GenVibe - Community for Pontiac Vibe Enthusiasts

It seems the low profile 215/45R17 tire that comes with my vibe is absorbing the bump too well... It looks great, but just a little bumpy for now~ Anyone else feeling it? I guess is not the car design at fault, just me and my love for big wheels causing the blues...

i'm feeling the bumps pretty well...mine are 215/45/18's but i've recently changed the stock tires for some nankang tires and the ride is smoother and a lot quieter...i had no idea how noisy the stock tires were until i changed them out lol not sure about the 17's but the 18's that came with my car are pretty hard so i guess it's more bumpier.

Quote, originally posted by lowincash »...i had no idea how noisy the stock tires were until i changed them out...I'm glad to hear that. I think the car is pretty loud at 80mph, and I was hoping it was just the tires.

so what brand of tire did you get?

the brand i got were nankang...i didn't really care about brand...i just asked them for a quieter and softer tire...i think it was 98 bucks a tire.

I've got the 215/45 17 Eagle RSA's and let's say that these are not the quietest tires in their category. I've had them also on my Mazda Millenia and i had swap them for Yokohama's.Ciao

These cars in general have a relatively stiff ride compared to some other small cars. I know even our '09 base vibe rides on the stiff side so you guys with the GT must really feel all the bumps on the road. At least one advantage of the ride is the little amount of roll you get in the corners considering the tall ride height.

maybe it's the short wheelbase on these cars that gives a stiffer ride? i've read cars that have longer wheelbase have a smoother ride.

Compared to my 2002 Mazda Protege, my AWD Vibe with the 17" wheels feels smooth as silk. I guess it is what you are used to that affects your perception. For a small car, I think the Vibe has a nice ride and the bumps I do feel don't bother me.

Compared to an '08 Focus I had as a rental the Vibe has a stiff ride. The Focus is better at absorbing the impact. There is nothing wrong with it, just stiff or some might say tight!