Question

When changing a tire sized 195/75 R15 to a 5 percent lower profile, the correct tire size would be _____

Answer 1

Answer and explanation:

When you are changing a car tire, the most important thing is to keep the total diameter as equal as possible.

The total car tire diameter can be calculated as:

$D_{tot orig}=\frac{195 \cdot 75}{2540 \cdot 2}+15''=26.5''$

The profile of this tire is 75 (the higher/taller relation), therefore a 5 percent lower profile would be:

pr=0.95·75=71.25

The problem is that the profiles are normalized and the nearest profile available is 70.

If we take a theorical tire with a profile of 71.25:

$D_{tot orig}=D_{new}\\\frac{195 \cdot 75}{2540 \cdot 2}+15''=\frac{X \cdot 71.25}{2540 \cdot 2}+15''\\X=205.26$

The theorical tire size should be 205/71 R15.

If we look for a real tire size, we should look for a tire with a diameter nearest to 26.5'' and a profile of 70.

The best option for real tire size is: Tire 225/70 R14 (wheel diameter of 26.4'') or 205/70 R15 (wheel diameter of 26.3'').