Tire Question

#1
Ok Lets try this again. Because the first time my blind butt couldnt see the size without my glasses Hi Im allen, new to the place. Just recently bought a 2015 Corolla LE Im looking at putting snows on this thing and was wondering if going to 195/60/16 from the 205/55/16 on here would hurt anything. Ive never had a CVT before and didnt know if switching tire sizes would kill it
 
#2
195/60 are 25.2" in diameter vs 24.9" for 205/55. A very small difference of 0.3" that might affect speedometer very slightly and nothing else. Plus it's always wise to go narrower fot snow.
 

jolly

New Member
#6
I think if the contact area is more than you should have better traction on snow. May be I am wrong.
Think of snowshoes : the wider path allows a person to "float" on snow. Great for a human, not so great for a car even on icy vs snowy conditions, where the weight/sq.in. equation also comes in play.
Remember the good old days of propulsion, when people would put weight - sand, cinder blocks - in their trunk.
If you encounter slush, the wider path would tend to plow, destabilizing the car, the narrower would tend to "cut" trough it straight. Same goes for aquaplaning by the way.
Wider path gives more traction/control/braking efficiency on dry pavement. Or if you really need to "float", like those big double-wheeled tractors in muddy fields.
 
#8
Jolly,

Look if it is Ice then narrow tries are recommended to cut through the Ice and the tire should touch the road surface. But for snow, we need the tires which can have more surface area as you can see in the above you tube link that they are are using chains/belts. Lets say if is 1 foot of snow and if you want to cut through it there are chances that your tires will go all the way down and your car would stuck.
 

jolly

New Member
#9
Actually no tire would cut through ice. Its the weight equation (more weight per square inch) that help the thread do its job. If there is one foot of snow you might indeed be in the category I mentioned : wanting to float on it. (And I for one would certainly not expect taking the road with a Corolla if there is 1 foot of snow).

The video is about transforming a car into a snowmobile with track to go off road. A simple larger tire wouldn't do that anyway. But on the road you wouldn't want the car to float over a couple of inches of snow/slush.

Lets stay on track (pun intended) : the OP question asked if going from 205 to 195 might hurt anything and the answer is no. Plus a 1" difference remains marginal.
 
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