyre fitters

I think they look pretty good too - Here is it's first wash of 2018...I had to since it got new shoes

 09 FL2 GS TD4e Current
16 DS HSE Black Current
13 FL2 GS TD4
11 FL2 GS TD4
10 FL2 XS TD4
56 FL1 TD4
72 S3, 6cyl 109 Truck Cab

 If it wasn't so bad it'd be funny.

🐑
Freelander 2 HSE auto 2014 ( Florrie ) ..... Try again.
Freelander 2 GS 2012...... Gone.

Only ever had 17s with Contis fitted on last car and 19s with Contis and then Avon ZX7s on current car - really couldn't tell the difference between the 17s and the 19s but that may be more to the use they get than the size if the wheels.

My current winter tyres (19") are noisier than either of the above but otherwise not an uncomfortable ride either.

Mind you, my wife's little i10 has 15" wheels with Nexen Blue HD fitted and I think that is a superbly comfortable and quiet drive too.

Only ever had 17"never had scufd rims and I do a lot of farm tracks and find them very comfortable