Saturn Wheels and tires

[Paul328]

Hello, I have a 2004 Saturn Ion 4 door, 4 cyl 5 speed. It's a great little car and I would like to keep it for a while.

One big issue is the very small 14" wheels it came with from the factory. I live in upstate New York and the roads up here are horrible. Deep potholes are numerous and it is really hard on those tiny wheels. 185/70/14.

It's about time for new tires and I thought of going up to 15". Got a friend who has some 15" rims from a Saturn Vue and if I can use them I would like to upgrade.

Would this cause any issues? It just seems like have more meat on the rims would lessen to jolts I get when going over the potholes from hell.

[Ruley73]

Originally Posted by Paul328

Hello, I have a 2004 Saturn Ion 4 door, 4 cyl 5 speed. It's a great little car and I would like to keep it for a while.

One big issue is the very small 14" wheels it came with from the factory. I live in upstate New York and the roads up here are horrible. Deep potholes are numerous and it is really hard on those tiny wheels. 185/70/14.

It's about time for new tires and I thought of going up to 15". Got a friend who has some 15" rims from a Saturn Vue and if I can use them I would like to upgrade.

Would this cause any issues? It just seems like have more meat on the rims would lessen to jolts I get when going over the potholes from hell.

The wheels from the Saturn Vue will not fit because the bolt pattern is different. The Vue uses five lugs, but your Ion only uses four.

If you can find a set of 15" wheels from another Ion or Chevy Cobalt, those would work fine. The correct tire size is 195/60/15 for the Ions/Cobalts that came with 15" wheels. The only drawback is that your speedometer & odometer will be slightly off because your car's computer is calibrated for the smaller 14” wheels & tires. A GM dealership may be able to recalibrate that for you for a fee, but I'm betting they'll refuse to do it.

[Stealthee]

As for potholes you are actually better off with the 14" tires. You have more sidewall versus a car with larger wheels.

Also your speedometer will not be affected. The 14" tires have the same overall diameter as the 15" tires.