Hey folks,



I have a 2017 XE, I also have a broken down 2015 XF. Both bolt patterns are the same. The tires on my XF are brand new snow tires. I just tobogganed 1200km across 3 provinces on my staggered summer tires. I want to switch the 20" staggered off my XE with the 19" snow tires on my XF. I'm assuming I need spacers to do that. Does anyone know where I can find the spacer size I would need?

Thanks!

 

Very unlikely you will need spacers at all.
Just test fit one of the 19s on the front of the XE (no need to test the rear) and check that it spins freely and the caliper doesn't scrape on the rim.
If it spins freely with no scraping you are good to go without any spacers.

 

My rear tires on my XE are 265/30R20 94Y XL, the rears on my XF are 245/40R19, that's a pretty big size difference, hence the probable need for spacers.

 

You still wont need spacers and the only problem will be stance/appearance - the rear XF 19s with skinnier tyres will look a bit "tucked" on the XE.
Yes spacers will push the wheels/tyres out a bit and reduce or eliminate the tucked look but that is all they will do and they won't be needed for fitment or prevention of rubbing or scraping.
If you really want to fit spacers then in my experience (across 2010 XFS, 2010 XFR and 2014 F-Type but no XE experience) you should go with 15 mm hub centric.

 

It's not the look I'm concerned about not rubbing, it's winter and winter tires aren't always pretty. I'm concerned about alignment. It could affect my handling greatly to go down an inch in size and have be too far inward with my tires. I'm doing this at home, not a shop, so it's not like there's some safety net when I need to keep my vehicle in second gear going down the mountains here for 10 minutes straight. If I pop out of second or third gear, I'll boil my brakes riding them, or be going 300 kms an hour by the bottom, still having to turn with the road, hit black ice/snow or both. If my handling is affected it could be my life.

 

I reckon you are grossly overthinking this and worrying about nothing.
Yes winter tyres will not handle as well as summer tyres on dry and warm roads, but if you are driving on cold/wet/snowy roads (like right now!?) then the winter tyres will handle and especially grip far better than the summer tyres.
Modern winter tyres and especially all-season tyres have come a long way in recent years and most of them are pretty good on dry/warm roads.
Bottom line - IF you currently have cold/wet/snowy roads then fitting the XF snow tyres will be a vast improvement over the summer tyres, and you won't need spacers to preserve/improve grip or handling. But only if the roads really are very cold and/or snowy.
Caveat - I have never seen snow in my life let alone driven on a snowy road and I have only ever had summer tyres on my cars, everything I say above is based on reading forums such as this one and years of research.

 

I think you're missing my point about the staggered affect with the rear tires on my XE. I don't have anything ti tell the computer in my car that I'm changing the tire size both in width and in overall size.

Yes, tires that are too far inward (incorrect alignment) can significantly affect handling, making steering more difficult, reducing grip, and potentially causing uneven tire wear, impacting stability and safety on the road; it's crucial to maintain proper tire alignment according to manufacturer specifications.

Key points about tire alignment and handling:

• Steering response:
  When tires are too far inward, the steering wheel may need more input to turn, making the car feel less responsive and potentially causing sluggish handling.
• Grip and traction:
  Incorrect alignment can reduce the contact patch between the tire and road surface, leading to decreased grip, especially in corners, which can affect handling stability.

I personally would rather have the proper offset and soacing for what my computer is tuned for rather than toboggan through 1200 kms of land again. I was literally drifting and came out of a 360 twice, thankfully not hitting anyone. I get the winters will be better, but I would rather keep the spacing between my tires if I can. They will be switched either way come Monday/Tuesday. I appreciate your input. I'm not looking to argue, I just have the opportunity to get the spacers in Monday if I want without driving my far, so I don't see why I shouldn't.

 

Fair 'nuf.
One thing I have overlooked and it seems you have also is the wheel offsets, XF vs XE.
I don't know what they are, do you?
They could be the same, slightly different or very different.
Point is IF as is possible the XF wheel offsets (particularly the rear) are much greater than the XE offsets then you may not need spacers at all to retain the existing "alignment". For example on my old 2010 XFR the rear wheel offsets were a mahoosive +66 so they sat waaaay inboard.
Maybe your XF rear wheel offsets are similarly yuge but I doubt it as they are a later model and 19".
Whip one wheel off each car and look on the back of each wheel, and the offsets will be stamped/embossed/engraved on them, usually on a spoke and sometimes on the barrel.
If the XF offset is 15 mm or more greater than the XE offset you won't need spacers.

 

Hello.
I live in Finland and driven icy/snow conditions decades. (and raced on these conditions as well)
What you need to compare is the ET:s (offset) of the rims. The ET value is on cast of the rim inside. You can use calculator like this: https://www.wheel-size.com/calc/
In fact the change of ET (track width) by use of spacers or rim offset do not effect the wheel alligment (toe, caster or camber) at all, but it effect KPI and scrub radius, but on road wehicle like Jag it dosent have any effects for handling as long as we are talking small level changements. (Jags have double wishbone setup - Different story on McPhearson setups. Thats why its not a good idea to use spacers on Corollas etc. Need to change other components if wider track width is in desire)
I have x351 XJ with stakkered summer tyres of 245/45-19 / 275/40-19. For winter i have non-stakkered setup with 18" 245/50-18 on all corners on rims with ET45 offset. (no spacers)
This setup give me:
+ Improved traction on snow/ice by narrover and higher profile tyre
+ Slighly more stable handling on slippery conditions (*) having bit wider track width on front and narrover on rear.
( * tiny difference between OEM track width vs this setup seen in ice track but only experienced driver pushing XJ on is limits with studded Michelin X-ICE North 4 or Nokian Hakkapeliitta 10 wintertyres. Less grip tyres absolutely no difference, bacause it was impossible to keep up steady pace. The suspension, even very good for a road vehicle by its partially "hard bushes", is not in the level where this kind of changements do make a difference, but on most racecars this is a "wet setup")
- Rear wheels are bit deeper in chassis, but its just look. Nobody care here because everybody have narrow/high profile tyres for winter time. (on bonus is that rear tyre donīt mess so much the side or rear bumber with all the crap from salted roads.
Note: The choise of winter tyres have 20x more effect than track width/suspension setups. On 1.5km ice track we saw 0.1-03sek laptime differences (hard to notice) on track width or different aligment settings, but 1-20sek differences between different tyres! Some winter tyres are just s*it. If you are driving snow/ice: Dont save on tyres!
In the end its your choise.