First time I've ever had to buy tyres so forgive me if this is a stupid question but I need 2 new front tyres for my fabia as the tread is running low

 

I had a look at the ones currently on the car and their size and noticed that they're 215 45 16 and not the recommended 205 45 16 size

The front 2 on at the moment that need replacing are budget branded but the back 2 are continental branded and have some decent tread left

 

Am I able to buy 205 45 16 tyres for the front and leave the 215 45 16 tyres at the back as I'd like to stick some Uniroyal RS3s on it which don't seem to be available in 215 or will it cause issues?

The car does move to the left quite a bit, would this be due to having the "wrong" tyres fitted? (I've checked to see if its the tracking but they said that was fine)

 

What would be the best thing to do as I don't mind buying 4 x RS3s 205s and fitting them on but would prefer having to buy only 2 lol

 

Cheers

Yes you can run wider rears than fronts (but not the other way round) on a road car. It's pretty pointless though, unless you're wearing out one pair before changing sizes.

 

Some people will claim that having more worn tyres on the rear can cause handling issues, notably oversteer under braking on flooded bends (flooded means enough water that you don't leave dry tracks behind the car). However, they've been unable to produce any evidence that this happens with cars that have 4 channel ABS (including pretty much any VAG from 1998 on).

I'd run the wide worn tyres on the front & the new 205s on the rear.  It's only 10mm & depending on the shoulder shape, probably not even noticeable.

 

4 channel ABS won't stop the rear aquaplaning.

I'd run the wide worn tyres on the front & the new 205s on the rear.  It's only 10mm & depending on the shoulder shape, probably not even noticeable.

 

4 channel ABS won't stop the rear aquaplaning.

3 things mate:-

 

1. Running wider fronts is illegal in the UK.
2. No-one claiming "run newer tyres on the rear" has ever posted a "loss of control video" from a vehicle using 4 channel ABS. All the videos they have posted involve loss of control under braking, not at steady speed. Maybe I'm just cynical and distrustful, but I can't help feeling that this must be more than co-incidence.
3. I rarely to never do hard braking in a curve anyway, and better tyres on the front then means the road is drier when the rears get to it.

 

3 things mate:-

 

1. Running wider fronts is illegal in the UK.
2. No-one claiming "run newer tyres on the rear" has ever posted a "loss of control video" from a vehicle using 4 channel ABS. All the videos they have posted involve loss of control under braking, not at steady speed. Maybe I'm just cynical and distrustful, but I can't help feeling that this must be more than co-incidence.
3. I rarely to never do hard braking in a curve anyway, and better tyres on the front then means the road is drier when the rears get to it.

 

 

1. Is it? I can find nothing that says that. Can you give a reference?

2 & 3.

All the tyre experts advise that the newer tyres should be fitted to the front, and on a Fabia that is where the drive is, and where most of the braking is done.

Edited 20 December, 201510 yr by Llanigraham

3 things mate:-

• Running wider fronts is illegal in the UK.
• No-one claiming "run newer tyres on the rear" has ever posted a "loss of control video" from a vehicle using 4 channel ABS. All the videos they have posted involve loss of control under braking, not at steady speed. Maybe I'm just cynical and distrustful, but I can't help feeling that this must be more than co-incidence.
• I rarely to never do hard braking in a curve anyway, and better tyres on the front then means the road is drier when the rears get to it.

1)  Fair enough - I just know how I like to set up cars.

 

2) Try and find the report (circa 1980s?) by the NZ DOT on the subject.  It's got nothing to do with ABS or braking into a corner.  Lots to do with weight distribution in FWD vehicles.

 

3) Great in theory but very few cars have the same track front & rear. Even if the tracks were the same they don't follow each other through a corner.

Edited 21 December, 201510 yr by brad1.8T

As the Volkswagen Group division Audi allow drivers / customers to set up new cars with the official option of wider tyres on the front of the RS3.

In the UK / EU as well, so not really illegal.

1) Well, I was told that when Citroen stopped fitting 185 front +175 rear on the CX (late 70s I think).

 

2 + 3) I agree that newer tyres on the front makes sense, due to weight, and even if the tracks are slightly different Brad most of the rear tyre is on the same footprint as the front. I'll agree that tyre paths through corners are a bit different, but how different is a direct function of acuity of bend and hence an inverse function of speed.

1) Well, I was told that when Citroen stopped fitting 185 front +175 rear on the CX (late 70s I think).

 

2 + 3) I agree that newer tyres on the front makes sense, due to weight, and even if the tracks are slightly different Brad most of the rear tyre is on the same footprint as the front. I'll agree that tyre paths through corners are a bit different, but how different is a direct function of acuity of bend and hence an inverse function of speed.

Fabia has a 60mm difference in front/rear track - with a 205 tyre that would be 145mm ovelap and 120mm (total) not covered. Do a slight turn on some muddy ground - it doesn't take much to see the rear doesn't follow the front.

There are several reasons that tyre & road safety experts (Michelin, etc) recommend the fresh tyres on the rear.

1) Aged tyre problem. Because the rear tyres wear at about 1/3 of the rate that the fronts do, the old fashioned idea of "fit new tyres to front" meant that the rear tyres stayed on the vehicle for distances exceeding 100,000km. The mileage in itself isn't an issue but aging carcasses and hardened rubber do cause a problem with surveys of rear tyres on FWDs revealing some rear tyres up to 15 years old and still appearing to have good tread.

2) General driver ability. For most people, it's easier to control understeer than oversteer.

3) Weight of the engine on front / general weight distribution. The weight on the front will tend to allow the tyre to grip longer than the the reduced weight at the rear.

I worked in the tyre industry for many years. I still keep my contacts and keep up to date with best practice. As i said, try & hunt down the NZ DOT report as they were one of the first studies to show a problem in single vehicle accidents.

Don't take my word for it. Here's some links from independent specialist organisations.  Plenty of others if you care to search.

 

Page 4

 

http://www.tyresafe.org/media-centre/latest-news/69-motorists-get-their-tyres-%E2%80%9Cback-to-front%E2%80%9D

 

2 & 3.

All the tyre experts advise that the newer tyres should be fitted to the front, and on a Fabia that is where the drive is, and where most of the braking is done.

 

Sorry, but no they don't:

 

http://www.tyresafe.org/media-centre/latest-news/69-motorists-get-their-tyres-%E2%80%9Cback-to-front%E2%80%9D

http://www.theaa.com/motoring_advice/safety/car-tyres.html

http://kumhotyre.co.uk/kumho-news/should-you-fit-new-tyres-to-the-front-or-rear/

https://www.kwik-fit.com/tyres/information/tyre-rotation

Some people will claim that having more worn tyres on the rear can cause handling issues, notably oversteer under braking on flooded bends (flooded means enough water that you don't leave dry tracks behind the car). However, they've been unable to produce any evidence that this happens with cars that have 4 channel ABS (including pretty much any VAG from 1998 on).

I think you may have mislead yourself about what ABS does; it's a system that stops wheels locking up when braking. This isn't the case when the rear of the car starts to spin solely due to loss of grip. No braking involved.

 

Another YouTube video has a nice presentation, even tho' the commentary is rather dry:

You will also have a difference in diameter of the tyre. The 215 will have a bigger rolling radius than the 205

I think you may have mislead yourself about what ABS does; it's a system that stops wheels locking up when braking. This isn't the case when the rear of the car starts to spin solely due to loss of grip. No braking involved.

 

Another YouTube video has a nice presentation, even tho' the commentary is rather dry:

From the post you quoted "...notably oversteer under braking on flooded bends...". "Under braking" and "when braking" are synonyms.

True about rolling radius, but,

Except when they do not, say different type / brands, since the 215 is the tyre width given.

 

Take a 205/40 R 17 Pirelli Zero Nero which Skoda liked to fit instead on a 205/40 R 17 Dunlop Sport Maxx when the car pulls 

to the left because of poor alignment on right hand drive cars right from the factory.

 

these Pirelli 205/40 R 17 side by side can have a greater rolling radius than the Dunlops,

even a greater rolling radius or the same as other Manufacturers 215/40 R 17.

(You see or notice once checking the Speedo, Cruise Control, Sat Nav after fitting. You can see the 1 or 2 mph out and the change one way or another.)

 

Even Manufacturers tyres with the same size on the sidewall and being new might not match in size when measured side by side when fitted on a rim.

(Then width of a Tyre does not actually mean the same sizes side wall to sidewall have the same width of tread on the road.)

http://kouki.co.uk/utilities/visual-tyre-size-calculator

True about rolling radius, but,

Except when they do not, say different type / brands, since the 215 is the tyre width given.

 

Take a 205/40 R 17 Pirelli Zero Nero which Skoda liked to fit instead on a 205/40 R 17 Dunlop Sport Maxx when the car pulls 

to the left because of poor alignment on right hand drive cars right from the factory.

 

these Pirelli 205/40 R 17 side by side can have a greater rolling radius than the Dunlops,

even a greater rolling radius or the same as other Manufacturers 215/40 R 17.

(You see or notice once checking the Speedo, Cruise Control, Sat Nav after fitting. You can see the 1 or 2 mph out and the change one way or another.)

 

Even Manufacturers tyres with the same size on the sidewall and being new might not match in size when measured side by side when fitted on a rim.

(Then width of a Tyre does not actually mean the same sizes side wall to sidewall have the same width of tread on the road.)

http://kouki.co.uk/utilities/visual-tyre-size-calculator

True, I was just highlighting that a 215/45 and a 205/45 have a different profile measurement, like for like on a new tyre.

From the post you quoted "...notably oversteer under braking on flooded bends...". "Under braking" and "when braking" are synonyms.

Not seen the video but one to also add would be sudden lane changes.

Always safer to run fresh tyres on the rear as understeer is more controllable or less chance of panicking and messing it up for typical drivers than oversteer.

Edited 1 January, 201610 yr by faboka vrs

From the post you quoted "...notably oversteer under braking on flooded bends...". "Under braking" and "when braking" are synonyms.

To focus on one cause when arguing against putting tyres with better grip on the back is to rather miss the point; losing the rear can happen without braking.

The wifes MKIII Fabia runs on 215/45/16 tyres. Can you replace all four with 205/45/16 tyres as there is more choice 

The wifes MKIII Fabia runs on 215/45/16 tyres. Can you replace all four with 205/45/16 tyres as there is more choice

Yer should be ok Andy. I've did the same with my previous car. Only issue was speedo out. But as it's a new car I'd be wary of warranty and insurance issues

Sent from my Galaxy S5 using Tapatalk

Edited 1 January, 201610 yr by J306TD

Id just get another set of 215's as thats what it came out of factory with and it will help save your wheels from catching them on kerb with more rubber