Winter Tire. 175/70/R14 upgrade to 185/70/r14?

[Dodge.SX.2.0]

Hello Everybody.

I am looking at purchasing my winter tires online. The sizing for my vehicle is not available, but there is one that is close.  My car is a dodge neon / sx 2.0   The factory tires are 175/70/r14   The tires I am interested into ordering are 185/70/r14   Will these fit on to my rims for sure?  I cannot order these tires for them not to work. I do not want to have to send them back as I cannot afford so. I do have a second set of rims for winter and they are r14 as well.  I would measure them, but my last set of winter tires are still on them. So I cannot get at the rim to measure the width.  What is your feeling on this size tire?  I know there are neons that have bigger rims on them so the height should be ok... I believe its the width that could be the problem.   Also will going wider be dangerous in the winter as I have heard narrow is better for winter tire.. Will it be a big difference?

Thank you very much in advance for any help you can give me.  Its greatly appreciated.

[fede]

They will fit, but itll throw off your speedometer reading a bit.  Generally if you increase the width you should decrease the aspect ratio. So 185/65R14 would be a better option. But i wouldn't recommend it because, like you said, the narrower the better in the winter. Are you getting a good price on this particular size or something?

[Dodge.SX.2.0]

No the make of tire I am looking at is the Toyo Observe G-02 Plus.  They do not carry the exact 175/70/R14  So, if I am to get that tire I have to compromise on something in the sizing figures. The sizes around factory are

175/65R14 82T          137130      5.0-6.0              23               7        12
185/60R14 82T      137190      5.0-5.5-6.5      22.8      7.4      13
185/65R14 86T             137140    5.0-5.5-6.5     23.5     7.4     13
185/70R14 88Q     137070     4.5-5.5-6.0     24.3     7.4     13

The headings for the numbers one after each other are;  Tire Size, Product Code, Approved Rim Width Range (inch), Overall Diameter (inch),    Overall Width (inch),    Tread Depth (1/32")

I decided on the 185/70R14 88Q because it had thicker tread depth.. by 1/32".  I know, but its more.. lol..The second reason was because the next choice probably would have been the 175/65R14 82T.  With that tire its the slighty small tread depth, small height which means less circumference which I think will impact tire tread lenght. more wear because less area touching the ground sort of theory.   I also like that the other tire holds more weight per tire, tho I dislike the fact that it can't go as fast in the speed rating.

Maybe I didn't make the right choice.. That is my thought process right now. We have harsh winters, I want to do the right thing.. What would you and others here recommend?

Thanks to everybody that can help

Sorry, had to edit this post..  Posting the tire information in the chart above, made me accidentally post the thread before it was finished.. I was trying to tab words over and it went to the save and tabbed it as enter??

[Winklovic]

Why not check with this forum's sponsor, 1010 Tires?  They have 7 tires to choose from in your 175/70R14 size.

[Dodge.SX.2.0]

I am after reviewing tires for quite a while and that Toyo tire seems like a great choice. Other popular winter tires do not carry in my factory size either.

[mmorriso]

Why not check with this forum's sponsor, 1010 Tires?  They have 7 tires to choose from in your 175/70R14 size.

there does seem to be a great selection of winter tires in your stock size of 175/70/14 and almost all of the major manufacturers are offering rebates on sets of 4 this time of year.  if you are worried that something might not work out with purchasing online why not see if your local tire retailer can match it?  your local gm dealer might be able to offer some help as well.  smaller tires are usually less expensive. 

if you go with the 185/70/14 (slightly larger diameter tire) your speedometer will read 97.7km/h when you are actually going 100km/h and your odometer will under report by 2.326%.

happy shopping!

[davidy]

As others have said, there is a good selection of winter tire brands in the 175/70R14 size including Hankook W409, Pirelli Winter Carving, Michelin X-Ice2, Dunlop Graspic DS3, Yokohama Ice Guard IG20 and Gislaved Nordfrost 5.

Dave

[auto_enthusiast]

That size will for sure fit and you won't notice much difference at all.  Like others have said, your speedmeter will read a bit slow but other than that, there would be no other adverse effects.

[TheMAN]

You can't go wrong with the Pirelli Winter Carving, specially with the $40 rebate. Check 1010tires price then call your local Pirelli dealer to check their price.

[Dodge.SX.2.0]

That size will for sure fit and you won't notice much difference at all.  Like others have said, your speedmeter will read a bit slow but other than that, there would be no other adverse effects.

Thank You auto_enthusiast and Winklovic.

The speed reading a bit low, that is ok. I don't do much high speed driving in the winter and if I do its probably better that it going slower then what is being displayed.  As for the mileage not being reported correctly, that is not a issue either since  2.36 is very low. Those two things are a non issue for me.  As long as I know they will fit and be sure footed on the ground I am happy. I cannot see .4 of a inch making the traction on the vehicle more slippery and not cutting through but rather floating. 


For the others that are suggesting other makes of tires. I realize there are other tires. I am after reading about almost all that are mentioned. I am also after checking out review sites such as the APA Passenger vehicles 2008-2009 Winter Tire Reviews.  Base on all the reading I have done the Toyo seem to be the right choice, other then the fact that I cannot get the exact same size.  They seem to be a good grip tire, with decent wear time.  Unless you folks think its best to get another tire because the sizing will affect the safety of the vehicle or not be able to fit, I would perfer to stay with this brand. 

As for the tire rebates. I have been following this too.  Most tires seem to want to purchase from a Certified dealer. 1010tires is not a official tire retailer, so I am unsure if I purchase from them if I will receive a rebate at all.

Thanks to all for your comments thus far, please keep them coming

[Art]

I use the Toyo Observe G02 plus on my current car and they are the best winter tires I have used.  The performance is excellent on ice, snow and slush.  The tread is long wearing and for a soft tire has good handling characteristics.

I have increased the section width by one size (215/60R16 to 225/60R16) on a previous winter tire purchase and liked the result.  You should not have a problem with the larger size on your car. I used 215/75R15 tires (came on used car) and replaced them with stock 215/70R15 (all season) and did not notice any difference at all. 

Here is a wheel/tire calculator: http://www.rims-n-tires.com/rt_specs.jsp that will show you the precise differences in the two tires and gives fitment advice. 

Good luck.

[TheMAN]

That size will for sure fit and you won't notice much difference at all.  Like others have said, your speedmeter will read a bit slow but other than that, there would be no other adverse effects.

Thank You auto_enthusiast and Winklovic.

The speed reading a bit low, that is ok. I don't do much high speed driving in the winter and if I do its probably better that it going slower then what is being displayed.  As for the mileage not being reported correctly, that is not a issue either since  2.36 is very low. Those two things are a non issue for me.  As long as I know they will fit and be sure footed on the ground I am happy. I cannot see .4 of a inch making the traction on the vehicle more slippery and not cutting through but rather floating. 


For the others that are suggesting other makes of tires. I realize there are other tires. I am after reading about almost all that are mentioned. I am also after checking out review sites such as the APA Passenger vehicles 2008-2009 Winter Tire Reviews.  Base on all the reading I have done the Toyo seem to be the right choice, other then the fact that I cannot get the exact same size.  They seem to be a good grip tire, with decent wear time.  Unless you folks think its best to get another tire because the sizing will affect the safety of the vehicle or not be able to fit, I would perfer to stay with this brand. 

As for the tire rebates. I have been following this too.  Most tires seem to want to purchase from a Certified dealer. 1010tires is not a official tire retailer, so I am unsure if I purchase from them if I will receive a rebate at all.

Thanks to all for your comments thus far, please keep them coming

1010tires is an official tire dealer. I received my $40 MIL rebate from Pirelli already.

[Dodge.SX.2.0]

According to Toyo, They are not official dealer and I question 1010 on this and here was the reply I got back.

"To be honest, you're going to be better off buying local it sounds like. Toyo will not honour the rebate through us. This is a new thing this year and we have never had problem in the past, but apparently we're stepping on Toyo dealers toes by offering the product for less money. "

That was direct e-mail from customer service at 1010tires.com

Now, Locally I can get these tires, but for a little more.  But since 1010tires free shipping has expired and rebate doesn't apply.. It works out to be the same or maybe even a little cheaper locally and I can pick them up and have local support. Originally 1010tires was looking to be better and because of those two things they are now actually more.

Thanks to all that helped.. I am going to get the 185/65/R14   

Cheers!

[DKaz]

I can personally vouch for Yokohama iceGuards...

Anyway you get better winter traction with a narrower tire but hey an extra 1/32" is an extra 1/32". Anyone check out the new Toyo Observe G2S studdable winter?

Man 14" tires are so cheap. The lowest I can go on my Mazda 5 is 16".

[TheMAN]

Most be on Toyo only. Because like I said the Pirelli rebate worked fine. They are also advertising the Michelin and Yoko rebates on their website as well.

[Andy@1010tires]

Yes this is strange. This is the first year we have had customers say the Toyo rebate was not working for them. We are still waiting to hear back from our Toyo rep on this issue.