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I drive a 2009 1.6l versa that came with 185/65/14 tires. I recently picked up some 93 altima SE 15" alloys to put on my car. While I like the looks of them it's not for just aesthetics. I would like to use my OEM steel wheels for winter tires and have a dedicated set of wheels for the rest of the year. These wheels I got very cheap and actually have some usable tires on them now. But they are miss matched and 195/65/15.

Now my question is which tire size do I choose? I drive alot so treadware is very important to me. According to http://www.miata.net/garage/tirecalc.html the closest in diameter is 195/55/15 tires. What is very odd to me is the other models of the Versa come with 185/65/15 tires?

I'm so confused :confused:. Any guidance is appreciated. First I want something that won't screw up my mpg's, secondly it can't have low treadware, third I don't want my speedo to be off by too much, and lastly I want it to look good. That is the order of importance to me. Price is of course a factor as well.

Robj80;
I use 185/65/14 on the ft. of my Miata and 195/65/14on the rear. If I remember correctly they are 1/2" taller. Your speedo will be out slightly. I don't think you will notice any difference!
Cheers;

Hal

The good: It'll run your engine at slightly lower rpm.

The bad: you have more rotating mass, farther out from the center hub. The inertia increases by the square of the radius, so this is bad. The lightweight rims are close to the middle, while the tire rubber is farther out and makes a bigger difference.

Another bad: wider tires with more road friction.

Overall, you might gain, you might lose. You'd have to test to know for sure. I'd guess you'll see a very slight loss (measureable? maybe not).

So can anyone recommend tire sizes?

If the other Versa model rolls on 185/65's, I am wondering if the 195 tires are too wide to fit in the front wheelwells. If you install the 195's you may find they contact the body or suspension components when the wheel is turned to the lock in one direction or the other.
Generally speaking, you can go a bit taller than stock, but not much. If you do go taller (larger diameter), you should consider going one size narrower to minimize the chance of the tire contacting the body or chassis.

185/65-14's are about 23.5" tall and 7.4" wide.
175/65-15's would be 24" tall and 7" wide.
185/55-15's are 23" tall - causing the speedometer/odometer to read too high.

So the safest bet for clearance without going to a smaller circumference would probably be 175/65-15's.

The 195/65/15 compared to the 185/65/14 will make you speedometer and odomenter read 6.4% slower than actual speed and the odometer would read 6.4% less miles than actual which means to get an accurate mpg you'd have to add 6.4% to you mileage when doing the calculations, but the larger tires should help fuel efficiency since they would give you taller gearing. Less rpm's for the same speed. If the 195/65/15's will fit without any issues with rubbing I'd put them on and drive it for awhile even though the tires are mis matched just to see what affect it had on fuel efficiency and handling.

I am doubting my speedo is accurate anyway. The versa models come with 185/65/15 as well. But they have a different transmission so maybe that is how they keep the speedo accurate. I always drive by the police radar signs and it's off by a few mph.

I did try the 195/65/15's on the rear and they fit great. I do have to try them on the front though.

This girl has 185/65/15's in this pic.
http://i413.photobucket.com/albums/pp215/ashleycabral/IMG_0859.jpg

They may be harder to find, but what about 185/60-15's? they're only 1.2% different in diameter.

Check the sticker that lists inflation pressures. It may also list tire sizes. My Elantra came with 195/60-15's, the sticker says I can use 195/60 or 185/65's without issue.

They may be harder to find, but what about 185/60-15's? they're only 1.2% different in diameter.

Check the sticker that lists inflation pressures. It may also list tire sizes. My Elantra came with 195/60-15's, the sticker says I can use 195/60 or 185/65's without issue.

I am changing the wheel size from 14 to 15" so this would not apply. The only thing I can do is keep the tire diameter as close as possible.

These are the sizes the tire store recomends
Plus One
185/65-15
195/60-15
195/65-15

If the larger tires will have any problems, it will be on the front axle. And it will likely be when turning. In my old days, I put 255/60s on a car that had 215/75s stock and they didn't rub until I turned the wheel hard and rolled up a driveway apron. Then you'd get the familiar rumble as the edge of the tread rubbed against the sway bar. If the tires only rub at sharp steering angles during jounce or rebound, and the contact point is not sharp enough to damage the tire, you can choose to run the tires as they are.

I recall reading on a wheel-n-tire site some years ago that you don't want to exceed the OEM tire outside diameter by more than about 3% because the larger radius increases stresses on the braking system. Drivers like us who don't use the brakes all that often probably don't need to worry about that, but it is a consideration when departing from OEM wheels and tire sizes.