I still don't get why wheels are so big and the profiles of the tires are so low. Old man yelling at cloud

Bailes1992 said:
I've always bought cars that were considered to be good in the handling department. A sea of Ford Focuses, Volvo V40's (which is just a MK3 Focus in a posh dress) and a BMW 5 series dropped in there for good measure. All had 'large' alloy wheels and low profile tyres.

My Duster however has been a bit of a revelation for me. Yes, it has 17" alloys but the tyres have a decent sidewall (215/60 R17) which I've found to be an absolute blessing. I can mount kerbs, or drop into ditches on the side of lanes, or drive through pot holes etc all without worrying about damaging a wheel or tyre. Yes, the car handles like a boat but the suspension is very soft and forgiving. I find myself getting into cars with far firmer suspension and totally misjudging how fast I can take speed bumps and go over patches of road etc because I'm so used to how compliant the Duster is.
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I’ve got 215/55/17 on my 2019 Sonata. Compared to my previous Sonata with 205/65/16 it’s a tad harsher (about 1/2” less side wall), but much tighter handling.
 
If people want these things on their Toyota Camry, fine, but could we please keep making 15" tires? The tire selection for my older vehicles has really decreased.
 
edyvw said:
It is 2.9" sidewall. Not a lot, but there is still some rubber. My 225/40 R18 on BMW are 3.5". On cars, 3-4" is what you looking for, unless some econboxes.
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My Z shown on the left here, had 245/35/19 on front which is just shy of 3.4"....no issues. Having said this. I would say that's very close to the limit for ride "comfort" and wheel protection. In my opinion, 3" is really pushing it big time.
 
Ronn said:
My Z shown on the left here, had 245/35/19 on front which is just shy of 3.4"....no issues. Having said this. I would say that's very close to the limit for ride "comfort" and wheel protection. In my opinion, 3" is really pushing it big time.
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Ah, in Las Vegas, you can ride on 1". Roads don't go bad as fast as here over there.
 
I'd rather not look like the Nimitz on sea trials when taking a corner over 20mph.
 
To clear the big brakes.
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My dad just bought a 2021 Honda Passport Sport AWD. It's essentially a base model. It came with factory 20s and 45 series tires. The 20s look nice but the profile is way too low. Curbs and potholes are gonna be an issue. I really would've preferred it had 17s or 18s and a fatter tire, if only to protect the rims.
 
As an old guy, who happens to be an engineer, I find this discussion very amusing. What's a low profile? 40,? 35? I remember when 70 was low profile!

What I have noted is that shocks have greatly improved and it's now possible to put 45 series tires on and get the same ride performance as 60 series did way back when. This is a moving target and it's extremely relative.
 
A selling point of refreshed Tahoe/Escalade is 24” rims available.

I think, it’s one of those because it’s possible deals.

Remember wheel > tire for density, so almost all cases larger rims add unsprung weight.

I’m old. My rule is I stick with standard rims UNLESS optional ones mean wider tires.

But like people here have said. Mercedes does what I say, even on base SUVs. So a base SUV can have $600 ea tires which makes little sense.

Man always wants a single number to judge goodness. Here, rim size.

One of my cars, standard rims, rear tires are 35 series on the rear, 40 on front. Optional would have been 30’s….not a lot of sidewall.

And clouds are annoying btw!
 
goingplacesanddoingstuff said:
I agree, but this is easy to change. Immediately after buying it, I sold the atrocious 18” wheels that came on my CX-30 and went with 17” aftermarket wheels and light AT tires.

The guy who bought them had a base model CX-30 and was delighted to buy them. He thought they looked great. Sure. Whatever does it for ya I guess.
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2009 Mazda 5 - I went from the optional 17" factory wheels with 50-series tires to the base-model 16" factory wheels with 55-series tires.

The ride improved, and a quick visual inspection is more likely to turn up low air pressure. The 50-series always looked low on air.
 
07 Mazda3 GT sedan. Stock: 205/50R17 New: 225/45R17

Saved $25 per tire for the exact same Continental DWS06+. Wanted to fill the wheel well out just a bit more than stock, mission accomplished. Gained a bit of treadwidth, minimal difference in sidewall height. Huge handling improvement over the Falken tires they replaced.

Plenty of sidewall, and the rim protectors are huge.
 
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