Change of wheels and tyres

[corsa79]

Hi all i have a little problem with tyres where i live in north qld. I currently have 215 55 17 tyres on standard 17 wheels on my my06 xt forrester. I would like to drop back to a 16 inch wheel that is possible but my problem is i want to run Bf goodrich AT tyres and they only come in a 215 70 16. What i would like to know is how i would go bye law and insurance. The reason i want the bfs is i live on a shale coverd road that has taken out a few side walls on the couple of tyres i have tried and availabilty up here of 17 inch tyres this size is quite bad. Well thanks all if you can give any help

 

[Kevin]

Did you check diameter between the 2? My concern would be if the BFG will fit under the spring perch - you'd need about another 20mm clearance over the current tyre.

I had to go to 15" to get 21575R15 (which is a smaller diameter that the 16's you've mentioned)

 

[corsa79]

Thanks Kevin yes i have checked the diameter the standard tyre is 668.3mm and bfgoodrich is 707.40mm diameter so that would be 39.1mm bigger diameter which is 19.55mm bigger I have a 25mm gap between the strut and tyre. Its starting to look a little complicated and i wont be abble to get the tyres i want still in sixteens and i cant go to 15 inch as the calipers are to big for that. I have found out today that the yokohama at come in a 215 60 17 so i might just get them cheaper than bying new rims and not getting anymore choices. Thank you for your advice ill have to look some more before making a desion

 

[subyroo]

Thanks Kevin yes i have checked the diameter the standard tyre is 668.3mm and bfgoodrich is 707.40mm diameter so that would be 39.1mm bigger diameter which is 19.55mm bigger I have a 25mm gap between the strut and tyre. Its starting to look a little complicated and i wont be abble to get the tyres i want still in sixteens and i cant go to 15 inch as the calipers are to big for that. I have found out today that the yokohama at come in a 215 60 17 so i might just get them cheaper than bying new rims and not getting anymore choices. Thank you for your advice ill have to look some more before making a desion

 

[Rally]

You can run 15 inch rims with standard XT brakes if you get the right rim. Rally cars run 15" rims with the bigger 4 piston caliper- the XT's are 2 piston and from memory run the same size disc.