Tire Replacement (Not Winter)

[Rat]

:help:
I know that has had to been discussed numerous times but I can't find what I want to know with the search. I'm
running the OEM rear 245/55 on all four corners and they work excellent plus I can rotate and it improved my ride quite a bit. Rear Suspension still gives the rake look. I read a thread sometime back where one of the guys had changed to Michelin and was very pleased at the time. Sarge or some of you people that have run different brands should know what I'm looking for. The BFG is pretty noisy on my car and I still have the center wear problem but not nearly as bad since I upped the tire pressure to around 40 all the way around I've got about 18K on this set and they are just about down to the wear bar in the center all the way around and I have rotated every 3k. Exactly what size shoud I replace the (245/55 I want to keep it close enough that I won't have to re-calibrate the speedo. A friend said that he had replaced with Hankook and It stopped his center wear problem but I haven't saw it with my own eyes and may have had a few bud's when he was gauging them. We have had good luck with Michelin in the past but they were not HP tires. Any Suggestions would be appreciated. Also got the Blue Smoke on startup fixed but should be another thread.

Thanks in Advance
Bob

[SergntMac]

Sorry, Bob, I don't have any advice for you at the present time. I did some poking around at Discount Tire Direct, (www.tires.com) and all that I could find, is our OEM rear size tire. The good news is that it's on sale.

http://www.discounttiredirect.com/direct/searchTiresBySize.do?sw=false&cs=245&ar=55&rd=18

I also punched in some numbers at this site, to see what else may work as a substitute, but keeping in mind that you're looking to replace all 4 at the same time, some of the selections are pricey, yet offer no features different than our rear OEM, other than size. Maybe this will help you work in the size thing?

http://www.discounttire.com/dtcs/infoTireMath.dos

Other things to keep in mind when shopping tires, it the speed rating and load index, both are critical to selecting the right tire for the Marauder. Hope this helps.

[melfunkshun]

Here's another tire calculator.

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

The 225/60-18's that are used on the Dodge Magnum and the new Charger R/T are identical in size to our 245/55-18's. At tirerack.com, they have about 6 tires to choose from in that size (225/60-18).

[mrjones]

I'm planning on going to the same size on all four corners with my next replacement (03A), and I'm going to try the 255/55 size. It's about 1/2' taller, but it shouldn't be too bad. Lots more choices in that size, with some good looking tires in the $100 - $125 range, and good load ratings too.

[ctrcbob]

Would the 225/60-18 fit on our stock wheels?

[SergntMac]

Smaller is better? Really?


Check this out...The 225/60-18's that are used on the Dodge Magnum and the new Charger R/T are identical in size to our 245/55-18's. At tirerack.com, they have about 6 tires to choose from in that size (225/60-18). I disagree.

The 225/60 tires you suggest require a 6" to 7" wide wheel. The OEM Marauder wheel is 18X8, which is very upper limit of what a 225/60 tire should be mounted on.

With proper 38-40 PSI inflation for a 4400 pound automobile, the ride will be harsh and bumpy, while unnecessarilly exposing crown and sidewall to road hazzards. You will see increased sidewall punctures and blisters from encounters with pot holes, as well as bent rims from lack of proper cushioning. If you reduce inflation to adjust the ride, the tire will roll under during high speed cornering and lose it's bead, which is a classic "blowout" and dangerous at any speed.

Moreover, the 225/60-18 tire you suggest appears close to the 245/55-18 in certain dimensions, but look again? Sidewall height is exact at 5.31" each, from the crown to the wheel rim, so they will be of similar profiles, but only on similar wheel widths. Overall diameter is likewise close, 28.63 vs. 28.61. Circumfrence is 89.44" vs. 89.88", neither of which are very far apart and not that important. However, the 225/60-18 plants 8.86" wide across the tread, and the stock OEM Marauder 245/55-18 plants 9.65" across the tread pattern. Okay...What are you thinking.

If you are suggesting that this skinner tire will be good for use in snowy climates, yes, get a set in "all season" compound and tread design for winter use, you'll enjoy them. Trimming almost an inch away from the "snow plows" our Marauder front tires become in anything more than 2" of "decent packing" makes sense. I like your suggestion, but only for temporary relief from winter conditions.

If your suggesting we could use these 225/60 tires full time all year around as an alternative to our OEM sizes, no way dude. I'm not giving up almost an inch of tire tread at each corner, not with such a heavy car than can reach frightening speed in very short distances. In normal/seasonal conditions where any Marauder may be driven to high speed, or, hit some hard twisties with little notice, smaller tires do not cut it in my book. I want all the rubber I can get on the pavement, and the 245/55 or larger does that very well, thank you.

BTW, your link to a Miata something site would not load for me.

[melfunkshun]

Thanks for all the deep research.... but Dodge makes a 18X7.5 inch rim for those tires & weight isn't a factor. I also never mentioned anything about smaller being better. The manufacturers of those tires in that size used a range of 6"-8" for rim size, not me. I personally would not use that tire size, but all I did was throw a suggestion out there since one of our members asked.

Also, you need a Java-enabled browser for that link to work.

[juno]

You can try the Toyo Proxes in 255-50-18, Nice tire, I just put them on the rear of mine. About .6" smaller than the stock so you would have to get the speedo/ECM adjusted.