Ok, so I took my 2.0 sport to a tyre bay today, to get a price for a set of tyres.

I asked for 195 50 r16, the tyre chappy asked what car they were for, and then said that they were the wrong size for my car.

He typed my reg number in to his pc, and it came up with the correct model etc, and a tyre size of 205 55 r16.

I have always wondered why my sport is so quick away from the lights, but not great at top end. if the tyres ARE wrong and should be bigger profile, this would explain a few things. But I really dont want the wrong size tyres as I cant afford to waste money.

So which one is correct?

Many thanks for any advice

My BJ has the tyres and wheel sizes on the inside of the door, along with the recommended tyre pressures for said tyre.

great idea zippy, hadnt thought about that.... DOH!!

Sticker shows 195 50 r16 and 195 55 r15.

As mine has 16 inch wheels my car has the correct size tyres on . tyre guy is wrong, so where did he get his information from i wonder?

[quote="cbreddie"]Sticker shows 195 50 r16 and 195 55 r15.

As mine has 16 inch wheels my car has the correct size tyres on . tyre guy is wrong, so where did he get his information from i wonder? [/quote]

Interesting! Try whacking your reg into blackcircles or something to see what the computer there says?

mine 16's are 195 45 R16 ... unsure if it will help?

195 on the standard 16s - for sure

blackcircles says" 205/45R16 V 83 "

Came from the dealer with 195/50/16

205/45 is 10mm too small...

I am sticking with whats on, what worries me is, how many cars out there have the wrong tyres due to incorrect information on databases?

Yes, it's not good. Not the first time I've come across errors such as this, won't be the last time I send a message correcting them either

[quote="Marc S"]Came from the dealer with 195/50/16

205/45 is 10mm too small...[/quote]

Well they would fit I guess as they're 16s and I suspect the 10mm difference in width the rim can accommodate ok...

205/45s are 10mm wider and have a profile tyre height of 92.25 (45% of 205 width). With 16inch(406.4mm) wheels that's a circumference of 590.9mm

195/50s would be a profile tyre height of 97.5mm (50% of 195), which is a circumference of 601.4mm

So like Marc said that's a 10mm difference

Guess the 205s accelerate quicker then

Interestingly, my 185/65/14s are a circumference of 596.1mm theoretically, which is smack bang between those two numbers that I've just worked out. I reckon mazda have designed the car around these sizes...!

Pre-facelift Sports had 205/45/16 tyres as standard on 4 stud wheels.
Facelift models had 195/50/16 on 5 stud wheels.
For why I don't know, maybe economy reasons on the later model.
I currently have, and have always bought 205/45/16 on mine, and the speedo is roughly 3mph more than my Sat Nav.

[quote="Neil F"]
I currently have, and have always bought 205/45/16 on mine, and the speedo is roughly 3mph more than my Sat Nav. [/quote]

Buy a speedview .. no need for the speedo

[quote="errnee"][quote="Neil F"]
I currently have, and have always bought 205/45/16 on mine, and the speedo is roughly 3mph more than my Sat Nav. [/quote]

Buy a speedview .. no need for the speedo [/quote]

You got one for sale by any chance?

No! I love my speedview. I think everyone should have one.

if you get 205/50-16, your speedo will be dead on... it is easier to find that size than the factory size tyre

I bought 205/55/16 for my BJ sport a couple of years back because they were cheaper than 195/50/16. However every time I turned a corner there was an almighty rubbing/friction noise. Don't know if wheel spacers might have helped or not but going around roundabouts was horrid! I've since put the 205/55/16 tyres on my other car (vw bora) and fitted factory size tyres to the BJ whilst it's off the road.