need some snow tire help from you guys

[toph99]

i have 215/70r15's on my crown vic(15x6 or 6.5" rim) and i want to fit some snow tires on it. The kind i want don't come in my stock size, but i'm not sure how much i can vary width/aspect ratio on a 15x6 rim, and i'm horrible at stuff like this. i can possibly get some steel 16" rims if need be. these are the available sizes

any input or help is appreciated

 

[notfred]

the P205/70R15 95Q will fit alright, it'll just make your speedo and odometer read 2% higher than accurate. Might look kinda skinny too, but I've head skinny is good in snow... I dunno, I live in California.

 

[toph99]

i don't want to adjust my speedo...(wow that sounds bad... lol) is that all the percent difference it'll makr with a 205? i can't remember if aspect ratio is of tread width or rim diameter and yeah, skinny is good in snow, cuts through the slush and stuff

 

[notfred]

ratio is based on width, not diameter. 2% isn't too bad... if you drive 5,000 miles on the tires, it'll show up as 5100 miles on the odometer. If you're going 50mph, your speedo will read 51mph.

 

[olds]

Originally posted by: notfred
the P205/70R15 95Q will fit alright, it'll just make your speedo and odometer read 2% higher than accurate. Might look kinda skinny too, but I've head skinny is good in snow... I dunno, I live in California.

I live in CA too and I grew up driving in snow.

 

[Iron Woode]

Originally posted by: toph99
i have 215/70r15's on my crown vic(15x6 or 6.5" rim) and i want to fit some snow tires on it. The kind i want don't come in my stock size, but i'm not sure how much i can vary width/aspect ratio on a 15x6 rim, and i'm horrible at stuff like this. i can possibly get some steel 16" rims if need be. these are the available sizes

any input or help is appreciated

I take it you have an older Crown Vic. I have an 87. Same size rims too. I use Arctic Alpin 225 70 15. Works great.

Edit: Stock tires are listed on a sticker on the passenger side rear door near the door catch (above the tire). A 225 70 15 is police issue and won't affect your speedometer.

 

[toph99]

mine's a 93. they use the same wheels from 87 to 99 or 2000 IIRC. i was thinking about arctic alpins but they're more for packed snow, most of the stuff i drive in is THICK slush and snow. those ice tracks are sort of a cross between arctic alpins and deep snow tires

 

[Iron Woode]

Trust me, those Alpins work great in slush and rain too.

A good tire from a good company can't be beat.

Where in Ontario are you?

 

[Zenmervolt]

Personally I like Bridgestone Blizzaks, they do a great job on my sister's 1982 BMW 320i.

ZV

 

[yobarman]

i'm looking for snow tires for my 1990 Chevy Lumina V6, i was wondering do i only need the tires on the front wheels? would it fishtail or anything if i keep the olds ones on the back? i'm gonna be up in rochester ny...and it's bloody wet up there

 

[vi edit]

Originally posted by: yobarman
i'm looking for snow tires for my 1990 Chevy Lumina V6, i was wondering do i only need the tires on the front wheels? would it fishtail or anything if i keep the olds ones on the back? i'm gonna be up in rochester ny...and it's bloody wet up there

Most stores won't even let you buy them in twos. I would most certainly put them on all four wheels.

 

[Zenmervolt]

Originally posted by: vi_edit

Originally posted by: yobarman
i'm looking for snow tires for my 1990 Chevy Lumina V6, i was wondering do i only need the tires on the front wheels? would it fishtail or anything if i keep the olds ones on the back? i'm gonna be up in rochester ny...and it's bloody wet up there

Most stores won't even let you buy them in twos. I would most certainly put them on all four wheels.

You're kidding right? We had no trouble at all getting only two snow tires for my sister's RWD 320i.

ZV

EDIT: Re-thinking things, only two tires would work better for RWD than for FWD, so what I've said doesn't really compare well. Still, I think that most stores will be OK selling in pairs.

 

[vi edit]

Everyplace that I've looked (tirerack, sears, and another local shop) only sell snow tires in fours. All cars that I checked into them for were FWD, so I don't know if that has any bearing or not.

 

[Tom]

If your car's speedometer is calculated for 215s then running larger or smaller tires will affect the speedo to some extent. The 215 number is the height of the tire and the only number you need to worry about as far as the speedo is concerned.

The aspect ratio is just the ratio of the width of the tire to the height of the tire. According to this Yokohama tire guide you should be ok with 215/70s or 215/60s on 6 inch rims. It's probably a reasonable assumption that other brands would have similar requirements.

guide


Also I wouldn't drive around too much with these soft snow tires on your car unless it's snowy. They will probably wear pretty quick.