Traction System Activated? HELP!!
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Traction System Activated? HELP!!
I got this message twice on the dash while going about 70mph on the highway. The car actually jolts a little and slows down. What gives? Is this because I switched my tires and they are the same size in the front and back? I read somewhere that the rear tires need to be bigger so that the traction control doesn't come on.... ? Right now I have 265/35/18's all the way around.
I plan on switching to 265/40/18's in the front and 275/40's in the rear. Will this be ok? Is this enough of a difference in size to keep the traction control off??
Or should I leave the 265/35's in the fronts with the 275/40's in the rear? Thanks for any help!
I plan on switching to 265/40/18's in the front and 275/40's in the rear. Will this be ok? Is this enough of a difference in size to keep the traction control off??
Or should I leave the 265/35's in the fronts with the 275/40's in the rear? Thanks for any help!
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From: Central Ma
You want to maintain at least 1/2" difference.
Check this out for help with all sizing.
http://www.miata.net/garage/tirecalc.html
Check this out for help with all sizing.
http://www.miata.net/garage/tirecalc.html
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St. Jude Donor '03
Keep the 265/35 size on the front, and putting 275/40s on the rear will solve your problem.
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Safety Car
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Thanks for the replies. The 265/40/18's are .4 shorter than the 275/40/18's on the rear. Will this work? Or am I just under the tolerance and will continue to get the "traction system activated message"?
265/40/18 26.2" high
275/40/18 26.6" high
(I'd really prefer not to keep the 265/35/18's on the front because I want a little more sidewall.)
265/40/18 26.2" high
275/40/18 26.6" high
(I'd really prefer not to keep the 265/35/18's on the front because I want a little more sidewall.)
Last edited by Shirl; Nov 2, 2008 at 08:59 PM.
Thread Starter
Safety Car
Joined: Apr 2008
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From: NJ
2025 C8 of the Year Finalist - Modified
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Anyone?? Or is this going to be trial and error? (hopefully not the latter).. 
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From: Gone
CI 6-7-8-9-10 Veteran
St. Jude Donor '03
Thanks for the replies. The 265/40/18's are .4 shorter than the 275/40/18's on the rear. Will this work? Or am I just under the tolerance and will continue to get the "traction system activated message"?
265/40/18 26.2" high
275/40/18 26.6" high
(I'd really prefer not to keep the 265/35/18's on the front because I want a little more sidewall.)
265/40/18 26.2" high
275/40/18 26.6" high
(I'd really prefer not to keep the 265/35/18's on the front because I want a little more sidewall.)
Keep in mind though, rear tires tend to wear out quicker than the fronts do, so that difference in height will diminish some over time.
Also consider a 255/40/18 front, or maybe a 285/40/18 rear (with the 265/40 front). Just tossing out other possibilities.
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Thread Starter
Safety Car
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From: NJ
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Ok, thanks for the reply. It looks like the 245/40/18 was the right size to go with for the fronts. They match almost perfectly with the stock 17's. But since I'm going to run BFG KD's and they are discontinued, I can't find that size. I'll look into the 285's for the rear though. Thanks!
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It sucks right now because the "traction system activated" light has come on two days in a row (going about 70mph) and the car actually slows down abruptly when the light comes on. I'm just hoping that since I want 18's all the way around, the tire combo that I choose will keep the light from coming on.
Right now I have the same size wheels because I swapped them from my Camaro. They are the 265/35/18's and they are making the traction control come on. Hope you understand what I'm explaining.
Thanks for the help!! I realllllly appreciate it!
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From: Central Ma
Well, part of the problem is.. I'm going with BFG GForce KD's and they are discontinued, so the sizes are limited because they are hard to find. I don't want to go through the whole mounting and balancing project and then have the "traction system activated" light come on which is why I'm trying to get the front and rears to match up as close as possible to stock in terms of revolutions per mile, height and size.
It sucks right now because the "traction system activated" light has come on two days in a row (going about 70mph) and the car actually slows down abruptly when the light comes on. I'm just hoping that since I want 18's all the way around, the tire combo that I choose will keep the light from coming on.
Right now I have the same size wheels because I swapped them from my Camaro. They are the 265/35/18's and they are making the traction control come on. Hope you understand what I'm explaining.
Thanks for the help!! I realllllly appreciate it!
It sucks right now because the "traction system activated" light has come on two days in a row (going about 70mph) and the car actually slows down abruptly when the light comes on. I'm just hoping that since I want 18's all the way around, the tire combo that I choose will keep the light from coming on.
Right now I have the same size wheels because I swapped them from my Camaro. They are the 265/35/18's and they are making the traction control come on. Hope you understand what I'm explaining.
Thanks for the help!! I realllllly appreciate it!
The tire sizes I quoted will work, but what size WHEELS do you have?
You should have 9.5 and 10.5
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The wheels are 18x9.5's all the way around.
By any chance, is there a way to get rid of the traction control by re-programming?
By any chance, is there a way to get rid of the traction control by re-programming?
