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Subaru Forester Tire/Wheel Questions

298 messages,  Last post on Mar 04, 2013 at 6:34 PM

You are in the Subaru Forester Maintenance & Repair Forum.

What is this discussion about? Subaru Forester, Tires, Wheels

Messages Page 30 of 30

#288 of 298 Re: Nail in the sidewall woes [crashdavisfm] by xwesx

Aug 15, 2011 (9:25 am)

Replying to: crashdavisfm (Aug 13, 2011 5:10 am)
I think it is far preferable to do one's own research and make a decision based on that versus taking the recommendation of a shop on faith. I couldn't agree more regarding the Geolandars, plus the cost of a single tire (at least at my location) is north of $200, which is just insulting considering the quality of the tire. I'm facing a similar situation to yours due to a sidewall puncture.
 
As far as your questions go, you wouldn't "need" an alignment when replacing the tires. The benefit, if you did opt to have one, could be two fold: 1. you would ensure (presumably) the new tires would wear evenly, and 2. you would put some extra profit in the shop's pocket. As AJ suggested, unless you see uneven wear on the current tires or the car is not tracking true, I wouldn't bother with it.
 
The shop may (probably?) fiddled with the nail when they were inspecting, which may have caused the leak to worsen. Since you don't plan to keep the tires, I would just opt for the refill often option. Or, you could get a tire repair kit (pretty cheap, $5-10), pull the tire off and put a plug in it (absolutely an extremely short-term fix) and hope it holds for the day or two you need. if nothing else, you do have your spare on-hand should you need it. I'd recommend making sure it is at full pressure (60 psi) now, just in case.

#289 of 298 Re: Nail in the sidewall woes [xwesx] by once_for_all

Aug 15, 2011 (3:03 pm)

Replying to: xwesx (Aug 15, 2011 9:25 am)
I've had several nail flats fixed by the plug method. I'd always been taught that the only proper way to fix a flat was to dismount the tire and patch the inside. Come to find out that "Discount Tires" aka "Americas Tires" has been fixing them with plugs for many years, and I've never had a problem with them so far.
 
I've been using the Kumho KR21 Solus for several years, they are great tires (quiet, good riding, long lasting) at about $60-$80 (price has really been going up on these).
 
John

#290 of 298 2002 Forester 16" wheels on 2013 Forester Limited. by daniell

Feb 24, 2013 (10:55 am)

Hello Subaru experts.
 
I recently bought a 2013 Forester Limited with the 17" wheels. I have an extra set of OEM 16" tires and wheels from my 2002 Forester S with all season tires. Bolt pattern and offset match. So today I installed the old wheels + tires 215/60-16 instead of the 225/55-17 the 2013 came with (as those old tires still have a lot of life in them). I realize my odometer is about 2% off, and the TPMS light came on as the old tires had no TPMS in them. My question however is about the front brakes - they only have 3/8" or so clearance with the 16" wheels. Wheels rotate freely, and a test drive including highway showed no problem. Is there any scenario in which this tight clearance could be a problem?
 
--Daniel

#291 of 298 Re: 2002 Forester 16" wheels on 2013 Forester Limited. [daniell] by ateixeira

Feb 24, 2013 (11:15 am)

Replying to: daniell (Feb 24, 2013 10:55 am)
I don't think so...the brakes move with the wheels.
 
You lose a tiny bit of ground clearance, right? I would just get taller tires when (if) you replace them.

#292 of 298 Re: 2002 Forester 16" wheels on 2013 Forester Limited. [ateixeira] by daniell

Feb 24, 2013 (1:53 pm)

Replying to: ateixeira (Feb 24, 2013 11:15 am)
Thanks Juice!
 
Yes, I am losing 0.5" of ground clearance. The plan is once I use these old tires to put snows on in the OEM size (for lower trims) 215/65-16.
 
Daniel

#293 of 298 Re: 2002 Forester 16" wheels on 2013 Forester Limited. [daniell] by daniell

Feb 24, 2013 (4:12 pm)

Replying to: daniell (Feb 24, 2013 1:53 pm)
Meant 0.25", not 0.5"...
 
--Daniel

#294 of 298 Re: 2002 Forester 16" wheels on 2013 Forester Limited. [daniell] by ateixeira

Feb 24, 2013 (5:38 pm)

Replying to: daniell (Feb 24, 2013 4:12 pm)
Yeah, half inch diameter. So not a big loss in clearance.

#295 of 298 Re: 2002 Forester 16" wheels on 2013 Forester Limited. [daniell] by xwesx

Feb 25, 2013 (10:42 am)

Replying to: daniell (Feb 24, 2013 4:12 pm)
Daniel, those 16" rims work just fine, and the planned 16" replacement tire size is perfect going forward, so if you are fine with the smaller size for now, go with it. You will be accumulating miles a little faster than actual, though, which will (slightly) shorten your warranty period depending on how long (miles-wise) you use the tires.
 
I have a set of 16" steel rims off a 2007 Forester that I use on my 2010. I use those with my winter tires (same size as you noted - 215/65R16) and then use the 17" alloy wheels for the summer tires. No TPMS in the winter wheels, which is fine by me.

#296 of 298 Re: 2002 Forester 16" wheels on 2013 Forester Limited. [daniell] by capriracer

Feb 25, 2013 (3:19 pm)

Replying to: daniell (Feb 24, 2013 10:55 am)
Daniel,
 
Between 2002 and 2013, the Forester put on weight. So Subaru put on tires with larger load carrying capacity.
 
I STRONGLY recommend you do something other than put those 16" tires on your new Forester. Overloaded tires can fail - sometimes catastrophically and with little warning. You do not want to be part of that statistic.

#297 of 298 Re: 2002 Forester 16" wheels on 2013 Forester Limited. [capriracer] by daniell

Feb 25, 2013 (5:23 pm)

Replying to: capriracer (Feb 25, 2013 3:19 pm)
Thanks capriracer (and Wes) for your answers!
 
Capriracer, I am fully aware of that. Weight went up by about 200 lbs., and tires went from 215/60-16 to 215/65-16 on base models and 225/55-17 on my limited. Load rating is 95 on my 225/55-17 vs. 94 on the old ones, very minor change. However for this very reason I am keeping my old tires 215/60-16 inflated by an additional 2-3 psi. I have them at 33 psi in the front, 32 in the back, so that should cover it. We also never get close to the load rating of the car of 900 lbs...
 
-Daniel

Messages Page 30 of 30

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