Tire Question: Going from 265 to 245??

Thai

Thai

Elite Member
Hey all,

I am still in my endless search for the perfect tire for me. I am thinking of going from 265/70/16 to 245/75/16...both are 31" tires. Major difference is that the tire width would decrease less than an inch.

Reason? Well, for my G500, i am looking for a more off-road-oriented tire with the same stock size (31"). I am considering Goodyear MT/R among other MTs. The reason why i don't upsize is that my spare tire cover cannot cover a bigger size. Without the spare tire cover, my spare wheel is ugly since MB mounts them with the pretty face facing inward!:( In addition, there may be some issues with my stability control if i upsize.

For example, if i were to go with MT/R, then my tire diameter stays the same (exactly!) to what i have now (BFG AT KO 265/70/16). The width decreases a little less than 1 inch. Tire weight is about the same (50 vs. 51 lbs).

Most tires in 245/75/16 range are Load Range E...so these tires are for heavy duty and will easily support my G's weight.

The negative that i see beyond the different aspects of the tire themselves: less protection for my rims during off-roading because the tire is skinnier.

So, is there anything i should know about or missing in my calculations??? On-road performance?? Anything.

Thanks in advance.
 
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One inch less rubber contact per wheel is a total of four inches less rubber on pavement for braking and cornering. A smaller width tire will give less stability in turns. Less surface area of rubber contact on wet pavement may also effect the grip slightly.
 
007Runner said:
One inch less rubber contact per wheel is a total of four inches less rubber on pavement for braking and cornering. A smaller width tire will give less stability in turns. Less surface area of rubber contact on wet pavement may also effect the grip slightly.
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Good points. I don't care too much about cornering...i drive conservatively, esp. in the G.

How about wet performance? I hear that a narrow tire is better in wet and snow??
 
I live in a snowy area over 190 in last winter, rains at least 3 to 4 times a week during the summer. I never see any narrow tires on personal snow plows. The street snow plows have very wide tall tires. Surface area must be the winner based on tire choices. The more surface area on the pavement, the chances of finding more traction must improve. I have heard that narrow tires do well in the snow. From personal experience and comments made by the highway snow removal people, wide tires give better traction, but the width must not be so wide as to not meet a certain minimum pounds per square in on the road based on vehicle weight., or it will float on the snow. Narrow tires just don't give enough surface area contact in snow to be effective, so I imagine the same holds true for wetness. The snow plows in my area are so effective that a 30 in blizzard that hit overnight was cleared by 7 in the evening. People in my area clear out the shelves in grocery stores every time we get bad weather, like they are going to starve in 12 hours!
 
007Runner said:
The street snow plows have very wide tall tires. Surface area must be the winner based on tire choices.
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One would think that the wider tires are necessary in order to support the heavy weights (tons of salt/anti-skid material) that most municipal/state snow plows must haul when plowing. IMHO, comparing traction characteristics of municipal/state snow plows against non-snow plows is not a very valid or meaningful comparison. Snow plows carry significantly more weight which can change traction characteristics and make wider tires appear to perform better when they may not on a smaller, lighter, vehicle.

007Runner said:
I have heard that narrow tires do well in the snow. From personal experience and comments made by the highway snow removal people, wide tires give better traction, but the width must not be so wide as to not meet a certain minimum pounds per square in on the road based on vehicle weight., or it will float on the snow.
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Well I use Blizzak 245/75/16s as my winter tires and these tires actually bite into the snow and provide excellent grip especially when turning. Tires that are too wide simply cannot channel the snow away effectively enough hence the "floating on the snow" problem which I used to have using my non-winter tires in the snow.

007Runner said:
Narrow tires just don't give enough surface area contact in snow to be effective, so I imagine the same holds true for wetness.
Click to expand...

Tires whether used in snow or rain have to channel away the snow or rain to be effective traction wise. A drastic narrowing in tire width would cause problems but Thai is talking about 1 inch less width, hardly drastic.
 
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Thanks Charlie for your good 1st hand explanation. I thought that i heard something about avoiding fat tires in rain and snow...but never really read up on the reason(s) why. I know first hand that my little Corolla with it's skinny Goodyear Assurance Comfortred tires is more confidence inspiring in heavy rain than my old BMW M3 wide Pilot Sport tires.
 
Those 2 tire sizes are so close in size I doubt you could visually tell them apart;): most don't realize that with truck/SUV tires from new tires to worn tires needing replacement you loose a half inch to inch of rubber so a slighly smaller tire if you can really call it that will probably be almost the same size as the OEM tires:)

You can try 1 of the many tire size calculators

http://www.miata.net/garage/tirecalc.html
 
Generally speaking aren't skinnier tires better for off-road and snow/rain traction? More weight per square inch of contact patch will improve traction, but at the cost of cornering performance and stability. Also, depending on how wide your wheel on the G is it might look kind of funny, and you WILL notice a differnce in looks...
 
Thai:

I am using 245/70 16's on my winter wheels of my 4Runner. I bought the Winter Duelers when I had my Nissan Pathfinder and they work very well as winter tires, excellent handling and braking.

As mine are a different diameter than the stock 17's, I have about a 3% speedo error.

Rick B
 
narrow tires usually increase rock crawling capability.. now thats when upsizing to 40 inchers with like 13 inch widths... a 40 inch bogger is 19 inchs wide

wider foot patterns help in sand, mud and loose gravel but I dont know about snow and wet traction.

I have 265/75 goodyears on right now.. they handle fine in the rain and only when I turn traction control off and kick it does it spin out. I am getting 285/75s tomorrow same brand same tire. mtrs have a wider stance. so for you decreasing in tire width will be minimal since the knobs on the sides have more width then an AT tire
 
Neliconcept...i am currently evaluating all MTs for possible use on my G. How is the noise level of the MTR?? Is it really noticeable when crusing on the highway?? Any problems with balancing it?? How's the wear??

Thanks in advance for answer the above questions.
 
noise is noticable at high speeds. you would really have to ride with somebody who had smaller MTRS. 245 mtrs might not be as loud as 265 and same with 285..

I like the sound but you may not. Windows down its really noticable.. music on but not loud.. you cant tell.

The truck doesnt shake.. I rides a little different but youll be used to it in like 3 days. I even push mine around corners because I drive like I used to with my 88 bmw m5. I have about 3k miles on mine. Id say somewhere in the 90 to 95% range in wear. nipples are still on the sides. Some that is.

If you have any more questions.. I'll be glad to answer. I plan on selling my 265s here soon
 
oh Thai,, I should probablly mention this.

I just upsized to 285s today and I drove around.. going from 265 to 285.. the road noise has increase so much.. so I think a 245 mtr will decrease from 265 by a factor of 1.5x or so. I think mainly the contact path on the road and the narrow band between each knob in the tread. my 285s had a little more space between each tread bar then my 265s.

Hope that helps.. I think you should hit up the 245s as far as that goes
 
neliconcept said:
Hope that helps.. I think you should hit up the 245s as far as that goes
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Great, you got me even more torn now!! I was all planning to go up to 265/75/16...and now you tell me this?!!:D

I am looking real hard at Firestone Destination M/T.
 
I saw firestones in person wheeling and they are awesome. They are cheaper too so keep that in mind.

I'm selling my 265s and wheels if you ever wanted those but since I assume this is for your G my wheels wouldnt fit.

edit: my 265s werent that loud at all.. these 285s however are. but I still like the sound. plus my deckplate/isr drones me bad anyways so humming from tires doesnt get to me
 
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