Recommended Summer Tire size for V70 T5 ??

backbayvolvo · Post by **backbayvolvo** » 30 Mar 2010, 17:59

The recommended "lesser" tire size for my 2004 V70 T5 is 215/55 R16.

After a trip to the dealer for some new ContiProContact summer tires, they put on 205/55R16 and told me that they put these tires on their "personal" non-T5 V70s and that I should notice improved gas milage as a bonus.

maybe. But is the more narrow tire advisable considering the stiffer suspension and more power of the T5 model?

Post by **MNCO1** » 30 Mar 2010, 18:18

I have the 850 T5 and run 205/55R16's. Work great. I just ordered and am waiting on a set of Continental DWS. A bit of a back log right now for them. Its curious they recommended that size for you though.

FCPEURO · Post by **FCPEURO** » 30 Mar 2010, 18:45

You should just run the stock tire size on them. I have a set of Toyo Proxies on my SR and they have been great.

backbayvolvo · Post by **backbayvolvo** » 30 Mar 2010, 18:49

FCPGroton wrote:You should just run the stock tire size on them. I have a set of Toyo Proxies on my SR and they have been great.

Do you suggest, then, having the local dealer take off the 205s and put on the 'stock" 215s?

Post by **matthew1** » 30 Mar 2010, 19:26

This is a 2004 car -- didn't see that first read, confused be because 205 is the stock T5 width for <2000 model year. Anyway, moving to 2001-2010 forum...

FCPEURO · Post by **FCPEURO** » 30 Mar 2010, 19:32

backbayvolvo wrote:
FCPGroton wrote:You should just run the stock tire size on them. I have a set of Toyo Proxies on my SR and they have been great.
Do you suggest, then, having the local dealer take off the 205s and put on the 'stock" 215s?

Honestly, I would not have the dealer do it. They will charge you an arm and a leg. I would go to a local tire shop to have it done, like STS or NTB.

Post by **MadeInJapan** » 30 Mar 2010, 21:24

Agreed- avoid the dealer on these. I have had great luck buying directly from tirerack and having them drop-shipped to an participating installer near my house (for over 10 years). For our '04 V70 2.5T (close to yours) we bought Bridgestone Serenity tires. For my S70 I'm running General Altimax. I can't complain at all about either. The Altimax has a bit more aggressive tread design but are not noisy at all and have worn very little in the 18 months I've had them on. The Bridgestone are touring tires and are just quiet and smooooothhhh.

backbayvolvo · Post by **backbayvolvo** » 31 Mar 2010, 02:06

still outstanding question. My dealer just put on 205/55R16 (typical for V70) but T5 calls for 215/55R16

are they the wrong tires?

I am tempted to make the dealer change the tires for the called for specification, but don't know if 10 mm of width is actually an issue

zhenya · Post by **zhenya** » 31 Mar 2010, 05:43

Strictly speaking, yes, it looks like they are the wrong size, however, it is doubtful that you will ever notice much difference one way or another. Any claims about improved mileage are dubious, as a 1cm reduction in width is very minimal, and you lose out a little bit in overall tire height with this size, which would counteract the reduction in width with regards to fuel mileage.

You can use the calculator at http://www.miata.net/garage/tirecalc.html to plug in both tire sizes to see the difference. You can see that other than losing a bit of width, you also lose a bit in overall tire diameter because the sidewall is a little bit shorter. Again, this may or may not be noticeable to you. If it were it might show up as slightly crisper steering response as the shorter sidewall is a bit stiffer, and/or it might show up as a slightly harsher ride. With regards to all of these considerations, the actual tire compound and model itself likely play a bigger role than the slight change in size.

I'd be somewhat hesitant to go back to the dealer and insisting on them changing the tires for you. The change they made is within the normally accepted size variations from stock size. I'd use this as a learning experience for the future; if you are going to be extremely particular about the tires you get, make sure to make that clear in advance, and consider buying your tires from a tire specialist, rather than the dealer.

Post by **matthew1** » 31 Mar 2010, 22:15

Your insurance company could deny a claim because the tires weren't stock size. If 205mm is indeed not stock for your 2004 T5. I don't know. Just sayin'.

Real life situation? I doubt that would ever come up.

TireRack seems to think that 215mm or 235mm was the factory, stock size.