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The tires on my Subaru Legacy were "lower profile" tires and were 205/50-17's and they popped on a nasty pothole... the Y 19's are 255/45-19's and the 20's are 255/40-20's, so they're even "thinner" of a sidewall...
Your Subaru had 4” sidewall, same as the 20” wheels on the Y. But it had a whopping 3” smaller diameter, so the comfort would be a lot less and pothole damage would be a lot higher.
Thanks for your reply. Yes, I definitely noticed the different diameter, but I wasn't exactly sure how that pertained to it.
I'm basically mostly interested in ride comfort and damage resistance, with a minor emphasis on cosmetics. I would also much prefer the Gemini in a matte black finish, but I can't buy what's not available.
The articles I saw typically mention that a larger diameter tire has better performance as there's more of an immediate effect from the rim or wheel itself to the tire rubber and thus the road.
In your opinion, what would you think the typical tire resistance would be for the 20's compared to the 19's for pothole damage? Are we talking like an increase of around 1 out of 10 would result in damage, or are we talking more like 5 out of 10? That's a big difference.
Also, assuming the worst and the inductions got some curb rash, is there any way to fix this DIY instead of having to buy a new rim or send it off to get refinished?
Brilliant, thanks.
The last thing I'm considering is an all-climate tire, in other words, a 3-season (all season) tire that has the severe service mountain icon. I've used these the last couple years in my Subarus and they do make quite a difference. I'm considering either the AWD or RWD Model Y in a couple months (waiting for it to roll out) so...
Are there any all-climate all-seasons available that are known?
Thanks again! This is a very informative thread.
Thanks for this excellent post. I didn’t hesitate to get the 20” wheels. Thanks for your verdict, too. Great to hear.Just updated the post with info on some lookalike rims that could very well change the entire decision process!
My pleasure! I did the digging and figured I'd share!
I'm SUPER interested in the Michelin CrossClimate SUV. (Here they are on TireRack.)
They look like they might be the 'one tire' I can use all year. They're all-seasons with the Three Peak Mountain Snowflake rating (3PMSF). Apparently fantastic in the wet, great on snow and ice, good rolling resistance, noise, and treadwear. Plus they kinda look space-age!
Only trouble is that they don't come in 28" outer tire diameter, so the speedo and odo will be off.
Closest you can get on 20" rims are:
255/45/R20 (4.5" sidewall, 29" diameter, speedo/odo reads 3.6% LOW, same width as Induction/Gemini tires)
245/45R20 (4.34" sidewall, 28.68" diameter, speedo/odo reads 2.3% LOW, 0.4" narrower than Induction/Gemini tires)
And on 19" rims:
255/50/R19 (5.0" sidewall, 29" diameter, speedo/odo reads 3.6% LOW, same width as Induction/Gemini tires)
225/45R19 (4.0" sidewall, 27" diameter, speedo/odo reads 3.98% HIGH, 1.2" narrower than Induction/Gemini tires)
This is a great read. I chose to go the alternate route and get the geminis, pocket the $2k and then bought TST Tsportline 20" in matte black with Michelin Sport A/S 3+. Only a $900 difference . HyperDipping the geminis too. No silver or chrome for me!
I'm curious about buying 255/45/20s when they wear out. Seems like it would fit, just off a bit on mph due circumference, right?
Just asked in their vendor thread!Throwing off the speedo is not a huge issue, but unfortunately, 255/45/R20s do not fit on stock 20" induction rims.
Perhaps it will fit in your aftermarket TST rims? Can you ask them and find out?
Throwing off the speedo is not a huge issue, but unfortunately, 255/45/R20s do not fit on stock 20" induction rims.
Perhaps it will fit in your aftermarket TST rims? Can you ask them and find out?