Over the years, the sizes and aspect ratios of tires has changed quite a bit. Isn't there one school of thought about how to do it right? Apparently not, as it appears to be "fad driven" to some extent.
Just as a quick example, sports cars of the 1950s/60s/70s tended to have what we would consider (by today's standards) small wheels and very high profile tires.
These days you find that sports cars have much bigger OEM wheels with much lower profile tires.
These changes were gradual rather than sudden. Customizers have tended to do aftermarket resizing which sets a trend that the factory eventually follows.
Aftermarket tire and wheel shops advertise "plus" packages to get larger wheels.
http://type2.com/library/tires/tirefaq.htm
"3.D. What's a Plus One, Plus Two or Plus Three conversion?
Also shown as +1, +2 or +3, these designations indicate switching from stock rims to rims of 1, 2 or 3 inch larger diameter. Going to a larger diameter rim while keeping overall tire height about the same can allow for a significantly wider, shorter tire which can have a dramatic effect on a car's handling, ride and appearance. "
For various reasons the manufacturers tend to say that they do not recommend or endorse these changes, but people go ahead and do them anyways. For instance, on old muscle cars it is typical to find them lowered, with much larger (than stock) wheels and much lower profile tires.
I have heard some people say that doing the "plus" conversion is a good idea because the factory is overly conservative for reasons that don't really matter.
For instance, they think:
* Wheels are smaller than they need to be so snow chains can be fitted. (Yet I never drive the sports car in the snow.)
* Wheels are smaller than they need to be because the factory was trying to save money. ( Yet I want to spend extra money to improve my car. )
* Tires are higher profile than needed so they can absorb speed bumps. ( But I always drive slowly over speed bumps. )
* The car is higher than it needs to be to meet USA headlight and bumper height standards, but the European version is lower (as it is "meant to be") so we should fix the problem.
So given those sort of thoughts, are the Roadster tires and wheels already "perfect", or would someone be incllined to try to improve them with aftermarket parts?
The market for aftermarket wheels is HUGE. Sometimes people change them just to have a different style, but could there be room for improvement?
When lowering or changing tires sizes it is common to introduce problems that weren't there with the factory package. Common problems include:
* Improper speedometer calibration.
* Improper brake dive calculations for headlight leveling and/or electronic brake force distributions controls.
* Heavier and/or less strong wheels (are they forged?)
* Improper alignment
* Rubbing / scraping
* Excessive road noise, or vibration
Is this an improvement?
=================================================================
For reference, the Roadster's OEM wheels are
Front=175/55 R16
Rear=225/45 R17
Just as a quick example, sports cars of the 1950s/60s/70s tended to have what we would consider (by today's standards) small wheels and very high profile tires.
These days you find that sports cars have much bigger OEM wheels with much lower profile tires.
These changes were gradual rather than sudden. Customizers have tended to do aftermarket resizing which sets a trend that the factory eventually follows.
Aftermarket tire and wheel shops advertise "plus" packages to get larger wheels.
http://type2.com/library/tires/tirefaq.htm
"3.D. What's a Plus One, Plus Two or Plus Three conversion?
Also shown as +1, +2 or +3, these designations indicate switching from stock rims to rims of 1, 2 or 3 inch larger diameter. Going to a larger diameter rim while keeping overall tire height about the same can allow for a significantly wider, shorter tire which can have a dramatic effect on a car's handling, ride and appearance. "
For various reasons the manufacturers tend to say that they do not recommend or endorse these changes, but people go ahead and do them anyways. For instance, on old muscle cars it is typical to find them lowered, with much larger (than stock) wheels and much lower profile tires.
I have heard some people say that doing the "plus" conversion is a good idea because the factory is overly conservative for reasons that don't really matter.
For instance, they think:
* Wheels are smaller than they need to be so snow chains can be fitted. (Yet I never drive the sports car in the snow.)
* Wheels are smaller than they need to be because the factory was trying to save money. ( Yet I want to spend extra money to improve my car. )
* Tires are higher profile than needed so they can absorb speed bumps. ( But I always drive slowly over speed bumps. )
* The car is higher than it needs to be to meet USA headlight and bumper height standards, but the European version is lower (as it is "meant to be") so we should fix the problem.
So given those sort of thoughts, are the Roadster tires and wheels already "perfect", or would someone be incllined to try to improve them with aftermarket parts?
The market for aftermarket wheels is HUGE. Sometimes people change them just to have a different style, but could there be room for improvement?
When lowering or changing tires sizes it is common to introduce problems that weren't there with the factory package. Common problems include:
* Improper speedometer calibration.
* Improper brake dive calculations for headlight leveling and/or electronic brake force distributions controls.
* Heavier and/or less strong wheels (are they forged?)
* Improper alignment
* Rubbing / scraping
* Excessive road noise, or vibration
Is this an improvement?
=================================================================
For reference, the Roadster's OEM wheels are
Front=175/55 R16
Rear=225/45 R17
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