Yaris 2008 Tyre upgrade

[User202]

Any thoughts/ experiences regarding upgrading the standard 185/60 R 15 tyres to 205/50 R 16? It has the 1l. engine and did over 140 000 km. TIA

[Cyker]

Depends what you want out of it - It might give slightly better cornering grip, but also worse aquaplaning, fuel consumption, acceleration and tyre cost.

 

[Stivino]

42 minutes ago, User202 said:

Any thoughts/ experiences regarding upgrading the standard 185/60 R 15 tyres to 205/50 R 16? It has the 1l. engine and did over 140 000 km. TIA

Upgrading?

[User202]

9 minutes ago, Cyker said:

Depends what you want out of it - It might give slightly better cornering grip, but also worse aquaplaning, fuel consumption, acceleration and tyre cost.

 

Thanks!

My first concern is stability and brake performance on slippery roads. I live in a city but rain and ice are very common. It is going to be all-weather tyres, btw.

[Cyker]

You'd be better off sticking with the normal size and looking at different types of tyre - If snow and ice are common where you are I'm guessing you're in a country that normally runs winter and summer tyre sets. Rain isn't a problem for any half-decent summer tyre, but for the winter set maybe some Nokian Snowproof or even Hakkapeliittas - My scandinavian friends swear by them.

We don't get much snow and ice in the UK so a milder all-season like the Michelin Cross Climate is more suitable here, although more northern people often get proper winter tyres. I don't even bother with a winter set as this far south I almost never see snow anyway!

 

[TonyHSD]

Stick to original size or change wheels and tyres as combo and the size should be in the charts of the manufacturer recommended. Just buy good all season tyres or winter if this is what you are after. Changing size of the tyres on oem size wheels it’s a wrong thing . 👍

[Bernard Foy]

55 minutes ago, TonyHSD said:

Stick to original size or change wheels and tyres as combo and the size should be in the charts of the manufacturer recommended. Just buy good all season tyres or winter if this is what you are after. Changing size of the tyres on oem size wheels it’s a wrong thing . 👍

 You may have to inform your insurance company, and your equivalent of the MOT might reject it, because it may be classified as a modification.

[Stopeter44]

9 hours ago, Cyker said:

 Rain isn't a problem for any half-decent summer tyre, but for the winter set maybe some Nokian Snowproof or even Hakkapeliittas ….

Thumbs up for the Nokian, don’t know of the other. Nokian are based In Finland, so you’d think they’d know something about snow and ice. My tyre supplier swears Nokian (or Michelin) are the best, but the Nokian were less expensive.

I live in the south of France, so you’d think I wouldn’t need snow tyres, but the weather conditions In higher altitudes (> 500m) can be wicked. I’ve used my set on ice and snow, and been vary glad I have them.

Nearly all the department in which I live, is covered by a snow tyre requirement (November-April).

 

[FROSTYBALLS]

Both tyres are made by Nokian - Hakkapeliitta is one of their range of tyres.

[scannerman]

I live in the UK, I buy mid priced economy tyres of the standard size for a car I've used since 2012. I drive in all weathers and have never had any grip or handling problems. If you have Ice and snow to deal with I would suggest that a narrower tyre would be preferable rather than wider. To take a 1lt Yaris to the point of requiring more grip on normal roads would be fairly extreme with regard to safety, prehaps saving your pennies and buying a car built to do what you require may be a better option.

[User202]

On 10/13/2021 at 12:54 AM, Bernard Foy said:

 You may have to inform your insurance company, and your equivalent of the MOT might reject it, because it may be classified as a modification.

Thanks for the tip. I had no idea I should consult them. After checking I found that the 205/50 R16 is not an authorized size. The 205/45 R16 is however, authorized.

[TonyHSD]

2 hours ago, User202 said:

Thanks for the tip. I had no idea I should consult them. After checking I found that the 205/50 R16 is not an authorized size. The 205/45 R16 is however, authorized.

Insurance needs to informed for any size change since it’s not same as the car came out of the factory, they on their side will decide whether it’s classed as modification or not and adjust your premium accordingly, if you stick with oem wheels and within the car charts sizes then may even not be called modification but still need to tell them. Best to put tyres and wheels as per recommended sizes for you make and model, this has a lot to do with your car performance, efficiency, safety and longevity of suspension parts. 👍

Here you can look what is recommended and compare different sizes https://www.wheel-size.com, here how and what the difference will be https://www.willtheyfit.com

[User202]

4 hours ago, TonyHSD said:

Insurance needs to informed for any size change since it’s not same as the car came out of the factory, they on their side will decide whether it’s classed as modification or not and adjust your premium accordingly, if you stick with oem wheels and within the car charts sizes then may even not be called modification but still need to tell them. Best to put tyres and wheels as per recommended sizes for you make and model, this has a lot to do with your car performance, efficiency, safety and longevity of suspension parts. 👍

Here you can look what is recommended and compare different sizes https://www.wheel-size.com, here how and what the difference will be https://www.willtheyfit.com

Thanks! I already consulted a tyre dealer and after checking the car registration documents, I was advised by a list of authorized sizes that I can change to without legal consequences. I am now more into the 195/50 R16 as it has the exact circumference as the original 185/60 R15 and it is not a big deviation from it in terms of tyre width and side wall.

[bathtub tom]

5 hours ago, User202 said:

Thanks! I already consulted a tyre dealer and after checking the car registration documents, I was advised by a list of authorized sizes that I can change to without legal consequences.

Did they give you that in writing? Was it more of "yeah, you'll be alright with that mate"?

If I were you, I'd consult with my insurer's first.

[User202]

On 10/14/2021 at 11:46 PM, bathtub tom said:

Did they give you that in writing? Was it more of "yeah, you'll be alright with that mate"?

If I were you, I'd consult with my insurer's first.

Tyre dealers here have access to the CoC of different cars and check a car's registration number before advising on authorized tyre sizes. To answer your question, I wasn't given a written confirmation. However, the documents of the 16 inch rims I bought state different cars that the rims are suitable for and the corresponding tyre sizes. The sizes mentioned therein are the same as the ones declared suitable by the tyre dealer.

In the case of the Yaris XP9, XP9F the following sizes are acceptable:

195/45R16, 195/50R16, 205/45R16, 215/40R16 and 215/45R16. I went for the 195/50R16. Let's see how this will affect the performance and fuel economy.