Tyre Upsizing Rules

Today, automobiles have become a major part of our life and we can't imagine what would happen to our world without them. Tyres form an integral component of a car therefore, tasks like maintenance, checking and changing tyres have become quite important.

Upgrading tyres has been a common practice, both in India and abroad. Nowadays, people purchase cars with a standard tyre size and go on to upgrade the size to match the vehicle's performance and/or aesthetics. This is called tyre upsizing and it needs to be done with care.

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How is it done?

Tyre upsizing can be done in two ways:

1. Installing a wider tyre and retaining the car's original wheels.

2. Changing the wheels and tyres.

Both manners of upgrading are equally handy and can be used without much sophistication required. However, both methods come with their own pros and cons. The second option is the more attractive one as changing the tyre specification itself for bigger wheels altogether upgrades the aesthetics of the car. It enhances the traction, handling and safety of the ride altogether. These upsides might charm anyone, with improved performance going along with improved profile, but wait for the downsides: Larger wheels mean increased body weight and greater traction due to the larger width, both of which contribute to reducing the vehicle's acceleration. The second option also proves more expensive, as changing wheels along with tyres is costlier than changing just the latter.

Factors to be kept in mind

Changing the tyre profile affects the car's overall performance and upsizing needs to be done in a manner that befits the vehicle's performance.

The most important thing to be kept in mind is that upsizing must be done in a proportionate manner. In other words, if the width of the tyre has been increased, the sidewalls of the tyre must be decreased too. This is to ensure that overall diameter of the wheel is not affected in any way.

Advantages

Upgrading tyre size poses numerous advantages for both the performance and the appearance of the car. Wider tyres enhance the car's side profile, adding a sturdier and more appealing look as a whole. Besides raising the aesthetics quotient of the car, upsized tyres serve other benefits as well.

First of all, using a wider tyre provides more surface area for the car's weight to spread on the ground, therefore, higher grip and traction. Tyre upsizing gives the vehicle a better grip when cruising. This allows for more eased driving and better stability. All in all, wider tyres ensure enhanced balance, stability and traction for the vehicle.

Disadvantages

Tyre upsizing could be both a boon and a bane, depending on the specific necessities of the vehicle and its driver. Wider tyres have their own arena of downsides to match their pros. The basic principle here is that with wider tyres and more traction, the vehicle's top speed goes down. An increase in weight and greater traction enforce a greater burden on the vehicle's engine capacity, thereby slowing down its acceleration. In addition to acceleration, the vehicle's fuel economy also suffers with wider tyres. Drives who prefer lighter steering might not like the upsizing tyres due to increased steering effort. Also, upsizing can also increase the tramlining effect.