98 Malibu Tires

news wrote:
> The stock tires on my Malibu are 215 60 15. What other sizes will fit the
> rims and car?

AS noted, 205/65/15 will work fine, though your speedometer will be a
hair off, as usual when switching tire sizes. In this case it won't be
a big difference; when your speedo says 68 you will really be doing 69,
or something very close to that.

My '04 Chevy Classic---almost identical to an '03 Malibu---came with
205/65 tires.

You could also consider 195/65/15, which is actually a closer match in
terms of the speedo; in this case, it would read very slightly high,
but the difference is so small---less than 1%---that it's not an issue.
Switching to 195/65 tires would also be slightly cheaper and would be
slightly better in the snow, all else equal, if that's an issue.

However, the big downside to going narrower and higher is the loss of
handling and cornering ability, compared to the wider, lower stock
tires.

If performance is an issue for you, (in which case you are driving the
wrong model car, but anyway), you might try to find high performance
225/55/15 tires. That's a pretty rare size, I think.

As far as I know, those are your options if you want to change tire
sizes....

Regards,
Eric M
 >> Stay informed about: 98 Malibu Tires 

news wrote:
> In hindsight, I probably wasn't asking the right question. Or maybe I was.
> What tires will fit the stock 15" rims that came 215 60 15 tires? In short,
> what size rubber can I put on the stock rims?
>
> Thanks again


Almost any 15-inch tire should fit on the rim. There might be a few
competition tires or ultra high performance low-profile tires that
don't fit, but almost any 15-incher off the rack in a tire shop should
fit.

However, you should always keep the rpm of your replacements tires, and
thus the accuracy of your speedomenter and odometer, as close as
possible to the original size. That's why I suggested 205/65, 195/65
and at a stretch 225/55, if you can find it.

There aren't too many standard 15-inch tire sizes left. If you want to
save a few more $$$ and maximize winter traction at the expense of all
else, you can try 185/65/15, though I would not recommend it. That's a
pretty narrow tire for a mid-size sedan. It would also throw off your
speedo enough to notice, though not drastically.

About the only size you should definitely avoid is 185/60/15. That
would throw your speedo _way_ off, and makes no sense in general. You
would be dropping three sizes in width and not changing the aspect
ratio, which could mess with handling and maybe braking.

Rules of thumb:

Wider/lower is better for handling, cornering and hard braking
Narrower/higher is better for winter
Higher (aspect ratio) yields slightly better ride comfort

To calculate reasonable replacement tire sizes:

http://www.1010tires.com/TireSizeCalculator.asp?action=submit&reset=yes
 >> Stay informed about: 98 Malibu Tires 

In hindsight, I probably wasn't asking the right question. Or maybe I was.
What tires will fit the stock 15" rims that came 215 60 15 tires? In short,
what size rubber can I put on the stock rims?

Thanks again

"Eric" <ericmark4 DeleteThis @yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:1166656779.547577.211100@f1g2000cwa.googlegroups.com...
>
> news wrote:
>> The stock tires on my Malibu are 215 60 15. What other sizes will fit the
>> rims and car?
>
> AS noted, 205/65/15 will work fine, though your speedometer will be a
> hair off, as usual when switching tire sizes. In this case it won't be
> a big difference; when your speedo says 68 you will really be doing 69,
> or something very close to that.
>
> My '04 Chevy Classic---almost identical to an '03 Malibu---came with
> 205/65 tires.
>
> You could also consider 195/65/15, which is actually a closer match in
> terms of the speedo; in this case, it would read very slightly high,
> but the difference is so small---less than 1%---that it's not an issue.
> Switching to 195/65 tires would also be slightly cheaper and would be
> slightly better in the snow, all else equal, if that's an issue.
>
> However, the big downside to going narrower and higher is the loss of
> handling and cornering ability, compared to the wider, lower stock
> tires.
>
> If performance is an issue for you, (in which case you are driving the
> wrong model car, but anyway), you might try to find high performance
> 225/55/15 tires. That's a pretty rare size, I think.
>
> As far as I know, those are your options if you want to change tire
> sizes....
>
> Regards,
> Eric M
>
 >> Stay informed about: 98 Malibu Tires