I'm in the market for some new tires and have a small question. My tire size is 215/55/17, but I found some tires I like that are 225/50/17. I read that having a tire larger than the stock size will cause the wheels to rotate slower than they're supposed to. So my question is: Is it recommended to stick with the stock size or will larger tires be okay? Any input is appreciated.

 

Actually the 225/50/17 would be smaller in diameter by .45 inch.

The wheel gap will look larger (by .275 inch), you'll lose a little bit of ground clearance (by .275 inch), the speedometer will be slightly off (when it reads 60, you'll be going 58.97). But as long as all 4 tire sizes are the same, it will not interfere with VDC.

Plus sides, you'll have a slightly lower center of gravity. You'll have a slightly shorter sidewall. So your handling may improve.

You also have to consider the width of the tire compared to the width of the rim. You don't want to pinch the tire too much. But 225 on a stock 7" rim shouldn't be a problem.

 

The 225/50 is a tad shorter than normal. Typical plus zero size would be 225/55-17.

 

I'm gonna go a little off topic with this question. As I said in my first post I'm in the market for some new tires. Being a tire rack employee, what kind of max performance summer tires would you suggest that can deliver the best bang for your buck?

 

Outside the Advan Sport, the only other higher performance option I would look at in the 225 is BFGoodrich's GForce Sport C2.

 

I had looked at the Continental Extreme Contact DW. Another employee had told me that those would fit my wheel size if I got them in (I think) 235/50/17. Would that be correct? I really liked what I saw with those.