what is the difference between 205-40-17 and 235-45-17 tires?

Question

I KNOW the 235-45-17 is a bigger, wider and taller tire, but is there anyting else? The place I'm buying the tires has them for $60 for 205-40-17; $78 for 215-45-17; $89 for 225-45-17 and $90 for 235-45-17. As you can see prices keep increasing. Is it just because there's more tire material? or 235 last longer because is larger? I'm just thinking on going with 205 since they are $30 cheaper. Am I missing something?

But why is the price difference?? That shouldv'e been my question. Why $30 more expensive?

Answer 1

a couple of centimeters, that's about it.

Answer 2

Yes, as long as the rim is 17"... the 40 and 45 refer to the height of the sidewall from the bead that goes into the rim to the top of the tire tread... The only problem you'll encounter is the speedometer of the car will be off by a mile per hour or two...

Answer 3

It is more tire material for certain but it also has to do with the volume of sales that they do with a specific tire and its performance and wear ratings. Tires will have a temperature rating, a load rating, a traction rating, a speed rating as well as the tread width, aspect ratio and rim diameter on them. You absolutely need to remain within the factory specs when you buy a tire. Sometimes there are "optional sizes" that you can use on your vehicle based on the rim width and suspension that your vehicle came with. Your drivers manual as well as sometimes your door jamb will have the min and max tire sizes (or optional permissible tire sizes that will NOT affect suspension and handling) that you should have on your auto. Follow them....Tires come with a specific load rating and speed rating and you must ALWAYS meet the load rating criteria on the tires. You must never use a tire rated for a lower load rating than your stock tire. Load rating is indexed to axle weight by increasing values....eg a load rating of 89 on your tire is indexed to somewhere about 1280 lbs. whereas an index rating of 109 is about 2270 lbs. and this is for the tire being at the max inflation allowed. If there is less pressure than the max then the load is decreased accordingly. Overloading a tire is a sure way to get failure due to heat buildup.

Speed rating is ultimately up to you but usually stay as close to your original speed rating as you can. For instance dropping from an H speed rated tire (130 mph) to a Q speed rating causes the max speed to decrease to around 98-99 mph before carcass failure due to heat buildup can occur. So if you were to drive on a Q rated tire in high heat in summer at 70 to 75 mph you could get a carcass failure due to heat buildup on the tire.

Additionally, the higher the wear index the better longevity (if you drive sanely) you can expect from a tire but it is NOT a linear relationship. eg a 400 rating is not twice a 200 rating...but you can expect to get exceptional life out of a tire with a 400 rating. Price depends on the techonology put into the tire also...new high traction, low wearing compounds have recently emerged that are value added and they charge more. Even overseas brands have import and government taxes on them so you will pay either way.

Answer 4

Since we don't know what type (brand and model) of tire it is and what the speed ratings of the respective tires are there is no way to answer your question. See my reply to your other question on this topic as to whether or not you should "go cheap" on what is the most important safety feature of your vehicle.

Answer 5

First number = tread width in mm.
Second number = percentage of sidewall hight to tread width.
Third number = wheel diamiter that the tire fits.

Answer 6

http://www.1010tires.com/TireSizeCalculator.asp