Why get wider tires

Many drivers want their summer tires to look flashier than their winter equivalents. That is why wider and lower tires are usually selected for the summer, whereas narrower tires are commonly used in the winter.

In Central Europe, car owners usually have two sets of rims: one for the summer and another for the winter. A common choice is to use slightly larger and more expensive rims for the summer tires.

The correct tire width is also affected by the sorts of characteristics the owner is looking for in their car and its handling. The tire width will affect their price and several other characteristics, such as grip, noise level, driving comfort, and appearance. Replacing narrow tires with wider ones will usually increase rolling resistance and, therefore, slightly increase fuel consumption. In summer tires, size is also a question of esthetics; a wide tire is thought to look better than a narrow one.

The tire profile refers to the ratio between the height and width of the tire. Since the most popular sizes are narrow with a high profile, they are manufactured in greater numbers than wide tires with a low profile. With snow on the road, it is more important to have more pressure applied than having a bigger contact area.

In this way, narrow tires are better an option as they can cut through the snow and provide better traction. Question: In which weather are wider tires better? Answer : Except for snow driving, wider tires are generally better in most cases, either wet or dry road conditions. With bigger sipes, wider tires can trap and remove water better from the road, or any contact surface. Unless you need to drive over a shallow lake, wider tires are better and more practical to drive on rainy days.

On the other hand, go wide is always the most recommended option for dry road driving. Making the right changes for your tires and wheels to a wider or narrower model from its stock size can be confusing sometimes.

However, in the end, it all comes down to your desires. What do you want to achieve? Whether it is for better appearance or better performance, knowing your needs and conditions to have the better and right change for tire and your vehicle in general.

Your email address will not be published. Contents Advantages 1. Better grip and traction 2. Improved Cornering 3. Better Braking 4. Better Appearance Disadvantages 1. Increased Fuel Consumption 2. Slower Acceleration and Harder Steering 3. Quick Tire Wear 4. If you're installing a wider tire than what you car was originally designed to accommodate, you may encounter a situation where the rubber doesn't quite fit under the lip of your fender.

Most of the time, a wider tire that needs rolled fenders will be installed on a vehicle that rides on a lowered suspension, which brings the fender lip even closer to the rubber. The most common way to deal with this issue is to 'roll' the fender lip. Since it's usually the inner fender lip that is making contact with a wider tire, you need to use a roller, either a specialized tool that mounts to the hub, providing you with a controlled arc, or even a heat gun and a cylindrical hand-roller, to gently push it back away from the tire.

By flattening the metal in this way, it prevents gouging of the tire, or damage to the fender due to suspension travel. What if rolling still won't accommodate your wider tire? The next option is to install a set of fender flares.

If you own an extremely low car and are using seriously wide tires, flares may be your only option. Likewise, if you're driving a lifted truck and want to install taller, wider mud or off-road tires, and are concerned about fender contact at full suspension compression, you'll also want to look at flares. This process is a little more involved than fender rolling, because you'll most likely have to cut metal from your wheel wells to accommodate the tire, and then conceal those cuts with the new flares.

If you're installing a wider tire, you may also have to consider more than just its impact on your body panels.

Depending on the offset of the wheel you are using, and the position of the suspension components, wheel spacers could be a part of the conversation, too.

Some wider tires look fine when the front wheels are pointed straight, but when the steering is turned at full lock they can come into contact with the vehicle's chassis. It's here that wheel spacers come in, adding extra millimeters between the wheel and the hub in order to provide you with the clearance that you need.

Keep in mind your application when shopping for spacers. You'll want to make sure that the parts you buy are strong enough for off-roading or high performance driving, as some spacers are simply intended for the 'hard parked' crew that won't be doing anything more strenuous than street driving. You'll also want to consider adding longer aftermarket wheel studs, because as the spacers push your wheel away from the hub it also reduces the number of threads available for your lug nuts to grab onto.

Some wheel spacers offer a bolt-on design that actually extends the hub, helping to strengthen your wheel's connection. Naturally, if your tire is wide enough to require a large spacer, you'll most likely be incorporating either a flared or rolled fender to complete the installation. Want to learn more about suspension setup?