205/60/16 will they work?

[everfeb]

I did a search for \"205/60/16\" - only a few posts came up. From what I could see from the posts I found only I member had these tires put on their car (the dealer put these on instead of 205/55/16
and the poster was talking about getting the dealer to take the 60\'s off and put the 55\'s. The thread then ended so I don\'t know what happened.

So what I\'m wondering...will 205/60/16 work (winter and summer tires) on the OEM-16\" alloys-and the
Mazda or similar steelies? I have an \'04 with 17\" and want to switch to 16\" for winter and hope to put the 60 on for a \"softer\"?? ride.

Sorry, I know there are calculators out there for this stuff but as I know nothing about wheels/tires fitment I can\'t quite figure out how to use them to get the answer to my question and wouldn\'t trust the answer from the calculator anyway. Trust your opinions though.

Very much Appreciate any help.

everfeb

[majic]

you can use this tire calculator (http://www.miata.net/garage/tirecalc.html)

205/55/16 -> 205/60/16

when speedo shows 60mph you\'re actually travelling 61.9mph (3.2% difference) .. i personally would stick to 205/55/16 - not sure HOW MUCH SOFTER the 60 series tire will be but the speedo will be much closer (0.8%, within 3% is acceptable) and safer overall..

[everfeb]

Thanks \"majic\". \"That\" calculator was easy but I still don\'t understand a few things if you could clarify please.
The diametre of the 205/50/17 is 25.1 and the 60 is 25.7. Difference-.60\" or .30\" at each end of tire?
So the 60\'s would fill up a bit more space (5/16 of an inch-each direction < > in the wheel well??
I don\'t have all that much clearance in the wheel well with the OEM 17\'s. So I would have even less clearance with 205/60/16 than I have now with the 17\'s right??? (snow buildup)
The 60\'s will fit?
Is it because of the speedo miscalibration that 55\'s would be safer overall or is there something else?
Thanks majic, you are VERY Patient and helpful.

everfeb

hope you don\'t reply to my original post before you see this edited one. I just went back to the calculator to get the above numbers.

[majic]

the whole point is to MAINTAIN the same overall tire/wheel size as stock.. or as close to it as possible..

so getting a 60s series tire will result in you potentially getting more speeding tickets ;) but when you go sell the car you will have 3.2% more winter km than stated on the odometer ;)

as for safety, the difference is marginal BUT (not sure if i can explain this clearly) the bigger the tire, the further away from the center of the wheel the (rotational) mass will be. this INCREASES braking distance due to the rotational forces (once again it\'s marginal but it still does) and DECREASES acceleration (so pretty much throws off the dynamics of the car - NOT BY A LOT, but it still does)

as far as the \'softness\' of the ride.. you shouldn\'t notice that much of a difference anyway.. snow tires will have a different feel from the stock RS-As anyway.. and rubbing (due to less room between the wheel and the fender) once again should NOT be an issue..

once again.. i would personally stick to 205/55/16s..

[everfeb]

OK..thanks \"majic\"...I now know 10x as much about tires as I did an hour ago. You sold me on the merits of going 55 vs. 60
Thanks again. Appreciate you help and expertise in these matters.
everfeb

[majic]

Originally posted by everfeb


OK..thanks \"majic\"...I now know 10x as much about tires as I did an hour ago. You sold me on the merits of going 55 vs. 60
Thanks again. Appreciate you help and expertise in these matters.
everfeb

np.. this is what the forum is for..

now if u want to know more :) click the tire faq link in my signature.. if you can\'t see my sig PM me..

[everfeb]

\"majic\"...the other day I actually did TRY to read (wade through, absorb) a lot of that stuff you referred to. I consider myself to be of at least average intelligence in most areas of life but I\'m just not a car guy..I don\'t know a lot of the words used...it is all very technical and at my level of car knowledge (the very lowest) hard to understand. I mean I give myself a great big pat on the back when I put washer fluid in without spilling it all over the place (funnel). Speaking for myself (and probably a lot of other members) I really appreciate the time and effort you knowledgeable people take/make and your patience when you post and turn a bunch of technical jargon that I\'d never understand into a few simple words and sentences to make it understandable. Aprreciate your help.
everfeb