General Tyre profiles

[bigpigeon2004]

Can sometime tell me what the best tyre profile would be?? I have 165/55/13. As standard. What would I have to change in order to get lower profile tyres? Would this lower the price?

Thank you

 

[bigpigeon2004]

any ideas. A simple answer will do!!

 

[rallycinq]

Can sometime tell me what the best tyre profile would be?? I have 165/55/13. As standard. What would I have to change in order to get lower profile tyres? Would this lower the price?

Thank you

There isn't an easy answer, but here goes:-

Tyre profile (the 55 bit in the above) is the height of the tyre expressed as a percentage of the width. Therefore to get a lower tyre you need to work out the actual height. A 175/50 tyre is only 3mm lower than what you have, but is 10mm wider.

Cost usually goes up, the lower the profile, not the other way round, although there are more reasons for cost differences than just the profile. The compound, construction and pattern all have a bearing on the cost.

Some of the most expensive tyres have a very sticky compound with a special construction that will allow you to corner really well, but will last only a few thousand miles. A harder compound on a more flexible carcass will last lots longer, but won't stick to the road as well.

To further confuse issues, some compounds while good in the dry can be dreadful in the wet, and vice versa.

Cheers

D