Choosing the right tires is one of the most impactful decisions you can make for your car. It affects everything from how it looks to how it handles the road. This Grand Touring Tire Guide will help you understand when moving to bigger, wider tires is a smart upgrade, and when it might be a step in the wrong direction.
The Grand Touring Tire Guide
Grand Touring (GT) tires sit in a sweet spot between all-season comfort and performance tire sharpness. They are designed for drivers who want a quiet, comfortable ride without giving up responsive handling and good grip. The allure of wider, larger wheels and tires is strong—they look fantastic and promise better performance. But the trade-offs are real, and they affect your wallet, your comfort, and your car’s engineering.
What Defines a Grand Touring Tire?
Before we talk about size, let’s define the category. Grand Touring tires are a specific class. They are not max-performance summer tires, nor are they basic all-season tires. They blend technologies to offer a balanced experience.
- Comfort-Oriented: They use specialized tread patterns and rubber compounds to reduce road noise and absorb small bumps.
- All-Season Capable: Most GT tires carry the M+S (Mud and Snow) rating and often the three-peak mountain snowflake symbol for light winter capability.
- Responsive Handling: They feature stiffer sidewalls and tread blocks than standard touring tires for better steering feedback and cornering stability.
- Long Treadlife: Manufacturers aim for higher mileage warranties, often in the 50,000 to 80,000 mile range.
The Appeal of Going Bigger and Wider
Upgrading your wheel diameter and tire width is popular for good reason. When done correctly, it can enhance your car’s character.
- Improved Grip: A wider tire puts more rubber on the road. This can increase mechanical grip, especially in dry conditions during cornering and acceleration.
- Sharper Steering Response: A lower-profile tire (which comes with a larger wheel) has a stiffer sidewall. This reduces flex when you turn the steering wheel, making the car feel more immediate and precise.
- Enhanced Aesthetics: There’s no denying it. Larger wheels fill the wheel wells beautifully, giving the car a more aggressive, premium, or sporty stance.
- Potential for Better Braking: The increased contact patch can contribute to shorter straight-line braking distances under ideal conditions.
The Hidden Costs and Compromises
Now for the reality check. Bigger isn’t always better. The physics of your car’s suspension and drivetrain are finely tuned from the factory. Changing a key component like the tire and wheel package has cascading effects.
- Ride Quality Suffers: Lower-profile tires have less air and rubber to absorb impacts. You’ll feel more of every crack, tar strip, and pothole. The ride becomes firmer, often to the point of being harsh.
- Increased Road Noise: Wider tires can generate more tread noise, and the thinner sidewall transmits more road texture sound into the cabin, quieting the refined experience GT tires aim for.
- Heavier Unsprung Weight: Larger wheels, especially if not chosen carefully, are often heavier. This unsprung weight hurts acceleration, braking, and can make the suspension less effective at controlling the tire over bumps.
- Risk of Rubbing and Fitment Issues: Without proper calculation, wider tires can rub against the wheel well liner, suspension components, or fenders during turns or over bumps, causing damage.
- Higher Cost: Larger wheels and the lower-profile tires they require are almost always more expensive to purchase and to replace.
- Potential for Worse Wet/Snow Performance: A very wide tire can hydroplane more easily in heavy rain, as it’s harder to channel water away. In snow, a narrower tire often cuts down to the pavement better.
- Altered Speedometer and Odometer: If the overall tire diameter changes significantly, your speedometer will be inaccurate. It’s crucial to keep the overall diameter within ~3% of the original.
When Bigger, Wider Tires Are Worth It
So, when does the upgrade make sense? Here are scenarios where the benefits likely outweigh the drawbacks.
1. You Primarily Drive on Smooth Roads
If your daily commute is on well-maintained highways and city streets, the ride quality penalty of low-profile tires is minimized. You’ll enjoy the sharper looks and handling without being punished by poor pavement.
2. Your Car is Under-Tired from the Factory
Some manufacturers, for cost or comfort reasons, fit narrow tires on relatively powerful cars. A moderate, well-researched plus-size upgrade (like going from a 205mm to a 225mm width on the same diameter wheel) can unlock the car’s true handling potential safely.
3. You’ve Upgraded Suspension or Power
If you’ve added performance springs, coilovers, or significantly more engine power, the stock tire size may no longer be adequate. A wider tire can provide the necessary grip to match your car’s new capabilities.
4. Aesthetics Are a High Priority (And You Accept Trade-offs)
For a weekend or show car that isn’t a daily driver, choosing a more aggressive fitment for visual impact is a valid choice. Just go in with eyes open to the compromises in comfort and cost.
When to Stick Close to Stock Size
In these common situations, resisting the urge to go bigger is usually the smarter play.
1. You Daily Drive on Rough or Urban Roads
Potholes, broken pavement, and construction zones are the enemy of low-profile tires. The risk of bent wheels and blown tires increases, and the constant harsh ride becomes fatiguing.
2. You Value a Quiet, Comfortable Ride Above All
This is the core mission of a Grand Touring tire. Increasing wheel size directly works against this goal. Prioritize tire model and construction over size for maximum comfort.
3. You Live in a Region with Severe Winters
If you face heavy snow, a narrower winter tire on a smaller steel or alloy wheel is a far better choice than a wide all-season GT tire. Sticking near stock diameter makes owning a separate winter set easier and cheaper.
4. You Want to Maximize Fuel Economy
Heavier wheels and increased rolling resistance from wider tires will reduce your miles per gallon, sometimes noticeably. For efficiency, the stock size is typically optimal.
How to Plus-Size Correctly: A Step-by-Step Guide
If you’ve decided an upgrade is right for you, doing it correctly is non-negotiable. Follow these steps.
Step 1: Understand Your Current Specs
Find your vehicle’s placard (inside the driver’s door jamb) or owner’s manual. Note the factory tire size (e.g., 225/50R17) and the factory wheel width and offset (often stamped on the inside of the wheel).
Step 2: Use a Tire Size Calculator
Go online and use a reputable tire size comparison tool. Input your original size and your proposed new size. The tool will show you the critical differences.
- Overall Diameter: Keep the change under 3%.
- Section Width: This is the tire’s width in millimeters. Increasing by 10-20mm per step is common.
- Aspect Ratio: This is the sidewall height as a percentage of width. When you increase wheel diameter, you must lower this number to maintain overall diameter.
Step 3: Consider Wheel Width and Offset
The new tire must be mounted on an appropriate wheel. A tire that is too wide or narrow for the wheel will not perform or wear correctly. Wheel offset (ET) determines how far in or out the wheel sits. The wrong offset causes rubbing or interferes with suspension.
Step 4: Research Your Specific Vehicle
Search online forums and fitment guides for your exact car model. See what sizes other owners have successfully run. This is the best way to learn about any unique quirks or clearance issues.
Step 5: Consult a Professional
Before purchasing, talk to a knowledgeable tire specialist. They can double-check your calculations, suggest reputable brands, and may even offer a test fit.
Top Grand Touring Tire Recommendations
Choosing the right model is as important as choosing the size. Here are top-tier GT tires known for their balance.
- Michelin Pilot Sport All Season 4: Leans toward performance with exceptional dry and wet grip while retaining good comfort and treadlife.
- Continental ExtremeContact DWS06 Plus: A benchmark for all-season capability with confident light snow traction, great wet braking, and a comfortable ride.
- Pirelli P Zero All Season Plus: Focuses on a quiet, luxurious ride and crisp handling, with very good treadwear.
- Goodyear Eagle Exhilarate: Excellent wet and dry grip with a focus on responsive steering, while still being reasonably quiet.
- Bridgestone Turanza QuietTrack: As the name implies, this tire prioritizes a serene cabin experience with impressive treadlife and all-weather security.
FAQ: Your Grand Touring Tire Questions Answered
What is the difference between a touring tire and a grand touring tire?
Standard touring tires prioritize comfort, noise, and treadlife above all. Grand Touring tires add a stronger emphasis on responsive handling and higher levels of grip, making them a sportier choice while still being civilized.
Are wider tires better for grand touring?
Not necessarily. While they can improve dry grip and steering response, they often reduce ride comfort and increase noise—two key grand touring attributes. A moderate increase, if the car can handle it, is usually the best approach.
Do bigger tires ruin ride quality?
They almost always make it firmer and more sensitive to bumps. Whether that “ruins” it depends on your roads and your personal tolerance. For a plush ride, smaller wheels with taller sidewalls are better.
How much wider can I go without rubbing?
This is vehicle-specific. A common safe rule is to increase width by 10mm per wheel step (e.g., 225mm to 235mm) while keeping the overall diameter the same. Always check fitment guides for your car.
Do I need an alignment after changing tire size?
Yes, absolutely. Any time you change wheels and tires, you should get a professional alignment. This ensures proper wear and that your car handles as it should.
Can I put grand touring tires on any car?
Mostly, yes. They are an excellent upgrade for sedans, coupes, crossovers, and even some minivans that came with basic all-season tires. Just ensure you select the correct size, load index, and speed rating for your vehicle.
Making Your Final Decision
The choice to go bigger and wider with your Grand Touring tires is a personal calculus. You must weigh the visual and handling benefits against the very real costs in comfort, noise, and money. For the true grand touring ethos—covering long distances in relaxed, quiet comfort—staying near the factory size with a premium tire model is frequently the winning strategy. For those who drive on good roads and want a more engaging drive, a careful, moderate plus-size upgrade can be rewarding. Always prioritize the right tire for your driving conditions over sheer size. Your car’s performance and your satisfaction on the road depend on it.