If i change my wheels/tires (to a bigger size) will i waste more gas??

Question

will i waste more gas if i put 17" rims and 205/40 tires on my civic that comes with 14" 185/35 tires on it???

and if i switch back to the smaller size later will it make a diff on my gas??

Answer 1

I studied AutoMechanics in college. the answer is - it depends. Increasing your tire size increases rolling distance and resistance for wheels. To maintain speed with a larger distance, your engine has to work harder to produce the same result (it's a bunch of messy calculations- trust me).

Now, this matters when you have a car with say... 100 horsepower and you're 2 or 3+ sizing your tires. Your civic engine is going to have to work A LOT harder to produce the same horse power. [ if it's stock, your running somewhere around 110 HP give-or-take the model, fuel type, maintainence, ect]. The same goes for braking somewhat.

An example where it wouldn't matter much is a 500HP Corvette or Acura NSX. It won't show because horsepower/torque will succumb the difference.

If you plus size that much, be sure to tweak your engine a bit... especially on a civic - not a hard task at all. You won't notice in performance or gas-milage as much.

Plus, if you switch back, everything will be ok. Your shocks may wear a little faster though [with the larger tires], but since the rolling resistance is back to "normal", you'll be fine.

Check out www.sounddomain.com. They've got some great Civis there!

Ciao...

Answer 2

Some have already hit close to the answer! First of all a narrower tire of same circunmference will use less gas per mile, as it is running against less friction! Running 2-3 psi higher tire pressure will make harder tires, - and less friction!Pressure this much higher doesn't affect handling or tire wear a whle lot, - though you may notice a slightly higher transfer of road noise, and rougher ride.... This is only very slight though! Now if you put on a larger circumference tire (within reasonable limits), - -- if your engine/power transfer is adequate,-- you will now get better mpg, - (according to "ground miles), - however your speedometer and odometer will be off, -- as larger circumference means tire rolls further on each revolution, (and speedometer reads against reveolutions). Example if tire change boosted mileage 25% and you got 30 mpg, - the car would travel 40 miles, and the mileage would still figuure out to 30mpg.(or in short it atually got 40mpg!),- speedometer will also read less than the real speed! Reversing the curcumference (to less), - the car would read 40 miles (for example), - and speedometer would read 30miles (speedometer would register "slow" all the way around). Equaling a 25% loss in mileage!--Therefore your gas mileage (across the ground would be 20), - by speedometer- closer to 30mpg. To get this exact you would have to figure it out with an adding machine, which I didn'T ! Now You can get some mileage increase with computer chips, and camshafts (and larger valves in heads). But even then you can't pull out even close to 50% increase in mpg, -- it is just a fact of life that it takes about a certian amount of "feed" to make those horses all run! If you start out with a lighter car, you will still be able to pull it with a smaller engine = "less horses to feed", however the "gearing has to be right, -- and when you "whip" any team of horses to make them perform much faster, -- takes more feed to keep them going! In short, - there is no "magic bullet" to make gas mileage! It is still weight-vs horsepower- vs friction. And The 4 th co-efficient is speed! I have a 1922 Ford that gets 35mpg, - and it was made a "long time ago"!! The Carbureter isn't much more than a "baby food can with a damper" in it, -- But the 15hp motor - pulling a 950# car only takes it up to a little less than 40mph!

Answer 3

Putting a bigger size wheel/tire is JUST LIKE putting a larger gear ratio in your axle or putting a bigger sprocket on your dirtbike. And yea it will make you burn a little bit more gas. Being that 17 inch rims are taller in diameter they will make it like a higher gear sure your RPMs will be lower but thats not what burns gas. Your engine will have to work harder to turn those wheels because of their diameter and their weight increase.

If two trucks travel 500 miles, one has a camper on it and one doesnt which truck is going to burn more gas???

Thats my theory for why MPG is not a correct way to measure an engines life. It should be how much gas it burnt.

Answer 4

In a nut shell, yes. However the conversion you are referring to will have little effect on the gas mileage because the diameter is only going to be slightly increased. The real effects come with the big tires and rims that trucks like to use where they will go from a 30" diameter wheel and tire to a 40" diameter or larger and the unsprung weight in in the vicinity of 600 pounds. This can reduce fuel economy by as much as 25%.

Answer 5

---------------you might want to check this out first----------------------


Tuesday, February 20, 2007


Honda settles suit over defective odometers

Tentative plan includes Acura; customers will be reimbursed for repairs, warranties will be extended.

David Shepardson / Detroit News Washington Bureau


Covered vehicles: 2002 to 2006 Hondas and Acuras, purchased from April 13, 2002, to Nov. 7, 2006. Some 2007 Honda Fits are included as well.

Honda will extend by 5 percent the mileage-based coverage of warranties and lease terms. The company also will reimburse owners for repairs made during the extended warranty period. It will also repay leasees for some excess mileage charges.

An approval hearing is set for May 30.

WASHINGTON -- About 6 million Honda and Acura owners will get extensions of leases or warranties, or in some cases refunds, as part of a $16 million-plus settlement stemming from faulty odometers, which chalked up miles too quickly.

Because of the defective odometers, warranties expired earlier than they should have.

In some cases, leaseholders had to pay for miles they did not drive when odometers showed they exceeded mileage limits.

As part of a tentative class-action settlement, American Honda Motor Co. will:


Extend by 5 percent the mileage-based coverage period of its warranties.


Extend mileage allowed in leases by 5 percent.


Reimburse customers for repairs made just after their warranties expired.


Refund $6.1 million in fees for exceeding mileage limits to about 25,000 former leaseholders -- who will receive $265 each.

The suit began in April 2004 when a Texas woman complained that her 2002 Odyssey was overstating her mileage by 2 percent to 4 percent. Other drivers also complained their odometers weren't accurate.

"People who had been making the 300-mile trip to Grandma's house found out that Grandma had moved 12 miles away when they bought a Honda," James Holmes, an attorney for the car owners, said Monday.

Honda said the problem stemmed from the automaker inadvertently overcorrecting inaccuracies in an earlier generation odometer.

Even so, the margin of error was acceptable under industry guidelines, which calls for odometers to be accurate to plus or minus 4 percent.

"Our standards didn't change, but it was well within the accepted industry standards," said Chris Martin, a Honda spokesman.

"Customers expect it would be based on (close to) zero (error). It's never going to be perfect."

Honda has since moved to a speed sensor in the transmission, and a computer calculates the mileage.

Martin said he didn't know how many customers were charged for repairs in error. He noted many repairs would have been done at dealerships, which keep good records.

Holmes wondered whether Honda was seeking to reduce its warranty costs by overstating mileage -- something the automaker has denied.

"With everything you know about Japanese engineering, it's hard to believe 2 or 3 percent just slipped past them," he said.

Attorneys for the Honda owners will be awarded $9.5 million in legal fees and $300,000 in expenses, if U.S. District Judge T. John Ward approves the settlement.

Meanwhile, three new suits have been filed against Honda in Canada.

A similar suit charging Nissan with having faulty odometers is pending in U.S. District Court in Marshall, Texas.

Nissan has denied wrongdoing.

For more information, go to www. odosettlementinfo.com.

You can reach David Shepardson at [phone] or [e-mail].

Answer 6

Yes, you'll waste more gas, but i don't think that you could visibly notice.

Answer 7

no your gas mileage wont be much different, thats mostly 4x4s that get jacked up and stuff

Answer 8

if you get wheels that were lighter than the original then no you won't but if you get heavier wheels then yes you will

Answer 9

no,if any thing it will be better,large your wheels the less rpm

Answer 10

No but you will have to have your speedometer recalibrated.