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For most vehicles you can save often 100`s of dollars on a set of winter rims and tires by winter down sizing and here`s what your local dealer won`t tell you: `Winter downsizing` is in fact safer & considerably cheaper than using the same original size rim and tire that your specific vehicle uses.
People often assume a larger tire/wheel set up will provide better traction and performance for winter driving. But in fact, a narrower tire with a higher profile (but equivalent overall diameters) combined with a smaller-diameter wheel cuts through snow more effectively.
Even if your vehicle can accommodate the smaller rims with taller tires, the rolling diameter of the tire must match that of the original tire size. The tolerance is typically three percent or less difference, to preserve speedometer accuracy and proper operation of the vehicle`s speed-based safety systems.
Tires are a part of the wheel setup. For instance, your vehicle has a set size of rims, but you can buy different sizes of tires to fit those rims, as long as the middle of the tires is the correct size. That being said, a vehicle with bigger rims will often be able to fit larger tires than other vehicles.
When you have your winter tires placed on their own rims, you are only paying for the balancing and installation of the tires. You will also save money on having to replace your rims in the future. When you use the same set of rims throughout the year, you run the risk of damage caused by snow, ice and salt.
Unfortunately, altering the tire size of a vehicle without thorough and careful consideration is a decision that can really bite. Fitting the wrong tire size can cause damage to a vehicle, and is a real safety hazard as well.
Want to make your car even better in wintry conditions? Get a slightly smaller tire for the winter. It might not be readily apparent, but the wide contact patch that gives you great grip in the dry can be a detriment in the powder.
A narrower tire does a better job in snow. As a rule of thumb, for winter tires you can reduce the width 10mm, increase the aspect ratio 10 percentage points, and get a wheel one inch smaller — in this case 215/60R16.
Generally, you don`t want to go with tires that have a diameter that is more than 3% different from the factory tires.
While it`s fine to put narrower tyres on the front and wider on the back, it`s pointless to put wider tyres on just one side of the car. This would change the weight balance and would mean one side of the vehicle would grip differently to the road when braking. It would change the cornering dynamic, too.
How to make sure that rims will work with tires? Width and diameter are the two factors that determine tire and rim compatibility. For diameter you`ll need to be sure that your tires and wheels are an exact match, e.g. a 215/65R17 tire will only fit on a 17″ diameter wheel.
If you continually use mismatched tires and wheels they will wear out unevenly and can cause problems later down the road. If you choose to drive your vehicle with mismatched wheels the same issues can result. Mismatched wheels will fit each tire differently causing uneven wear and tear.
Having a set of wheels (rims) to go with your winter tires is a good idea. It saves the wear and tear of seasonal tire mounting, and makes it easy and much less expensive to do the seasonal changeover.
You can identify winter tires by the symbols on the sidewall. These are the M+S symbol and the three-peak mountain snowflake (3PMSF) symbol, and both are industry standards. So far, the well-known M+S mark was sufficient as a winter tire label.
You should not mix winter and summer tyres. Mixing tyres in this way can make slippery conditions more dangerous and affect how well your vehicle handles, especially if the tyres have different tread patterns and performance features.
Larger wheels and tires change the suspension angles and could even affect your transmission`s gear ratio. In some cases, brakes, especially anti-lock brakes, are affected. You may need to make suspension and brake changes to compensate for these problems.
As a general rule of thumb, it`s safe to fit a tire up to 20 millimeters wider than stock on the original rim. The actual width of the tire will vary depending on the width of the rim: The tire will expand 5 millimeters for every half-inch (12.5 millimeters) increase in rim width.
Having a set of wheels (rims) to go with your winter tires is a good idea. It saves the wear and tear of seasonal tire mounting, and makes it easy and much less expensive to do the seasonal changeover.
Yes, you can use bigger rims as long as you fit a lower profile tire in order to maintain the original overall wheel diameter. Known as a plus one fitting, it is a very common practice among car enthusiasts and is offered by most manufacturers as part of their performance package option.
it`s unusual, but you can do it. you need to use taller tires to keep the overall diameter the same. and you need to make sure the new tires have the same speed rating or higher than the factory ones.