Plus Sizing Your Wheels & Tyres: Should You Do It?

We all know that wheels and tyres are among the most important elements in a vehicle. However, they are also parts that are often ignored by drivers. There are many people who are interested in swapping their rims, and one of the most common reasons for that is to increase their size so that the vehicle appears sportier.

This process is also known as plus sizing or upsizing. Fitting larger wheels and tyres in UAE happens on many vehicles, and some tuning trends exploit this trend and abuse cars by fitting inappropriately sized rims on them. Let’s look at the pros and cons of plus sizing.

Advantages of Plus Sizing

• Aesthetics: Larger wheels and lower tyres look cool on any car.
• Improved cornering and grip: The wider thread and stiffer sidewall allow for this.
• Greater contact area: Wider tyres mean an increase in the contact area.

Disadvantages of Plus Sizing

• Cost: Going larger means spending more on wheels and tyres.
• Weight: Greater weight puts a strain on the vehicle which affects fuel economy, suspension, braking system strains, durability, and even performance limitations.
• Speedometer errors: If the outer diameter of the tyre is different on the one of the original tyre, there will be a slight difference between your real speed and the reading of your speedometer.
• Lower driving comfort: Plus sizing typically means fitting a tyre with a shorter sidewall, which leads to lower shock absorption and less comfortable driving.
• Increased noise: The decrease in shock absorption in the sidewall of the tyre leads to increased noise.

As you can see, the disadvantages outweigh the advantages of plus sizing. Below, we are explaining them in detail.

Plus Sizing Comes With Some Limits

In theory, getting bigger wheels and tyres for your vehicle increases the contact with the road, and adds a sportier look. It also increases the grip, cornering, and braking performance of your tyres, but there are limits to this improvement.

Adding larger wheels means that you also need to add larger tyres on them with a smaller sidewall to ensure the same overall diameter. If the diameter is not maintained, the tyre could touch the edges of the fenders when hard cornering or other situations, or touch other components of the vehicle’s mechanics.

That being said, maintaining the overall diameter of the tyre becomes difficult as the difference in wheel size goes from stock (or recommended) to modified. The loss of comfort is visible, so if you are considering a wheel and tyre upgrade, you need to figure out what kind of tyres you will need for your specific wheels.

The Downsides Of Fitting Bigger Tyres And Wheels

Now, let’s go over the downsides of fitting bigger tyres and wheels for your car. First of them is weight – larger wheels and tyres bring more “mass” to the car, which decreases handling, performance, reliability, and comfort of the rolling gear. Brakes will also go in great lengths to stop the wheel.

If extreme plus sizing is chosen, fuel consumption and acceleration times also suffer. Another downside is cost – bigger wheels and tyres in UAE are more expensive compared to smaller ones. Tyres with small sidewalls are more prone to failure, too, and replacing such tyres would be a more expensive decision to make.

Last is the geometry of the car. Every manufacturer knows the right proportions of rims and tyres as opposed to the dimensions of the car. If you plus size your wheels and tyres or make extreme changes, the car will not drive as it naturally does. From the brakes to the suspension and steering systems, everything becomes a strain to your car.

What If You Still Want To Plus Size

If despite all of these drawbacks you still want to plus size your wheels and tyres so that your car appears sportier, you should carefully observe the wheel and tyre combinations (concerning sizes) of your vehicle manufacturer, and search for OEM wheels to achieve the factory fitment without headaches. Once you do that, you can shop for the best UAE tyres from our store.

A thing to note from our team is that if the modifications you plan when plus sizing include a change in ET, wheel width, tyre spacers, or other suspension changes, you should visit a specialized tuner first. If you are unsure about whether your decision is right and how it would affect your vehicle and driving, you can always consult with our experts at TyresOnline.

Just call us at 800-ALL-TYRES and we’ll answer your questions!