PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum - View Single Post - Differerent tire size on front and back. Will that be OK?

ksing44 · #3 04-03-2004, 08:14 AM

I am not an expert, but I can think of two issues with different size wheels.

1. I had to buy snow tires in a hurry one time and I ended up with a wheel/tire combination that was just a bit smaller than OEM. As I remember, the snow tires were 205/55/15 instead of 195/65/15. The slightly smaller diameter confused my cruise control and it would not work. Even the dealer was surprised. They actually replaced the cruise module and when it still didn’t work they tried swapping wheels and tires from another vehicle and it worked fine. It turns out that even very small differences in wheel/tire diameter can mess with some of the electronics on our cars. I suppose if you carefully select tire width and profile, then you could get virtually identical diameter and not mess up anything.

2. With different size wheels and tires, you would also lose the ability to properly rotate the tires. Proper rotation can dramatically improve tire life, so it might be foolish to give up that opportunity.

As I said, I am not an expert, but I wouldn’t do it. I prefer matching front and rear.