Terry Defoe

Can I use 235/60/16 on my 2008 Chevrolet Express 3500 for winter tires?

oilcanhenry

Looks like 245x75Rx16 is the largest recommended size for your Express.. Depends on year, wheel size and 6 or 8 lug nut wheels.

Terry Defoe

The tires on it now are 245 75 16 8 bolt
But I have 235 60 16 snow tires I was just wondering if I can put them on.

oilcanhenry

As long as they clear the body and don't interfere with the operation of the brakes, they should work. I'd measure the diameter and width with a tape measure to be sure.Your engine RPM's will increase and your speedometer will not read correctly, however.

I have listed the facts below so that you can decided what to do:

Diameter inches (mm) 30.47 (773.9)/27.1 (688.4) -3.37 (-85.5) -11%

Width inches (mm)9.65 (245)/ 9.25 (235)/-0.39 (-10) -4.1%

Circumference/ inches (mm) 95.72 (2431.28) 85.14 (2162.67) -10.58 (-268.61) -11%

Sidewall Height inches (mm)7.23 (183.75)5.55 (141)-1.68 (-42.75) -23.3%

Revolutions per mile (km)661.93 (411.31)744.15 (462.39)82.21 (51.08) 12.4%

Speedometer Difference

Speedo ReadingActual Speed

20 mph (32.19 km/h)17.79 mph (28.63 km/h)

25 mph (40.23 km/h)22.24 mph (35.79 km/h)

30 mph (48.28 km/h)26.69 mph (42.95 km/h)

35 mph (56.33 km/h)31.13 mph (50.1 km/h)

40 mph (64.37 km/h)35.58 mph (57.26 km/h)

45 mph (72.42 km/h)40.03 mph (64.42 km/h)

50 mph (80.47 km/h)44.48 mph (71.58 km/h)

55 mph (88.51 km/h)48.92 mph (78.74 km/h)

60 mph (96.56 km/h)53.37 mph (85.89 km/h)

65 mph (104.61 km/h)57.82 mph (93.05 km/h)

Gear Ratio / RPMs for New Tire (@ 65 mph)

2.35 2.73 2.94 3.07 3.21 3.31 3.42 3.55 3.73 3.91 4.11 4.27 4.56 4.88 5.3 5.29 5.38 5.71 6.70 7.17 =Axle Gear Ratio

1894 2200 2369 2474 2587 2667 2756 2861 3006 3151 3312 3441 3675 3932 4134 4263 4335 4601 4972 5778 =Engine RPM's

Your vehicle will likely use more fuel with smaller tires, but the motor will rev up quicker as well. You will not reach the same top speed without going over red-line..

Snow and mud tires might be somewhat larger then these specifications, but not by much. They will be lighter by a small margin too. It may interfere with the ECM operation too.

Terry Defoe

Thank you for your help much appreciated

oilcanhenry

No problem. Good luck to you, Terry!

Bigtex85

The other thing to check on as well with trying to go down in tire size is the load/speed rating of the smaller tire and making sure it's still adequate for the express. 245s are usually considered light truck where as 235 can be either light truck or car

tech2

if you need to adjust your speedo....they can reset the tire size in the ebcm with a scan tool.

mountainmanjoe

GM won't do it, as I found out.

tech2

try another dealer. the ebcm is set up with numerous tires dimension and brands. I've done it numerous times when working for gm. Any non dealer can do it also