Edmunds dealer partner, Bayway Leasing, is now offering transparent lease deals via these forums. Click here to see the latest vehicles!

PT Cruiser Tires and Wheels

2»

Comments

  • jpfjpf Member Posts: 496
    I always used Bridgestone Blizzaks when I lived up north. They are very good snow and ice tires. Good luck.
  • laurebellelaurebelle Member Posts: 1
    edited April 2010
    I am currently on my 2nd PT Cruiser, a 2006 Signature Model, the previous was a 2002.

    The 2002 model had multiple issues with the wheels and steering wheel, the tires were always deflating. And after a few years of frequent rotations and constantly putting air in them (they were checked for leaks, none were found--in the tires anyway), I started having a non-stop shimmy in the steering wheel. I took it into Dealer to look at, they made some repair to the steering--including adding their (proprietary) steering fluid, and sent me on my way. Still had shimmy, so I took it back. They could not figure out what to do to make it go away, short of replacing all of the tires and 'seeing' if that would work.

    I had an upcoming road trip, had been admiring the new 2006 models, which had new interior design, and seemed more solid with less road noise... I ended up buying a new PT, after a deal was struck that would give me the trade-in and 4 year payment plan I wanted.

    However, I am still having to air up my tires on this new one too. Unfortunately, into my 4th year of driving this car, my steering wheel has started doing the shimmy as well.

    I have owned about 7 cars in my life, two of them bought new and drove 10'ish years, and NEVER did I have to constantly air up the tires, and/or replace the tires every 20,000'ish miles. I never had any issues with steering like this before either... Also, no one else I know, has had to deal with these issues on their vehicles. Tires are checked when rotated and/or oil is changed, and that's the norm. But not with PT Cruisers.

    I love this car, and would probably drive PT's till my dying day, but this 2006 will be my last, unless I (or Chrysler?) can find a solution to the tire/steering wheel problem that doesn't involve replacing the wheels and/or tires, as is recommended in this thread.

    This Edmunds thread was started in 2006, to discuss this wheel issue. Individuals report this same problem back to the 2001 models. It is now 2010 and here I am, googling "PT Cruiser Wheel Issues", and discovering that it is an on-going problem that has YET to be resolved going on 10 years...

    If anyone has found a simple solution to this problem and would care to share, I would really appreciate it! :mad:
  • finethingptlefinethingptle Member Posts: 7
    The problem I had with my 2002 PT Cruiser, was the chrome rims. They look great, but are not at at sturdy enough for even just simple driving around town. I took them all off and replace them with standard rims. It's fine now. I haven't had any trouble with the 'shimmy' of the stearing wheel, but that may be due to the fact that I have steel rims now. I dont know about the newer PT Cruisers, as I am still driving my 2002!
  • finethingptlefinethingptle Member Posts: 7
  • finethingptlefinethingptle Member Posts: 7
    I have 2002PT Cruiser Limited Edition. Black with lt. purple flames. I was in an accident and the entire left side of my car was damaged. I love my car, I had the repairs and replacements done, doors, bumper.. Now, I need to get that side of the flames replaced. Does anyone know what or how I can get them at a good price? Also, I have taken my chome rims off they were cracking and peels and caused me too much problems. I have now got my standard rims and snow tires on my PT Cruiser. Now that it is spring, I want to start to Spruce up my Cruiser, I need to know if anyone can suggest what to do re: tires/rims that will look really great on my Cruiser and will not be too expensive. Any suggestions will be really appreciated. Thanks!
  • jpfjpf Member Posts: 496
    I have a 2007 PT Cruiser Convertible with alloy rims. Bought the car last year with 5,500 miles on it. Now have over 13,000 miles. Knock on wood, no problems with the rims or tire deflation.
  • babydollsptbabydollspt Member Posts: 6
    I am having the same problem, I cant afford to replace all 4 rims, but have to monitor my tires weekly to make sure I have the correct air pressure. I just purchased new good year tires and had the rims sanded and sealed to the tires, but still have issues. Unfortunately Chrysler has a problem and is not doing anything about it. I just hit a big pothole and bent two rims, found one for $150 and looking for a second one. Does anyone have a decent one for sale that has little or no erosion until I get the funds to replace all the rims.
  • kronykrony Member Posts: 110
    My '06 Limited has 43,000...the original 205/55R16 89T M+S Goodyear Eagle LS's were shot and never had much grip as the compound was rock hard.

    Went a little wider with 225/50R16 92V SL BSW Goodyear Eagle GT's on my stock rims...same rolling radius as the originals but much better look and grip both in the wet and dry...excited to see how they do in the snow. Goodyear store even matched the $95/tire price of sears.com.
  • pewartpewart Member Posts: 6
    Recently purchased 2006 base model with 55K on it, just had panel damage kind of fixed. Probable cause, the bargain tyres that were newly fitted. My first job was change the tyres, would like nice wheels but budget not so good so staying with steel at present. I had Falkens on a Toyota two door coupe in Australia some time ago and they were fast and sticky and after checking several reviews on Edmunds and some other car sites I went for the Falken ZE912 with nitrogen fill. Got em from Pueblo Service in MacAllen, TX, not the best price but makes the service guys smile and come with warrenty and nitrogen fills for life. Spend extra and do the alignment too!
    They are great tyres so far, put on 5000mile in six weeks, nice and quiet with even wear. I had a noticeable increase in noise at about 1600mile on my recent trip and realised it wasnt tyres wearing in it was the change in road composition as I crossed through states from South Texas to Dakota.
    I will update as time goes by but these Falkens are good in the noise and grip department, even went well in some snow and ice through Arizona with little noticeable change in road handling. Still be cautious though.
  • re_tiredre_tired Member Posts: 1
    '05 PT Cruiser: We are now in our 29+days of 104 average daily temp...what psi should I be running in my tires?
  • capriracercapriracer Member Posts: 907
    On every vehicle sold in the US – and I am told this is worldwide, but I have not been able to verify this - there is a sticker – commonly called the tire placard - that lists the original tire size and the proper pressure for that size. The placard is usually located on a doorpost or in the glove box – but sometimes it is located in the trunk or on the fuel filler door.

    BTW, it doesn't matter who makes the tire or what pressure is listed on the tire's sidewall, if the tire size is the same as the placard, then the pressure listed on placard is also appropriate.

    Having said that, there are folks who think a few psi more helps - in that it decreases the amount of heat that the tire generates during operation. Heat is the tire killer, so they have na point, but I wouldn't use more than 5 psi above the placard pressure or your handling may change drastically.
  • pewartpewart Member Posts: 6
    Hello There, I tend to disagree with the rating for tyre press given from door posts and generic data. Studying automotive engineering back in the day we were taught to look out for signs of incorrect pressure such as excessive wear on outer edges or excessive wear on centre of tyre. Outer edge wear (providing alignment is good) is typically sign of under inflation while high wear in tyre centre is sign of over inflation. I have tested this theory over the years and found that while inflation as little as 2psi under manufacturers rating will definately wear outer edges you can inflate more than 10psi above the rating and be lucky to get centre wear. That being said I run my tyres about 8psi above over stated most year round but tend to lower to 4psi over when excessive wet to give more traction.
    If you have ABS over inflation by these amounts should not be issue but driver style will make some difference. As for temperature try a nitrogen fill to reduce temp due to reduced flex in side wall.
  • capriracercapriracer Member Posts: 907
    While we can argue about the suitablility of what is listed on the vehicle tire placard, it is clear that the vehicle manufacturer specified that pressure and that there are things beyond tire wear that need to be considered when critiquing that value. However, over-inflating the tire a little is probably not going to harm anything - the operative word being "a little".

    But there is one part of the post that I want to take issue with:

    ".....As for temperature try a nitrogen fill to reduce temp due to reduced flex in side wall....."

    Sorry, but all gases behave very smilarly and there have been many studies that prove that nitrogen inflation does not change the heat buildup characteristics of a tire. The myth that there is a difference is all advertising hype.
  • pewartpewart Member Posts: 6
    I came to add my opinions not argue, note the word 'try' and 'manufacturers' spec as for 'spin' molecular size is a real fact and scientifically proven and flex in tyre walls adds to heat build up so naturally hardening up the tyre will decrease this.
    A lot of advertisers in the US should be shaken up but I have an open mind as to what other 'perhaps experienced people are saying has worked for them I make the effort to understand there is more than one perspective so take issue with a perceived lack of temperament and shoot the messenger!!
  • ptlover45ptlover45 Member Posts: 3
    Hi, I have owned an 02 and an 07 PT Cruisers. no air problems. I have managed a tire store and have seen the welds break in the center of the wheels and leak.( I had a 99 Taurus that did this) also on newly installed tires, the tire bead may not seat( seal to the wheel) properly and leaks at the bead.( wheel edge that meets the tire) sometimes the tire valve center becomes loose and leaks air.
    hope this helps.
  • dfanjoydfanjoy Member Posts: 1

    I bought a 2003 PT Cruiser Dream2, with the 17" Chrome wheels and it has been nothing but a complete nightmare!!! I was spending a fortune in quarters putting air in my tires a couple times a week! I bought a tire pump for $80 that plugs into the Cig lighter and was saving me money but one tire I had to put air in every morning before I went to work, It was driving me insane!! I took it too my machanic and just from using the machine to take off the tire a 14" piece of chrome broke off, he did his best to grind it smooth and I'm still to this day putting air in my tires 2 to 3 time a week!!! What a pain!!! Chrysler should be replacing these wheels for us.. All of this just to save a penny!! I want to use my PT for a few more years so when I get my bonus from work I'm going to purchase 4 new alloy wheels. Does anybody know the offset for the original 17" chrome wheels? I can't seem to find it anywhere, the offset for the ones I want to get are 35mm. I was able to find out that the original wheel size is 17x6 and the ones I want to get are 17x7.5 35mm will this still work? I've been using the Humho Solus KH16 205/50R17 tires for years purchased from Tirerack. It just seems so rediculous to have to buy new wheels, I never had to do that with any other vehicle I owned. And they don't make it easy trying to find out the information on the wheels either.

  • mom4kids4catsmom4kids4cats Member Posts: 1
    Same tire problems, slow leak and rim pitting along with the shimmy. I have the 2003 turbo. Can I switch out the rims and tires from a non-turbo PT cruiser? Does this cause any problems?
Sign In or Register to comment.

Helpful Tools

Most popular vehicles