This idea just came to me. Is there enough room in the wheel wells to put a chunky sport ute tire like from a 90's Geo Tracker or something? Would you have to put 14" wheels on?

I'm not really interested in the expense of larger rims... and I would imagine that lower profile tires wear really quickly. Do low profile tires come with mileage warranties anyway? I drive 25K per year and wouldn't want to buy a set of tires every year.

Do you think putting on smaller wheels and sport ute type tires would make the ride too bouncy and the handling too sloppy -- or no worse than the utes that came with them to begin with?

This idea just came to me. Is there enough room in the wheel wells to put a chunky sport ute tire like from a 90's Geo Tracker or something? Would you have to put 14" wheels on?

I'm not really interested in the expense of larger rims... and I would imagine that lower profile tires wear really quickly. Do low profile tires come with mileage warranties anyway? I drive 25K per year and wouldn't want to buy a set of tires every year.

Do you think putting on smaller wheels and sport ute type tires would make the ride too bouncy and the handling too sloppy -- or no worse than the utes that came with them to begin with?
A larger overall diameter will 1) cause rubbing more than likely, 2) increase sidewall flex even more leading to sloppy steering feel and lower cornering limits, 3) make the car accelerate slower due to the increase circumference, and 4) throw off your speedometer and odometer.

Keeping the same overall diameter and "minus" sizing the tires will lead to improved ride quality and decreased cornering limits. At 15 inches, the xB isn't exactly running on huge wheels from the start. It's also a rather poor handling vehicle already. A higher sidewall might help you gain traction for drag racing, but something tells me no one is too worried about the ETs on these things.

Low profile tires wear at an increased rate due to the rubber compound used, not the fact that they have a shorter sidewall. Cheapy all-season tires typically only come in smaller sizes, and use hard rubber. This lets them last longer, while gripping less the entire time. When you hit 17 inches and greater, you start to find more tires that are designed for maximum grip at the expense of longevity. Why is this? Because if econo-boxes come with 14 inch tires, typical owners of econo-boxes are looking for tires that last long and don't cost much. When you're dealing with large 17 or 18 inch wheels, you've got owners of high performance vehicles or people looking to the aftermarket. They want grip and can afford the increased cost of tires in the long run.

If you're only looking for a chunkier tire, you could stick with a 15 or or 16 wheel which would preserve the performance while not sacrificing much in tire longevity. I decided on a 215/50 Kumho tire (from TireRack) on a 16 inch wheel. Since you have more snow up in your region, you might want to consider just a 205 width. Incidentally the Kumho ASX are all season and have a 420 treadlife rating

and I would imagine that lower profile tires wear really quickly

Well this only partially true. . . generally low profile tires are performance tires, and performance tires wear faster, not low profile tires. You'll find plenty of SUV tires that wear quickly(such as the X5 or Infiniti FX45). Generally SUV tires wear slower as they have thick tread patterns for increased off road performance. Putting these on your car reduces your contact surface, and as you probably don't plan to go off road, you won't benefit them. And because there is a smaller contact surface you will wear out those surfaces that DO contact faster. . . so tire life may not be as great as you'd think.
If you ask me, go for economy tires that are designed for long life. if tread wear is a concern. They are generally cheap too! But beware that they will not have the same level of traction/ride as normal tires.

I would imagine that lower profile tires wear really quickly.

Rather than imagining that, do a couple minutes of research and find some actual data.

Here's a link to 2707 reviews of the Kumho ECSA 712, with factual information regarding the treadwear & performance among other things.
http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires.jsp?tireMake=Kumho&tireModel=ECSTA+Supra+712&vehicleSearch=false&partnum=135WR8ES712&fromCompare1=yes

Here's a link to 57 reviews of the Bridgestone G-Force low profile tire, with information about treadwear & performance.
http://www.tirerack.com/survey/SurveyComments.jsp?additionalComments=y&tireMake=BFGoodrich&tireModel=g-Force+T%2FA+KDW+2&commentStatus=P

Note that both of those tires, after 2800+ reviews have a cumulative treadwear rating of "Excellent", & you will find reviews stating " I now have 32k and its time to replace them".

hey man I get frustrated too, but give the newbie a break (he's at 9 posts). We were all newbies at one point or another, but that's how we learn. It's a pretty good question too, but as you said, with good research you'd find that putting SUV tires on any car other than an SUV would be horrendous idea (unless you are gonna off road). We're a family remember? We're only as fast as our slowest member. :D Sorry watchin a movie and hit a warm moment hehehe, and I'm not callin you slow either brenspin.

Hope this helps

hey man I get frustrated too, but give the newbie a breaks

If it was something ScionLife speciic, or even Scion specific, I would, but it just seems like common sense. If you do a little research (little as in 3-5 minutes on google) you can find literally hundreds of places with tire reviews, treadwear information, etc. If you do a search, and then still have questions about putting 90s Geo Tracker tires on a Scion, then make a post.

Don't hear me wrong man. . . I totally 100% absolutely agree with you.

This idea just came to me. Is there enough room in the wheel wells to put a chunky sport ute tire like from a 90's Geo Tracker or something? Would you have to put 14" wheels on?

There is a wider range of higher-profile tires available with 14 inch rims. Getting 14s isn't a huge problem, as that is what the Echo comes with stock. You could go to something like a 185R14 or a 195/75R14 you can get tires both in passenger and light truck designations. The wear index of some of the passenger tires in this size range up to 800, compared to 360 for the stock tires.

I'm not really interested in the expense of larger rims... and I would imagine that lower profile tires wear really quickly. Do low profile tires come with mileage warranties anyway? I drive 25K per year and wouldn't want to buy a set of tires every year.

Low profile tires tend to be performance oriented, which means rapid wear. You can get touring tires in these sizes that wear much longer. Look at the UTOG number on the sidewall for a relative guide.

Do you think putting on smaller wheels and sport ute type tires would make the ride too bouncy and the handling too sloppy -- or no worse than the utes that came with them to begin with?

The handling response might not be as immediate as it would be with the stock tires, but you will also get a better ride. I wouldn't go so far as to get LT-rated tires, but taller profile tires might yield the result you want. I don' t think that the ride can get bouncier than the stock suspension!

IMO, as long as you aren't going wider, you can safely increase the tire diameter by two inches. The Scion wheel wells aren't very generous, but most rubbing problems come from increasing both diameter and width at the same time,

George

My low profile tires (General Exclaim 215/45/17) have a treadwear rating of 422 so they should last fa long time. and they grab WAY better than stock...but before we "teach" him forum rules, let's not hijack his thread... The question was about SUV looking tires I believe.

I think this could look great.
I like the chunky look.
Go to the miata.net wheels size page to keep your diameter close (link is in sticky in "tread and butter".)
A couple of members have used 15in rims with white letters - and rims with "Lip" for the beefy look
sorry I can't remember their user names, but a quick browse through the registery might give you some idea.

Let us know how it turns out. Would be diff from the norm and exciting to see.