[bear10]

Hey guys, I have an 08 Forester with the stock geolander tires, 215 55 17. My friend wants to give me a pretty new set of Bridgestone Pole Position RE960's that were taken off his WRX. Unfortunately they are 215 45 17. When I plug in this tire size on the 1010tire calculator, they recommend against these as they are more than a 3% change from stock diameter (6.47% difference to be exact). Besides the speedometer being off, which I don't mind, are there any other negatives such as brake failure and worse handling? Don't want to pass up on a great set of tires that would be free. Thanks in advance.

 

[getsomz28]

No other affect (than the speedo being off by ~5-6mph) than maybe slightly worse gas mileage due to the lower gearing with the smaller tires. I used to run WRX sized winter tires due the great deal I got on em...no ill effects.

 

[pleiad7]

We run 215/45/17 on our '98 Forester and, as mentioned above, it boils down to whether the speedo error bothers you. Also, unless your Forester is lowered, the smaller tire size may look strange and leave a pretty large wheel gap.

 

[bashfulbernie]

You will have a shorter sidewall, which will give you quicker steering response and better handling.
The lighter weight of a smaller tire also helps handling, and 0-60 times.
You will probably have a lower load rating, but it still might be fine for your needs.

I went smaller, and glad I did.
I went to a 205/60-16, down from the stock 215/60-16