Rough roads - what difference would these these tyres make?

Rough roads - what difference would these these tyres make?

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Clintpistol17

Original Poster:

20 posts

74 months

Sunday 10th November 2024
quotequote all
Hi

I'm looking for a new (used) car. Needs to tick several boxes, one of which is that I live in the mountains where the roads are poor quality with loads of rough patches, potholes, etc.

The cars I've short listed have the following spec tyres:

- 205/55 R16.
- 205/60 R16.
- 215/65 R16.

I've been told that the higher the side wall of a tyre, the more it will protect the suspension of the car and save frequent trips to the garage for new drop links, bushes, shocks, etc. I seem to have to have these sorts of things changed a lot at the moment!

With that in mind, how much difference would the above size wheels/tyres make?

Also. is it possible to easily change a car's tyre size, say from 205/55 R16 to 215/65 R16? Or would that be a real pain both practically and when it comes to insurance etc?

Many thanks

Clintpistol17

Original Poster:

20 posts

74 months

Sunday 10th November 2024
quotequote all
Hi

Many thanks for the quick and helpful replies. To answer some of the questions...

danb79 said:
Which car are you thinking of? Would a 4x4 not be a better choice?
We're looking at Dacias mainly - Duster, Jogger and Logan Stepway. Possible the Vauxhall Combo Life. We've always been ok without 4x4 so thinking to stay away from that as it is extra money and something else to go wrong. Also, I was told in the past that a 2x4 with decent all season or winter tyres is better than a 4x4 with standard tyres?


danb79 said:
What issues have you had so far if you're looking to change tyres?
Various over the years. Our current car is an inherited Vauxhall Corsa D (195/55 R16 tyres), and before that we had a Skoda Fabia estate (185/60 R14). I'd have to look over old invoices to see what work we had done in the past, if I've still got them. But from memory it always seemed to be suspension related things like drop links, bushes, wishbones (?), shocks, shock mounts, CV joints.

I'm not looking to change tyres as such. But more looking for cars which will have better tyres (and protection of suspension parts) than our current Corsa and previous Fabia. I asked about changing tyres as the Logan Stepway has 205/55 R16, while the Jogger and Duster have better tyre sizes at 205/60 R16 and 215/65 R16 respectively. So I was wondering whether, if we went for a Logan, we might be able to change the tyres/wheels for a better size and side wall height.


Bill said:
It would also be useful to know what your current car and tyre size is.
kambites said:
As for the difference it will make - it depends hugely on both the exact car and the exact tyres in question.
Details above, if they help? In terms of the exact tyres, I guess make/model is something I can look into when the time comes to change them... Happy to spend extra for better and have used Cross Climates in the past. For now though, all I know is the potential tyre sizes for each model.


kambites said:
The usual approach would be to drop to 15 inch wheels to allow more sidewall without increasing the rolling radius significantly.
Ah, ok, thanks for explaining. That makes total sense.


@Davie - thanks for that. Lots to chew on there.


And thanks to everyone for taking the time to help, much appreciated.