the Right size tyres for 14" alloys

[pap29]

hi i just perchased for 14" alloys without any tyres and was hoping you guys would know what the best size tyres is to get as im running standuard 13" steelies and dont want to loose loads of performance, what would be the best size for my 14" x 5J alloys to minimise loss?
any help would be great as i dont understand the tyre sizes

 

[Robert]

185/55/14's FTW!

 

[joesouthgate]

185/55/14's FTW!

seconded

 

[SR/SR]

175/55/14 or 185/55/14 or stretched look 165/55/14

 

[joesouthgate]

165s on 5js would not be strectched.

 

[Robert]

Nope, mine came with 165's on 5j rims as standard!

 

[joesouthgate]

I thought they did, you would be loking at 145s for stretched really. then it would understeer like a #####!

 

[rlees85]

145 lol might aswell use push bike tyres id say 175s or 185s or you will get no handling benefits.

 

[Antony]

you want some ET0 offset 8jx14 alloys with 175 tyres stretched over them......mmm

 

[pap29]

thanks for the replies,
so the ones to go for are definatly 185/55/14?
its only a 1.0 litre so am really worries about it slowig me down.
so would 175/55/14 be lower profile?

 

[Robert]

it would be slightly lower yeah,

the 185 is the width, the profile (55) is a percentage of that.

Obviously 55% of 175 is smaller than 55% of 185, so they'd have a lower profile. Won't be by much though, I cba to work it out

 

[SR/SR]

no 175 only means how wide the tyre is its the 55 part that gives you the low profile tyres wont slow you down speed wise but cornering it will if you dont get the right size it will understeer constantly

 

[pap29]

ok so its not a big difference worth worrying about, but i do worry about the effects of performance and handling, anyone able to expand and shine the light

 

[Robb]

have a play on here:

http://www.miata.net/garage/tirecalcold.html

iirc there isnt a greal deal of choice when it comes to tyres for 14s anymore though.

 

[SR/SR]

as a tyrer fitter to trade i have exprienced problems with skinny tyres/wheels the wider the tyre the more it handles better i currently have 195/50/15 on my micra the alloys that came with it were 165/65/13 and going from them to the wider ones handling was alot better

 

[Pugboxter]

I'd have thought a 165/60 x14 would be one of the cheapest tyres that will do the job. The greater the width (the 165 bit) the greater the drag.

 

[pap29]

results for 185!:
Specification_Sidewall_Radius_Diameter_Circumference_Revs/Mile_Difference
155/70-13____4.3in___10.8in__21.5in_____67.7in_______936______0.0%
185/55-14____4.0in___11.0in__22.0in_____69.2in_______916______2.2%

Results for 175!:
Specification__Sidewall__Radius__Diameter__Circumference__Revs/Mile__Difference
155/70-13_____4.3in____10.8in___21.5in______67.7in_______936_______0.0%
175/55-14_____3.8in____10.8in___21.6in______67.8in_______935_______0.2%

anythoughts?

 

[tse_adam]

2.2% is minimal, go for the fatter tyre!

 

[rammy.1]

I have just bought some 14's for my micra, the rims are 14X5.5j, and i put 165/60/14, the reason i did this is so i didnt have to get my speedo re calculated at nissan, i still may have to because as it stands they are 1.2% bigger than the 155/70/13's that i had on, so if i was doing 60mph it would actually be about doing about 60.8mph

 

[tse_adam]

I have just bought some 14's for my micra, the rims are 14X5.5j, and i put 165/60/14, the reason i did this is so i didnt have to get my speedo re calculated at nissan, i still may have to because as it stands they are 1.2% bigger than the 155/70/13's that i had on, so if i was doing 60mph it would actually be about doing about 60.8mph

that figure is very insignificant mate, mine is about 20% out and i am still doing ok lol.

 

[rammy.1]

haha lol fair enough

 

[Napster]

ive been running 185/55/14's for a few years! not a problem! i tried for a lower profile, but became quite expensive

 

[joesouthgate]

I wouldnt worry about recalibrating the speedo as they always underread, mine is more accurate with 14s on, my k10 with 195/45/15s was dead on accurate.