alloy / tyre novice please help!

[bluquarta]

sorry about this, probably covered a thousand times, did a few searches but still not 100% sure:

got a mk3 8v gti with the standard 15" longbeach alloys running 205/50/15 at the mo. Have just bought a set of mk4 15" TDi alloys off ebay (funnily enough i've seen them on some sites listed as Longbeaches too?!) nice looking alloys, seen a few pics of them on mk3's and look nice.

Anyway these new 15" are ET38 6J. What are my options for tyres without putting my speedo out? Am i right in saying just go with 205/50/15 again? can i do 195 like on the older golf mk3's, as they are cheaper? and secondly am I going to need spacers or anything?

First time changing alloys on a car!

[Wayne]

I would switch to 195/50/15's cheaper and easy to find, the wheels will fit straight on but you might need a 3mm spacer on the rear so the center caps clear.

[bluquarta]

I would switch to 195/50/15's cheaper and easy to find, the wheels will fit straight on but you might need a 3mm spacer on the rear so the center caps clear.

so just to clarify, 195/50/15 wont put the speedo out? Am I right in saying that the 195's should look slightly lower profile as well (50% of 195 being less than of 205)?

and going from 6.5J ET43 to 6J ET38 means im getting a narrower wheel (in simple terms!!)?

Where can I get spacers from, will any tyre place have them?

as you can see no experience of changing tyres / alloys........steep learning curve

[shepgti]

I would switch to 195/50/15's cheaper and easy to find, the wheels will fit straight on but you might need a 3mm spacer on the rear so the center caps clear.

so just to clarify, 195/50/15 wont put the speedo out? Am I right in saying that the 195's should look slightly lower profile as well (50% of 195 being less than of 205)?

and going from 6.5J ET43 to 6J ET38 means im getting a narrower wheel (in simple terms!!)?

Where can I get spacers from, will any tyre place have them?

as you can see no experience of changing tyres / alloys........steep learning curve

195/50 is the tyre you want for a 6j rim, the early le-mans alloys on the gtis are 6j et38 and come with 195/50's