OK, just got some 16" rims, with 205/60 tyres... but the sidewalls are too big for my car :(

I got a quote for some nice 225/50's however they are $129 (and thats for cheap SaVa's) times that by 4, and add fitting and balancing it comes to $620... my question, if they just put the tyres on the wheels and I fit them at home and skip the balancing, am I risking my life? is it worthwhile to have it professionally fitted and balanced or is tyre swapping a pretty risk-free idiot proof job?

fyi .. $620 inc. fitting & balance; $516 w/o.

I'd be trying to get fitting and balancing included in that price :badgrin:

I fitted my own wheels and they have not been balanced, although I will purchase some new tyres soon and I'll buy them fitted & balanced (for no extra).

Mind if I ask what part of your car the sidewalls are too big for??
As I've got 16" rims with 215/60 on my TR which fit.

i mean its too big cosmetically... looks ugleh ;)

my advice for you is take those four tyres and tell the guy who gave you the quote to jam them right up his BLEEP. ive never heard of ANY tyre shop charging extra for fitting and balancing. a job that takes all of about 3 seconds to i might add. fitting tyres yourself is going to be one hell of a job and they do need to be balanced. its just a safe idea. go find another tyre supplier who will more than likely match that price with fitting included. thats just a scam what they are trying to pull.

umm also, i just went out and measured... the 16" with 205/60 is 660mm from end to end through the centre... while my current 185/75r14 is 630mm from end to end... if i were to fit the new ones wouldnt my speedo be way off?

Well your speedo may be out or may be more correct (I think this was mentioned on MOGWA at some stage)

From the extra 20mm or whatever it is in rolling diamater (don't forget that will change depending on tyre wear etc.) my speedo is closer to being correct now in comparsion to before.
From memory maybe it was 5+ out where now its closer to 2 or so depending on the speed.

Anyway, 50's do look better but 60's are a lot cheaper. Also if you put 50's on, wouldn't that decrease your rolling distance so your speedo would be reading 80 or so when your really doing 70? :p
I think I figured I'd need 55's to keep my speedo fairly accurate.

Anyway, I'd get a decent brand fitted & balanced (even if they had to be 60's :p)

your original tyre is a 185/75r14. this means it is 185mm wide by 75mm high fitting onto a 14 inch rim. your new ones are 205mm by 60mm on 16 inch rims. thats a difference of 25mm in the rims but only a drop 15mm in the tyres. hence the difference. someone correct me if im wrong but id be looking for a set of lower profile tyres to keep close to your original diameter. around 215/50 maybe? have you increased the width by much?

As I said earlier, I think 55's work fairly well.
But there a bit pricey & not all tyres are supplied in that size.

But with 55's its only a 10mm rolling diameter increase = 1% increase on speedo. If thats what your looking for.

The difference in teh tyre sizing is negligable going from 185/75 14's to 225/50 16's

check the pic:

Manual

your original tyre is a 185/75r14. this means it is 185mm wide by 75mm high fitting onto a 14 inch rim. your new ones are 205mm by 60mm on 16 inch rims. thats a difference of 25mm in the rims but only a drop 15mm in the tyres. hence the difference. someone correct me if im wrong but id be looking for a set of lower profile tyres to keep close to your original diameter. around 215/50 maybe? have you increased the width by much?

I think you are wrong here, my mate.
185/75R14 means a tyre with 185mm sectional width and 75% of 185mm
sectional height which equates to 138.75mm. So with 14 inch wheel, the
overall diameter is 633.1014 mm.
205/60R16 gives overall diameter of 652.4016 mm
225/50R16 gives overall diameter of 631.4016 mm
So therefore, 225/50R16 will be a closer match to the original spec and
won't change the speedo much.
Vaeril, I'd get it professionally fitted and balanced. You may also want to
fork out an additional $50 to get the allignment checked. There is no point
in getting new tyres if they are going to wear out unevenly. Make sure they
torque the wheels on properly as you may get the same sensation when
planting the brake pedal hard, as a warped disc feel.

After a month of putting on my new DBA slotted rotors bu my friend who
did not have the proper torque wrench, everytime I come down McIntyre
road I was afraid to brake as the car will shudder. I was pissed off as I
thought the rotors were warped. It wasn't until recently when I went to
The Mag Wheel and Tyre Centre in Prospect for a set of 4 new tyres that
when coming down McIntyre the next day and braking, you know what,
no vibrations at all.

In the 205/65 isnt the 65 a percentage?

yes KB - the 65 is a profile of the width - in the 205/65 example you mentioned the tyre is 205mm wide with a side wall profile of 65% which in this case is 133.25mm

Manual

I've been told its a percentage before but never seen it explained fully.

Cheers, its nice to learn on my day off from uni :D

Cheers, its nice to learn on my day off from uni :D

Like some ones signature i have read says something like:

"Education is important, school on teh other hand ..."

We are here to help

Manual

In the 205/65 isnt the 65 a percentage?

Yeh, if ya want to get technical it's called an Aspect Ratio :D