Contour Enthusiasts Group Archives Forums Modifications Wheels & Tires Maximum safe tire size on 14" OEM rims

The city where I live is full of holes and bumpers and irregularities that make my contour hit the bottom all the time. I was thinking about getting new tires to gain perhaps an inch or more in height.
The factory tires were 195/65 r14 and later we installed 195/60 r14. I was wondering if someone could tell me please what the maximum height and width could be for this rims.
I was thinking about 205/70 r14 but Im not sure if I could go as far as 215 without my tire burning with the car on bumpers or while turning.
Any information you could give me ??

Thanks a lot

P.S. The car is not sports driven, we use it only in the city and in the highway at 130 kph max speed.

When you went from 195/65 to 195/60, you shortened the sidewall height 0.8" already. You also threw off your speedometer 3.2%. Try going back to the stock size and you should notice an improvment in ride quality.

Yes, you are right, but the big problem is not the ride but the height, I keep hitting the bottom of the car all the time. First I thought about changing the shocks but they are OK, what I want is to raise the car as much as is safely possible by using the wider and higher tires that i mentioned. Any thoughts on these size, would a 205/70 r14 be safe? Im sure it would be tall enough to solve the height problem but can I get out with it this way?

I'm sure a 205/70 would fit on the rim and not rub on anything. Where are you driving that you are scraping? Contours are not known for their ground clearance.

We are driving in Mexico City and near villages. The problem is the pavement state, it is all crumpled and so full of holes that even if you drive slowly the car is always hitting bottom.
But Im glad you say that 205/70 wouldnt rub in anything, that was my biggest fear.
Do you think the stability would be greatly affected by the bigger height?

Thanks for the replys, I appreciate it.

If you get bigger 14 inch tires , please keep us posted on the results ... I am thinking on putting 225-70-14 inch tires on my stock rims and also was wondering if they would fit the rims ... I have a set of new bfg tires just sitting in my garage . ( starsky )

I'm not usually one to say no but trying to put 225s on the stock 14 size is a waist of time. It'll look ridiculous and handle like crap. Plus you'll have some serious rubbing issues I imagine. This is all assuming you can even get that tire to fit on the stock 14. 205 is pushing it and 215 is near impossible, but 225? Too much...IMO of course.

I work at Wal-MArt in the Tire and Lube Express, and accordding to our Mass Fitment Guide, the biggest you can put on a 14" rim of the tour is a 205/60.....Just my 2 cents worth