Quote:
Originally Posted by lilsmart
Old Smart,
I just came in from the garage. I got my car 2 days ago and this is the first chance I've had to try the rear wheels on the front. They fit fine with no clearance issues. The side wall is about even with the fender edge and looks fine. You can see a noticable difference from the stock rim. Gives the car a slightly wider look. My thought right now is to get a different style rim (I hate the 9 spokers) but keep the 15" size. The roads here in NY are not as smooth as other parts of the country and the lower profile tires might kill the ride. I'm going to do 175/55R/15's on the front and 195/50/15's for the rear. I'll let you know how this works out.
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Lil,
Thanks; we may now have a plan. I think that 175/55s on the front is a reasonable, moderate front upgrade. I don't feel compelled to similarly increase the rear treadwidth though; the 175s back there are fully capable of handling the smart's "immense" 68 ft-lbs of torque. I do not intend to exceed 175s anywhere; I know what the effect of overly-fat tires on a lightweight car can be concerning hydroplaning in wet weather. And, I like the idea of four-alike all around.
I still would like to know M-B Engineering's rationale for specifying 155s, but not knowing won't likely hold me back (175s are apparently OK with them on the pulse model with no other suspension change).
Today
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