GenVibe - Community for Pontiac Vibe Enthusiasts

Hello everyone,I got a new set of rims and tires from Canadiantire y'day , 15" multi fit rims and Good year Nordic winter tires 195/65/15. Noticed a drop in the height of the vibe , could this be due to the fact that the tires are 15 .What would be the tire pressure for these tires ?Are they 32 psi ,similar to the ones on the stock tires (205/55/16) ?

keep your pressures set to the specs on the drivers door- 32psithere is no drop in height as the tire is the same overall diameterthose tires are pretty good... just keep them off the warm spring pavement as they do tend to wear quicklyhave fun this winter... i cant wait til dumps again

thanks Graham ,was getting a bit lost on the tire pressure .Yep you were correct both the 205 and 195 are similar in diameter ,maybe my eyes were playing tricks on me .BTW while i was purchasing those tires from Canadiantire ,the service person was telling me that 195's weren't the recommended tires and made me sign the invoice stating that the size was requested by me .It is good that i had researched the forum abt the tire size .Now all i need is to get some wheel covers.Any suggestions ?Found some 15" today at Walmart selling for $20 .Are these good ?Will they fit coz the sales person at Canadiantire said that since the rims where multi fit rims some covers won't fit.

I run my tires 2-3 psi higher than normal during the fall and winter to compensate for drops in temperature. (5degC drop in temp means a drop of 1psi.) This enables me to drive around longer without having to check/add air in freezing temps.

Quote, originally posted by dennisdrive »the service person was telling me that 195's weren't the recommended tires and made me sign the invoice stating that the size was requested by me he has a computer that says 205 is right... the computer is OE only and accounts for nothing... he is a little paranoid.(covering his (removed))Quote, originally posted by dennisdrive »Now all i need is to get some wheel covers.Any suggestions ?Found some 15" today at Walmart selling for $20 .Are these good ?Will they fit coz the sales person at Canadiantire said that since the rims where multi fit rims some covers won't fit.true some multi fit wheels wont take covers... try em and return them if they dont

I'm surprised at how common of a mistake it is for people to believe that if the tire size changes, so too does the pressure.Perhaps I'm off the mark for what makes people think this, but the volume of air contained within the tire and the wheel is not spec'd by the manufacturer and I believe that is what people some people interpret it to be. Rather they say the pressure should be at a specific level. This allows the volume of air to increase or decrease dependent upon ambient temperature, barometric pressure, wheel size, tire size, etc.Basically, when a manufacturer specs a pressure, they are stating that this is the pressure used when optimizing the ride and handling characteristics - to optimize your driving experience, keep the tire pressure at this point.This also gets confused with the maximum allowable cold pressure stamped on the tire. A majority of tires on the road today have a max all. cold pressure of 35 psi. People see this on the tire and say "ok, I need to fill it to 35 psi."I'm sorry if this turned into a rant, but it seems it needs to be written again - "Recommended tire pressure is independent of tire size. It is recommended that you always use the lower value of either the vehicle manufacturers recommended tire pressure or the tire manufacturers maximum allowable cold pressure. Using the lower value of these will ensure that your vehicle operates as safely as possible."Remember that the greatest danger to low tire pressure is overheating the tires, causing premature degradation or "catastrophic" failure (i.e. a blow out). The greatest danger to high tire pressure is loss of vehicle dynamics (rougher ride, longer braking distance, reduced ability to turn at speed).Because your tires are the only part of the vehicle that maintains contact with the road (and thus one of the most critical safety points on the vehicle), I will never discourage people to ask questions about their tires and I promote extreme caution. Unfortunately, there are way too many of us on the road with improperly maintained tires...Anybody else want the podium? *Steps aside*EDIT: Also, don't forget to periodically check the pressure in your spare tire (donut). From one of several great threads on here, I got a hose to essentially extend the valve stem of the spare that allows me to check the pressure and add air as necessary without ever opening the spare cover. At 60 psi, it is more susceptible to changes in the weather so check it often!