Tire Sizing and Options

[NewEnglander]

At long last the wife replaced her much beloved though dearly departed 2003 Hyundai Accent with a now beloved 2015 Hyundai Accent. Same gray paint more or less and this one is a hatchback. She tried SUVs but was too attached to the Accent seats, ride, and parking simplicity. Who am I to argue? She hustled the dealer 1K for the remainder of her old car along with a new backup camera installed and something off the asking price. Cash rules supreme and another Hyundai-Kia PB in the family.

Now the downside is they came with Chinese made tires of which I cannot bring myself to leave on the car. They might be fine, I know people like them well enough, but with fall here and snow on the horizon it calls for something else. The Accent has an odd tire size at 175/70R14. I've never been in a position where there wasn't the tire I wanted manufactured in the recommended size. Nokian WRG4s do not come in that size but is there any reason I cannot go with a 185/65R14? Want to make sure I'm not missing anything or forgetting something.

Thanks all. Cheers to BITOG

 

[slacktide_bitog]

Narrower tires are usually considered better for winter use, which you must have in mind if you're considering Nokian.

There is usually no good reason from using a different size than OE, other than tire availability.

Vredestein makes the Quatrac 5 in the size 175/70-14. Vulcan Tire has them at a good price

 

[Voleak]

Originally Posted by NewEnglander
At long last the wife replaced her much beloved though dearly departed 2003 Hyundai Accent with a now beloved 2015 Hyundai Accent. Same gray paint more or less and this one is a hatchback. She tried SUVs but was too attached to the Accent seats, ride, and parking simplicity. Who am I to argue? She hustled the dealer 1K for the remainder of her old car along with a new backup camera installed and something off the asking price. Cash rules supreme and another Hyundai-Kia PB in the family.

Now the downside is they came with Chinese made tires of which I cannot bring myself to leave on the car. They might be fine, I know people like them well enough, but with fall here and snow on the horizon it calls for something else. The Accent has an odd tire size at 175/70R14. I've never been in a position where there wasn't the tire I wanted manufactured in the recommended size. Nokian WRG4s do not come in that size but is there any reason I cannot go with a 185/65R14? Want to make sure I'm not missing anything or forgetting something.

Thanks all. Cheers to BITOG

I trust Discount Tires optional size list. And, it does show the 185/65/14 as being an approved size,

 

[GimmeTorq]

https://www.1010tires.com/Tools/Tire-Size-Calculator

185/65 14 appears to be an alternative

 

[LotI]

How wide is the rim? Just make sure it's approved with the wider tire.

 

[147_Grain]

Should be just fine. The 185/65/14 might be 1/16" less in height compared to OE size.

 

[Pew]

You'll be fine. I usually look around +-10mm for the width and adjust the sidewall to match as close to the OEM rotation. You can check here: https://tiresize.com/calculator/.

 

[Rmay635703]

If you want a boost in fuel economy the RE92 165/65r14's have half the RR of the 175/70r14

Odometer would be off a little but they go on sale for under $70 a tire once or twice a year.

185/65r14's will fit fine but you might loose a little fuel economy

I have a bunch of more or less unused 175's that would fit your car, sadly I'm too far away.

 

[Vuflanovsky]

I doubt you'll have any problems going to a 185/65-14...I have a 2013 Accent hatchback and ( having used three different sizes ) I'd say the choice of tire makes more difference than the size if they're basically near equivalent sizes. The width of the 185 would be the biggest ( and likely only real ) difference.

I went from the OE Kumho KH25s ( not good ) to some Hankook aftermarket tires in a slightly bigger size ( width and diameter ) and it's a noticeable difference that's generated by the tire type more than the size difference. The wild card probably being snow which I never see. My guess is you'd probably experience the same thing.