Hey all, I've enjoyed all of your posts and I've decided I need some of your expert advice...I just went out and purchased a set of 215/60/R16's instead of 215/55's. I couldn't find any in the stock size (55's) around town and there was a good deal on this size. Once they've been put on, they look quite a bit bigger. I was wondering whether this will mess anything else up on my car besides the speedometer. Did I make a mistake? Thanks in advance for your help!

 

You might get better top end, and you gas milage may differ.

 

The 60 profile will give you a bit more cusion too.

Enjoy the ride!

 

According to here;

http://www.miata.net/garage/tirecalc.html

your tires are 3.3% larger than stock, so if your speedo indicates 60 mph, your actually going 3.3% faster or 62 mph. I think 3% (or is it 4%?)is the accepted margin of error and you've surpassed that. Will your car die? No. Just gotta be careful when you set your cruise control etc.

DW

 

Thanks everyone! I had some concerns about clearance and someone told me it might mess up the ABS system somehow...not too sure about that but, anyhow, that calculator sure makes it nice to know how off my speedometer will be.

Thanks again!

 

your handeling wont be as good, the lower the profile tire the better the car will handle, this is because the side walls on the tire slightly bend on hard turns