Michelin X-Ice

[Amma351]

Hey guys,

So the winter is coming and my tires suck!
So i want a good winter tire, and michellin X-ICE seems like the perfect solution. The problem is my tire size now are 205/55/15, and the closest that comes from X-ICE is 205/60/15, I'm not concerned with my spedometer being off or anything, i just want to know is this safe!


Thanks in advance!

[mxmaz]

yeah that size is fine. You could even go 195/60/15 if they have them in that size, they might be a bit cheaper and a slimmer tire is supposed to be better for winter.

[95 rs]

if you go with the 205/60r15 your speedo will be off and you will be going slower then you really are. if you get the 195/60R15 it should be good and not mess up your speedo. i was told when you are changing tire sizes that if you are going wider you must make it shorter. Say for your instance that you have a 205/55R15 and you want to go to a 215 your tire size should be 215/50R15. and you reverse it when you go to a narrower tread tire. i hope i didnt confuse you.

[happyclown]

When I snagged my GS rims off a car in the junkyard it had 185/65r15s on it. I talked to a guy at a local garage and he says his little book says thats the size thats supposed to be on there. Anylarger of a sidewall and it'd be rubbing the springs though...

http://www.miata.net/garage/tirecalc.html

from what I see there the overall diameter of what i've got and you talkin about is about the same. It should fit nice and snug. Only thought is that those are a bit wider also... they will come very close to rubbing the wheel wells while turning, but i think you'll be alright.

Do they offer that in 195/55r15? If they do I think you'd be alot safer goin that direction

[mxmaz]

no stock size is 205/55/15. The best size winter tire imo is 195/60/15.

[mymx.3]

The Michelin X-Ice are frigging expensive ...... $142 a tire (that included balancing)

Obviously I didn't get those.

195/60/15 are what I bought.

DEB

[neumann]

195/60/15 will give you almost the same overall diameter and will not cause any issues. Was it the std size on the 4cyl MX-3?

Most of the winter tires we are looking at are designed for Ice and frozen pavement more than deep snow. By droping down, the slightly narrower contact patch can help a little bit in snow. Historically it was a common recommendation to go 1 size narrower but retain overall diameter (hence drop from 205/55/R15 to 195/60/R15). Many current auto mfr guidelines recommend just keeping the same size. I have never seen anyone recommend going up in size for winter.

205/55/15 is a weird size and many mfrs just don't make it. Everyone makes a 195/60/15

There are actually some good winter tires made in 205/55/R15 including the Toyo Garit HT which in my opinion is better or at least comparable tire and maybe 15% cheaper than the Michelin x-ice

[Big D]

go with the narrow x-ice.... i know they are pricey but I have a set and they "STICK"

[Devilhog]

Ya, narrow X-ice are crazy! First snow up here, I had more traction on the snow/ice than I did the day before on dry road!


122 (CDN$) per tire is what I paid. I dont mind that if they are going to last me 3-4 years.

[gleichnerr]

When we lived in the "Frozen Tundra" of Green Bay, my wife used our GS to drive daily between Green Bay and Appleton (about 25 miles each way).

The stock Yoko's that came with the car totally sucked on snow, but the problem was that the only rims listed by Mazda were the alloy 15 (16?) inch stock Enkei's.

We had a local tire place try a set of inexpensive 14-inch rims on the car, and everything cleared, so we bought a set of Blizzaks. Man! what a difference - our little "power pup" could truck through some really nasty stuff with total control.

If you drive in the nasty stuff, I would strongly advise these for Winter use. (Previous posts were right - the speedo does read a little low, and the car seems a lot more noisy, probably due to a little lower and the siping on the tires. But much much much safer!)

Regards from Brewtown,