Easy question for the suspension gurus ...

I have an FD w/ a staggered wheel tire setup. It has 18x8 w/ 235 40 up front and 18x9 265 35 out back. They are Kuhmo MX, great for the summer, really really bad in the cooler months. I have a spare set of stock FD wheels that I'm going to put all season 225 50 on for the winter.

OK, here's the question; Do I need to re-align the car if I swap the aforementioned wheels OR is the current alignment still valid?

Thanks in advance for the advice!
Steve

 

Technically, there are slight differences in the alignments used between 16" and 18" wheels. However, honestly its not worth the effort of changing the alignment just for winter wheels.

 

Going 18" to 16" is a pretty drastic difference. Depending on how much you drive in winter, the amount of tire wear can vary by a lot. If you plan to drive a lot, imo probably should align it or else the tread could possibly be worn out prematurely.

 

+1 on not being worth it. I did it all the time when I lived on the east coast.

 

Thanks for the advice guys. As long as the only real risk is a little premature tire wear, I'm going to risk it. I seem to wear tires quickly anyway!

Steve