Hello,
I apologize if this seems like a droll repost, but days of searching through the forums have me a bit more confounded than I was before starting my quest.
I'm a new owner of a 2004 118" lowtop sprinter, which is running on the original 15" wheels. I discovered very quickly the scarcity of rubber for this size wheel, and have been strongly considering the migration to the stocker 16" wheels, which do seem to have several types of rubber readily available.
I was working to understand the impact of this switch (speedo, driveline, etc.) and ease, and have to admit the forum has even more conflicting information than I've heard on the street. It's pretty clear that the higher rolling diameter might actually make the speedo more accurate (a good thing), and is likely to raise ride height, which might negatively impact mileage (a bad thing).
The big mystery, however, is if this is a "bolt-on" solution. I've seen many mention in this forum of a spacer (sometimes 30mm, sometimes 60mm) that was dealer supplied on the 16"-wheel-fitted 140 and 170 size sprinters. I've also seen several suggestions of people who've successfully gone as large as 18's with *no* spacer--some rolling fenders, some not.
I do not want to roll the fenders. I just want new tires--and I want to be able to find future replacements in weird, out of the way places if necessary.
Is it possible to fit take-off 16" wheels from a larger T1N sprinter to my wee 118" without spacers, or is this necessary? (Are the spacers for ride height, or offset?)
This is a race van: it will likely only ever carry two people, two motorbikes, and some tools... but I'm hoping that it can carry me across the country a few times this year.
Thanks in advance for any clarifications the forum may have!
Jack
I apologize if this seems like a droll repost, but days of searching through the forums have me a bit more confounded than I was before starting my quest.
I'm a new owner of a 2004 118" lowtop sprinter, which is running on the original 15" wheels. I discovered very quickly the scarcity of rubber for this size wheel, and have been strongly considering the migration to the stocker 16" wheels, which do seem to have several types of rubber readily available.
I was working to understand the impact of this switch (speedo, driveline, etc.) and ease, and have to admit the forum has even more conflicting information than I've heard on the street. It's pretty clear that the higher rolling diameter might actually make the speedo more accurate (a good thing), and is likely to raise ride height, which might negatively impact mileage (a bad thing).
The big mystery, however, is if this is a "bolt-on" solution. I've seen many mention in this forum of a spacer (sometimes 30mm, sometimes 60mm) that was dealer supplied on the 16"-wheel-fitted 140 and 170 size sprinters. I've also seen several suggestions of people who've successfully gone as large as 18's with *no* spacer--some rolling fenders, some not.
I do not want to roll the fenders. I just want new tires--and I want to be able to find future replacements in weird, out of the way places if necessary.
Is it possible to fit take-off 16" wheels from a larger T1N sprinter to my wee 118" without spacers, or is this necessary? (Are the spacers for ride height, or offset?)
This is a race van: it will likely only ever carry two people, two motorbikes, and some tools... but I'm hoping that it can carry me across the country a few times this year.
Thanks in advance for any clarifications the forum may have!
Jack