I am told that to remain 'roadworthy' I need to get tyres that stay within the specified dimensions allowed for my car. I have 2003 TL which specifies a tyre width of 7 inches. Which means I can get 17 x 7, 18 x 7 etc. But there is a limited range of wheels that match these specifications.

Do most of you blokes just get bigger wheels regardless of the roadworthy?

I just found out today, nearly 6 months after purchase that my current tyres and wheels aren't roadworthy, they have a load capacity of 91, my cars load is 94. But the car passed an RACV RW inspec???:nuts:

Do these specs really matter? Would an insurance company actually look into this if you cracked up your car?

Also, how wide can i allow my tyres to be before they start to rub against the body work?

Thanks heaps for any help you blokes can offer.

i have 9 inch wide tyres front and back and i get no scrubbing, does that help.

i have 9 inch wide tyres front and back and i get no scrubbing, does that help.
no it dosent

different states have different laws
but in general the o.d must be within a certain ammount
rim increase by no more than 1inch over widest rim available on your model
no reduction in loadrating.
insurance will use it to get out of a claim if your un lucky


you can fit a rim almost as big as you like on a magna, there is plenty of roomm, i had 20x8.5 and lowered 5" at one stage, and didnt rub

I am told that to remain 'roadworthy' I need to get tyres that stay within the specified dimensions allowed for my car. I have 2003 TL which specifies a tyre width of 7 inches. Which means I can get 17 x 7, 18 x 7 etc. But there is a limited range of wheels that match these specifications.

Do most of you blokes just get bigger wheels regardless of the roadworthy?

not quite... it depends on your local (i.e. state) regulations, but in most states you can increase the width of the rim by 25mm (1") and you can increase the rim diameter by as much as you like provided you stay within 15mm +/- of the outside diameter of the largest/smallest rim and tyre combination. so if you increase the rim diameter you must decrease the sidewall height of the tyre to keep the same (or close to) the original rolling distance.

for example, my car came with 15x6 rims with 205/65r15 tyres. I increased my rim size to 18x8 (legal because there was a 17x7 optional rim) and had to put 235/40r18 tyres on to keep the OD and rolling distance the same.


I just found out today, nearly 6 months after purchase that my current tyres and wheels aren't roadworthy, they have a load capacity of 91, my cars load is 94. But the car passed an RACV RW inspec???:nuts:

Do these specs really matter? Would an insurance company actually look into this if you cracked up your car?

yes, it matters. your car should not have passed a road worthy inspection, and at the very least I would contact RACV and complain that they didn't pick up on it. depending on where you purchased the car, they might be liable to provide new tyres with the correct load rating.


Also, how wide can i allow my tyres to be before they start to rub against the body work?

Thanks heaps for any help you blokes can offer.

many people on here have 235mm wide tyres. some have 245mm tyres. whether it clears the suspension and bodywork is down to the offset of the rim.

check this out http://www.wheelsmaster.com/rt_specs.jsp, put in your current wheels and you can work out what sizes you can get, and it will pick up on any clearance issues.

cheers,
.wook