Staggered tires on 04 sedan question-- need help

[W661335PF]

The site:

http://www.bigcustomwheels.com/rt_index.jsp

Which is the best tire calculator site I've seen on the market, states that you can stagger the tires safely for the 04 sedan as follows:

Front: 225/55/17Rear: 235/55/17

Has anyone tried this successfully (minus any computer glitches except for incorrect odometer reading)?

[Sentientbydesign]

It's a .21" sidewall difference. Which equates to about 1.5%.

Why in the world would you run staggered just for 1 cm?

275/45/17 would work too (with no speedo, ABS, VCD problems) IF it fits on the rim (width).

That would be worth the stagger!

[tollboothwilley]

you can fit 245/35/20 all around, do that...

or 245/35/19

or 245/45/18

_________________________________

if you go aftermarket that is

stock, i think the widest you can fit on the rims would be 235, and go all around so its even. Smarter choice.

[W661335PF]

I'm not looking for wider, but taller tires. Should have mentioned this, sorry. So the question remains, will this set-up work????? Or possibly the basic 225/55/17 size.

I'm not sure a 235/55 will fit in the front though. A 245 or 275 looks too much like an over-sized truck tire on on Toyota truck IMHO.

[tollboothwilley]

You could fit 245/55/17 all around, as i said. The difference in height is 0.4" and a wider tire.

235/55/17 is almost exactly the same as the 215/60/17 in overal diameter.

I'm using 225/55/17 on mine right now...

[Sentientbydesign]

I'm not looking for wider, but taller tires. Should have mentioned this, sorry. So the question remains, will this set-up work????? Or possibly the basic 225/55/17 size.

I'm not sure a 235/55 will fit in the front though. A 245 or 275 looks too much like an over-sized truck tire on on Toyota truck IMHO.

Am I allowed to ask why you want taller tires? Are you trying to fill out the wheel well without dropping the car? Is it uncomfortable to get into at the stock height?

Larger overall diameter will definately effect performance. MPG is debatable. It depends largely on what speed you go and if you have an auto or manual.

Figure it this way. Every size larger you go (with the same aspect ratio) will raise the car .21". I would definately advise against staggering if you're reason is for height though. Not being able to rotate front to back is horrible.

[W661335PF]

You could fit 245/55/17 all around, as i said. The difference in height is 0.4" and a wider tire.

235/55/17 is almost exactly the same as the 215/60/17 in overal diameter.

I'm using 225/55/17 on mine right now...

Will the 245/55/17's actually fit on the front end? The 245's, according to my calculations, are actually about 1.3 inches taller and 1.1" wider. The distance between the 215's and the arm is about .6 inches, and dividing the 1.3 inches by 2 would make it a tight or impossible squeeze. Given this, my thinking is that the tire will not fit beneath the arm just above it on the sedan. What do you think?

[W661335PF]

Am I allowed to ask why you want taller tires? Are you trying to fill out the wheel well without dropping the car? Is it uncomfortable to get into at the stock height?

Larger overall diameter will definately effect performance. MPG is debatable. It depends largely on what speed you go and if you have an auto or manual.

Figure it this way. Every size larger you go (with the same aspect ratio) will raise the car .21". I would definately advise against staggering if you're reason is for height though. Not being able to rotate front to back is horrible.

I'm both trying to fill out the gaping wheel well gap w/o doing surgery (i.e. dropping the car) with maybe even hoping for increased mpg since I drive like an old man in a hat (get 22-25mpg city/highway in a very mountainous terrain). I might not get the 2nd wish, but filling out the wheel well will be a definite plus. I've decided not to go staggered as you recommend for the reasons you site, tho. Any further thoughts-- THANKS!

[W661335PF]

You could fit 245/55/17 all around, as i said. The difference in height is 0.4" and a wider tire.

235/55/17 is almost exactly the same as the 215/60/17 in overal diameter.

I'm using 225/55/17 on mine right now...

You could fit 245/55/17 all around, as i said. The difference in height is 0.4" and a wider tire.

235/55/17 is almost exactly the same as the 215/60/17 in overal diameter.

I'm using 225/55/17 on mine right now...

Does the 225/55/17 fill out the wheel well at all? Can you tell a difference between it and the 215's?

[Sentientbydesign]

Here's the issue as I see it.

The wheel well gap is all preference. I have the sports suspension so my gap isn't very wide.

As for the MPG increase...That's debatable. It is true that the engine can operate at lower RPM due to less rotations per mile...in theory.

However, you have two things to think about here:

1) On acceleration, you will actually be using more power to get those larger tires to turn. Larger OD= Higher moment of inertia

2) You may find that the highest gear was optimized for a specific RPM power output. In other words, the engine may have to expend more energy to maintain your cruising speed due to the lower RPMs effected by the larger tires.

Realistically, the only approach I would accept would be to determine the average power needed to maintain your desired cruising speed, then compare that to the power curve for your engine.

If the necessary power to go say 55MPH is 40HP and you find that the engine puts out 45 HP at 2500 RPMs, then you could adjust the tire diameter accordingly.

This is all my personal opinion with some basic physics included.