Sierra Forester Posted May 25, 2005 Share Posted May 25, 2005 '98 Forester tire question. I just got a '98 Forester and was thrilled to find this site. I have read lots of posts and the sticky FAQs and was ready to upsize my 215/60 R16 tires to something more aggressive. Since I have seen lots of other type tires used by you guys I figured it was fine. But after asking 3 Subaru mechanics (1 dealer), they all instantly said No Way. They say any deviation form the reccomended size will lead to tranny and diff. problems. I did find a 4th mechanic who said as long as I changed all 4 tires and they didn't rub, then it was fine. So what is the truth here? Sorry for yet another tire question. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jack in Norfolk Posted May 25, 2005 Share Posted May 25, 2005 I don't know much about foresters. But, yeah, if you change all 4 there shouldn't be an issue with the diff/tranny. You may get rubbing and uneven tire wear if your rims aren't wide enough. Also your speedo might be off. Don't take my word for it though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phizinza Posted May 25, 2005 Share Posted May 25, 2005 yeah, don't wantto change only 2 of the tyres for bigger. If you do the center diff will have to work extra hard because the front is moving faster/slower (depends on what tyres you changed) then the rear. The reason the subaru guys are saying this is because they don't want you to do damage to your subaru. I can see if you go HUGE your engine might have trouble with pulling along your car from first gear, and thus quicker clutch wear as you have to work it more. I can't see how it would make a lot of differnce. Every one seems to do it, and I haven't heard of any problems yet. Make 'em big. And get the hammer out to make them fit with out rubbing... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thingol Posted May 25, 2005 Share Posted May 25, 2005 The fourth mechanic you talked to was the only correct one. Changing all four tires at the same time (to the same size/type/etc) will not result in any center diff damage at all (what do you think happens when your tires wear....they change size). Center diff damage is caused by differences in speed between the front and rear wheels caused by having larger or smaller wheels/tires on the front or back. However, this means you need to purchase 5 tires (and perhaps 1 wheel) when you change sizes, as your spare will no longer be usable at all (as it would be a different size, and would lead to center diff damage). As noted above, you may need to "persuade" your fenderwells to let the tires in though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Turbone Posted May 25, 2005 Share Posted May 25, 2005 Do you have ABS on your car? Tire size could affect the functioning of this. This happended on my 92 Mazda truck when I put oversize tires on, it became non functional. Might want to talk to a Subaru mech some more about this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NoahDL88 Posted May 25, 2005 Share Posted May 25, 2005 Good call turbone, but as far as the drivetrain, tranny and rear diff, the bigger tires should not be a problem, i would check on the ABS though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ezapar Posted May 25, 2005 Share Posted May 25, 2005 Do you have ABS on your car? Tire size could affect the functioning of this. This happended on my 92 Mazda truck when I put oversize tires on, it became non functional. Might want to talk to a Subaru mech some more about this. I know how to fix the ABS issue. Pull the fuse. All better, no dumb ol' "braking for dummies". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shadyirishmen Posted May 26, 2005 Share Posted May 26, 2005 I had a 2001 outback limited. Everything is okay if all the tires are the same size. If they are not the same size it creates a bind in the gearing. Dont listen to dealerships they're usually full of coke snorting salesman that somehow made it up the administrative food chain. '98 Forester tire question. I just got a '98 Forester and was thrilled to find this site. I have read lots of posts and the sticky FAQs and was ready to upsize my 215/60 R16 tires to something more aggressive. Since I have seen lots of other type tires used by you guys I figured it was fine. But after asking 3 Subaru mechanics (1 dealer), they all instantly said No Way. They say any deviation form the reccomended size will lead to tranny and diff. problems. I did find a 4th mechanic who said as long as I changed all 4 tires and they didn't rub, then it was fine. So what is the truth here? Sorry for yet another tire question. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SuBrat84 Posted May 26, 2005 Share Posted May 26, 2005 What are you looking to get.. like a 225/50? I don't think you'll have any problems.. just do all 4 tires at the same time. You may have to have your speed-o recalibrated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sierra Forester Posted May 26, 2005 Author Share Posted May 26, 2005 What are you looking to get.. like a 225/50? I don't think you'll have any problems.. just do all 4 tires at the same time. You may have to have your speed-o recalibrated. No I was looking at 225/60 or 215/70. I hadn't thought about the ABS computer getting confused. Also rim width needs to be watched. One tire guy told me they weren't allowed to put a tire on a rim that was 3% taller than the base tire. Anyway, thanks for the input. Lots to figure out. But then there aren't many choices in this size. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caboobaroo Posted May 26, 2005 Share Posted May 26, 2005 No I was looking at 225/60 or 215/70. I hadn't thought about the ABS computer getting confused. Also rim width needs to be watched. One tire guy told me they weren't allowed to put a tire on a rim that was 3% taller than the base tire. Anyway, thanks for the input. Lots to figure out. But then there aren't many choices in this size. This is why you take just the rims into the tire shop and ask them to put "these" tires on them and they will usually:D If they never see the car, you can lie and tell them its for a different car. Done it before a few times when people wouldn't put oversized tires on my 'ole '78 Ford F-250... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
offroadsubaruguy Posted May 26, 2005 Share Posted May 26, 2005 although sometimes its even better if u bring the car with you... when i bought my 27 inch muds and brought the old wagon in to have the shop put em on, they laughed, then said ok... put em on they fit, no rub, and then the jaws dropped... i drove off happy... so sometimes it works out...... anyway with a forester you should have no problems... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Forester_Ranger Posted May 26, 2005 Share Posted May 26, 2005 On the Foresters you don't have much clearence on the rear where the strut hangs over the rear tire. Look at the clearence between the top of your rear tire and the strut. You'll see what I'm talking about. You'll probably only be able to go up to a 215/65r16 without the top of your rear tire rubbing the strut. And you will have a hard time finding an aggressive tire in that size. I have a 98 Forester L that came with 15" wheels and full-size matching spare . It came stock with 205/70r15 tires. With it at stock hieght I barely had enough clearence to run 205/75r15 tires. I always buy 5 tires also when replacing so I insure all tires match. Later on I had Mudrat on this board modify my struts to allow an extra 2" of tire clearence. I'm now running 215/75r15 with no rubbing issues and I can still go up one or two sizes. You can only run this size if you have your struts modified to allow for clearence. And it only affected my speedo by about 2-3mph at 60mph. I suggest you replace your wheels with 15" and get a set of Modified struts from Mudrat79. The modified struts will lift your car 2" and allow plenty of clearence to fit 27-28" mud-terrains. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sweet82 Posted May 26, 2005 Share Posted May 26, 2005 Do you have ABS on your car? Tire size could affect the functioning of this. This happended on my 92 Mazda truck when I put oversize tires on, it became non functional. Might want to talk to a Subaru mech some more about this. The Foresters have ABS. How is ABS affected by tire size? Seems to me if the tires are all the same size it would be the same to the computer. Other than the computer would think you were going slightly slower than you actually were? Can someone explain? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phizinza Posted May 27, 2005 Share Posted May 27, 2005 Don't you hate it when you get an answer like "no, you can't. Its not a good idea. You'll brake something..." Why don't they just say something like "well, your ABS might not work... Not a good thing" , Just say why... PLEASE Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shadyirishmen Posted May 27, 2005 Share Posted May 27, 2005 Just pull the fuse on your A.B.S.. I mean dont get me wrong its there to protect you, but if your a good driver you dont need it anyways. ABS = death if you know how to use your brakes. Good luck and may the force be with you. Don't you hate it when you get an answer like "no, you can't. Its not a good idea. You'll brake something..." Why don't they just say something like "well, your ABS might not work... Not a good thing" , Just say why... PLEASE Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
offroadsubaruguy Posted May 27, 2005 Share Posted May 27, 2005 i bet that you could fit 27's under your forester, if i can make em fit, and so can all sorts of other guys, no problem.... an you can get them in very aggressive tread patterns Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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