[floridasmartie]

can i put front rims in the back of the car making the car all square?

 

[1983JZR3W]

Absolutely!! That's one of the first mods many owners do. If you search, there are a couple of excellent threads currently going on about that very subject. Welcome to SCoA and welcome from another Florida smart owner. George.

 

[1983JZR3W]

I just re-read your post. My mistake, most people that go four square, run rear wheels on all four corners.

 

[jimvw57]

Putting the front wheels in back would probably be a bad idea, most of the weight is back there (engine, trans, etc). I have had the rear rims up front for years, and now I have aftermarket rims (same size front and rear)

 

[Paula&Charlie]

Good morning,
There are several OEM tire sizes that were installed on the Smart throughout the years, front and rear.
I’m going to guess you’re running a 155/60R15 with a load rating of 74, speed (T) on a 15x5 Rim. The load range alone would disqualify this tire from being used on the rear as 74 would give you a load rating maximum of 825 Lbs and under. Even if you had an upgraded OEM package with a 165/60R15 (77T) it would still be undersize looking at it from the load rating aspect of the tire coming in at 906 Lbs or less weight the tire is rated to carry.
I have found upgrading wheels and tires on our smarts is like balancing on the head of a pin. You want to keep the load rating and radius within OEM specs as close as possible while expanding the width. It’s absolutely possible with a little research.
Paula

 

[jwight]

There is a reason the smart has bigger tires on the rear......Google "moose test"

 

[Paula&Charlie]

There is a reason the smart has bigger tires on the rear......Google "moose test"

Very good and important point which everyone considering changing the original OEM set up to a drastically different one should take into consideration. We read all we could find on the moose test when it impacted Mercedes with the A-class back in 1997 that caused such alarm. Mercedes recalled the car, installed anti sway bars, changed tires and installed stability control allowing the A300 to pass the test.
My opinion for what’s its worth Mercedes didn’t want another A300 fiasco on their hands and took precautions by installing this combination which was thought to make the car understeer, but in reality with this setup in my opinion creates a drastic over steering situation especially on wet roads and tight turns, the front tires are useless.
This is what I believe through the experience driving my smart. It should not be considered a green light for anyone going with an all fours setup. They should use their own experience and read the results behind the tests and come to their own conclusions whether they are willing to sacrifice what Mercedes believe was safe verses their own driving ability.