Can I change my tyre size?

holidayinn

I’m looking for a pair of front tyres for my car.

They are currently of the size 225/50/16. When I put my registration plate into any tyre dealers website they recommend the size 205/55/16.

I’ve found that I can get better brands at a better price by selecting the 205/55/16 and reading about there is hardly any difference in the size of the tyre between the two, something like 0.8% difference.

Is anyone aware of any issues with this? Plan to change the front then the rears in time.

Thanks!

force_ten

the 225 may be a wrong tyre size and the 205 correct

did the car come with 225,s or did you fit them

Nodding_Donkey

The difference in width is 20mm which is a bit more than 0.8%

force_ten

Nodding_Donkey wrote: »

The difference in width is 20mm which is a bit more than 0.8%

they are not talking about the difference in width they are talking about the rolling circumference of the tyre

A 225/50/16 has a rolling circumference of 1904.26 mm

and the 205/55/16 has a rolling circumference of 1905.76 mm

giving a difference in the rolling circumference of 1.5mm

So when your speedo reads 70mph, you're actually travelling at 70.06 mph

holidayinn

Thanks for the replies, the car came with the 225's and I've replaced them like for like since purchase 2011, it's an E46 BMW.

However, now I'd rather put a better branded 205 tyre on for a cheaper price rather than a budget 225 brand at a more expensive price as I cover a lot of miles and whatever tyres I put on don't seem to last...

I do plan to get the alignment done also.

marlot

If it doesn't say in your manual, I'd check with BMW whether its an approved size. Otherwise there could be insurance issues downstream.

Iceweasel

While you're right about the rolling circumference being correct the width of the wheels will probably be different.

Exactly which wheels are on the car?

Check here:

http://www.bmwstylewheels.com/

force_ten

holidayinn wrote: »

Thanks for the replies, the car came with the 225's and I've replaced them like for like since purchase 2011, it's an E46 BMW.

However, now I'd rather put a better branded 205 tyre on for a cheaper price rather than a budget 225 brand at a more expensive price as I cover a lot of miles and whatever tyres I put on don't seem to last...

I do plan to get the alignment done also.

on a BMW have a look at the tyre pressure plate on the drivers door pillar, it will have the correct tyre sizes for the car on there and will show you the OEM tyre options for 16,s on the E46

holidayinn

Thanks again all!

Iceweasel - from the set of photo's they are style 29, although this seems to appear a number of times in the set i.e style 8, I guess these are all different in some way.

force ten - thank you, the options seem to suggest 205/55/16 91V ang 225/50/16 92 W (which is currently on).

I guess from this information I am fine to swap the tyres?

I will also check with the fitting station that they are okay to do this.

Many thanks.

force_ten

if 205/55/16 91V is an option on the door pillar then i would be happy to run them on my car

the only limiting factor will be the wheel width, if it is a 7 J rim then 195 mm is the minimum tyre width 205 to 215 mm is a perfect match and 225 mm is the maximum tyre width on a 7 inch wide rim

if it is a 7.5 J rim then 205 mm is the minimum tyre width 215 to 225 is a perfect match and 235 mm is the maximum tyre width on a 7 and a half inch wide rim

so 205, s will fit on a 7 J or a 7.5 J rim

when the tyre fitters pull the rims off have a look at the back of the wheel and it will have a bmw part number and wheel size like 16 X 7 J and the ET offset number

and this will confirm if the tyres are right for the rims

colino

50 profile is weird looking anyway on anything but an entry level 3 series, going up to 55 and a skinny at that, will not only make it look even stranger, but you'll need two spares too.
Probably cheaper looking on ebay for a full set of alloys (and tyres!) that someone has upgraded from.