difference in tire size

ahitchcox

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I'm planning on putting a set of snow tires on my new '16 Civic. I still have a set of snow tires mounted on rims from my 2009 Civic that I'm hoping I can still use on the 2016.

I compared the tire size on my old winter tires to the size on my new Civic's tires. My old winter tires are 205/55R16, my new Civic's tires are 215/55R16. I'm not very good with car knowledge but from what I've seen online the first three number represent the width of the tires, so it looks like the new Civic has wider tires on my 2009. So I'm assuming this means I cannot use my old snow tires on my new Civic, is this correct?
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Newflyer3

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8th and 9th gen Civics on 16's were 16x6.5

The 10th gen uses 16x7 so the wheels are half an inch wider and thats why the tires are wider accordingly. That's one thing I like about my 9th gen was that many parts were swappable. Now, not so much.
 

pgears

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I'm planning on putting a set of snow tires on my new '16 Civic. I still have a set of snow tires mounted on rims from my 2009 Civic that I'm hoping I can still use on the 2016.

I compared the tire size on my old winter tires to the size on my new Civic's tires. My old winter tires are 205/55R16, my new Civic's tires are 215/55R16. I'm not very good with car knowledge but from what I've seen online the first three number represent the width of the tires, so it looks like the new Civic has wider tires on my 2009. So I'm assuming this means I cannot use my old snow tires on my new Civic, is this correct?
Yes, you can. It will fit, but the diameter is smaller so it will effect the speedometer.
 

takemorepills

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I'm planning on putting a set of snow tires on my new '16 Civic. I still have a set of snow tires mounted on rims from my 2009 Civic that I'm hoping I can still use on the 2016.

I compared the tire size on my old winter tires to the size on my new Civic's tires. My old winter tires are 205/55R16, my new Civic's tires are 215/55R16. I'm not very good with car knowledge but from what I've seen online the first three number represent the width of the tires, so it looks like the new Civic has wider tires on my 2009. So I'm assuming this means I cannot use my old snow tires on my new Civic, is this correct?
The first number, 205 is how wide the tire is in MM. With winter tires, you want to go at least one section width narrower, a standard section width is 10mm. So, since your A/S tires are 215, you'd want 205 wide winter tires. Most online tire sites like discounttiredirect and tirerack will actually show you the ideal, more narrow winter tire options.

A more narrow tire increases the patch force, which improves traction. The car is less likely to ride on top of slush or snow.
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