vunu

Here's my current setup:

01 A6 2.8 FWD (lowered with Eibach Pro System Kit)
S4 Avus 17x7.5
BFG g-Force T/A KDW 2 225/45-17

The ride has been too rough and noisy with the current setup and i'm looking for 17" tires with high profile.
Tirerack lists all possible 17" tire sizes but I'm not sure if it's okay to increase the rolling diameter
and how far I can go with the sidewall length. Does it make sense to go to narrower wheels with high profile such as 215/50~60-17, or same width with higher profile such as 225/55-17?

Which tire size do you recommend on my current Avus wheels that can give me larger sidewalls without rubbing?
Any recommendations on soft and quiet all-season tires?

Gary@Tirerack.com

With this car being lowered as well as having pretty limited clearances, the largest we can recommend to fit is 235/45R17, which will only gain you about a third of an inch in total height. Going to a more narrow tire would not help the ride, but using a softer riding tire with better ride quality can make more of a difference than small sizing adjustments. Good options to consider in all season tires that offer great ride would be the Kumho LX Platinum and Yokohama Avid H4s.

Tires
http://www.tirerack.com/a.jsp?a=AR8&...ires/index.jsp

vunu

Thanks Gary,
I checked out and compared the two set of tires you recommended. LX does better in ride and noise category where as H4s scored better in wet traction.
Comfort and low noise is very important factor but wet traction is also important because I live in New England.

One of the feedback on LX says:
'Slipping and sliding in light rain. Tires spinning when accelerating from dead stop'

I know these feedbacks are subjective to driver and driving habits, but could give me a little more insights into these tires? Also, is LX okay to use in snow during NE winter?

Gary@Tirerack.com

Most front wheel drive cars will experience slipping when accelerating hard in some wet conditions from a dead stop, but this would not be much of a concern with a quattro car. I didn't feel that the wet traction was bad at all on the LX Platinum. I doubt the real world different between it and the Avid H4s would be very different.

Snow tires would be the way to go for serious winters, but for light snow all-season tires like the LX platinum should get the job done if you drive carefully.