Northern 300B folks-Help...QUICK!

[CRUZTAKER]

Bear with me as I am sure you have worked this problem out, but I don't have time to research it. The prospective buyer (of my winter wheel pkg.) is due here in a few hours. He is a 2003 300B owner.

I ran winter 16"s this past winter on my "A" without any problems. The info I received a few moments ago from a reputable source says that you cannot run 16"s on a B model with T/C and ABS. It screws with the sensors, and is not chip programably correctable.

WHAT WAS THE 300B WINTER TIRE SOLUTION??????

I cannot and will not sell this fellows wheels that won't work, and definetely need a viable answer as to why before he gets here.

Help guys....I know the snowbirds did something...but what

[Logan]

So long as the overall tire diameter is the same on the front AND the back, it's not a problem. If you change the diameter, it'll trip the ABS light unless the correct tire size is accomodated for by a chip from Dennis or a flash from the fordchips guys.

[RF Overlord]

Originally posted by Logan
So long as the overall tire diameter is the same on the front AND the back, it's not a problem.

Not to dispute our Fearless Leader, but I thought the ratio of rear to front tire diameter was 1.05/1...the actual diameters didn't matter as long as the ratio was maintained (for ABS purposes)...?

[CRUZTAKER]

This is good...but it'll be hard to prove to this guy without actually trying them out. In the meanwhile, I'll measure circ*mfrance of these wheels, as they are different manufacturers.

Thanks
-Barry

[Logan]

Diameter matters to the speedo, big time. :)

But you're right, the front-rear ratio is the important part for the ABS system.

[Murader03]

Drats! I'm confused. Are you talking ABS or TC? I've been running the same size tires on all four corners now for over 5K and the ABS is fine. No light, etc. I don't have TC, and according to what Dennis has told me, the smaller tires on the rear would trip the TC light. As for ABS, I don't see any problem being encountered here. The TC would be the problem!

[MMM2003]

The Winter Tire Solution, which would work with any MM is:

Front 2/ 215/65r16 Michelin Arctic Alpin, Rear 2/ 225/70r16 Michelin Arctic Alpin, 4/ 16x6.5

Brand tire can obviously be different. There is also a 17" option:

You could do the front 215/60r17 Michelin Arctic Alpin and rear 235/65r17 Michelin Pilot Alpin to keep the height differences correct.

I believe the front to rear ratio is more critical for the TC. Overall diameter will only change the speedo reading. I know as a fact that other owners have been running 235/50/18 on all four corners with no ABS problems reported.

Hope this helps some. Good luck!

OBTW, both options above will keep the overall tire diameter as close as possible to OEM. You can compare different wheel and tire options with this handy tire size calculator.

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

[MapleLeafMerc]

A mechanic friend found me used "Racing I", 7.5 x 17", 6 spoke alloy wheels and mounted Dunlop SP Winter Sport M3 tires on them. Front is 225/55R17, rear 235/55R17.

It was a tough search trying to find wheels that would accomodate the brake calipers and tires that approximated the 'aspect ratio' of the OEM 'slicks' (235/245)

[CRUZTAKER]

Thanks guys....the wheels measure up exact.
I have posted my offer here as well.

http://www.mercurymarauder.net/forums/showthread.php?s=&postid=73098#post73098

It's actually a good deal in my opinion.