Are wider tires always better?

A few days back, I had to change the rear tire of my motorcycle. And a thought popped up in my mind. How about if I put a wider tire on it? Wouldn't it look cool?

Probably...

But hey wait...!!! Wider tires are always better? Let's find out...

There is a trend in the whole world that a wider rear tire on a motorcycle looks cooler and there's a belief that it enhances the performance. But, is it so? So, when it comes to a wider or thinner tire, we better understand the tire specification first.

130/70  R 17

The first number of three digits is the width of the tire in millimeters. So, the bigger this number is, the wider your tire will be. Hence for this case, 130 mm is the width of our tire. The second two digits after a slash are known as "Aspect Ratio". It indicates the height of the tire in the percentage of tire width. Here, tire height will be 70% (aspect ratio) of 130 mm (tire width), which is 91 mm. So, for this case, tire height will be 91 mm. Then the letter "R" stands for Radial Tire. Which means this tire has a
steel belt in it, applied in a radial direction. If you find "-" instead of "R", then it indicates that tire is bias type, not radial which has no steel belt. The next number is the rim diameter in Inch. 

Cons of Installing wider Tire:

As we are now clear about the tire specification, let's move on to what will happen when we are putting a wider tire on the same rim.

1.  It is obvious that a wider tire will look sportier and it will provide you a better grip. But there are plenty of parts on a motorcycle which might get affected due to this modification. For say, the gap between its swing arm might not be enough for a wider tire and the tire shoulder can start to get touching with the swing arm and result in early damage and worn out.

2. So for the first Con, you might say that the bigger rim can solve the issue. But it's not just rim, there are also other parts like chain and sprocket, which might get affected and result in bad effect on the transmission.

3. Wider tire will also reduce the performance in terms of top speed and fuel efficiency as wider tires will have a larger contact patch and it will produce more friction losses.

4. To go faster around the corners, you must have a better slip angle. For a better slip angle, you must have a lesser height with more width. For example, if you are upgrading from 130/70 to 140/70 then you are increasing the width of the tire but simultaneously height is also increasing, which might result in a poor slip angle. So, while upgrading the tire, height is an important parameter to be considered as well.

Pros of Installing wider Tire:

It's not all bad about installing a fatter tire on a motorcycle, there are also few advantages of wider tires.

1. As the wider tires will have larger contact patch, it will result in more traction. More traction will help in better control over wet surface and better braking in extreme conditions.

2. The wider tire is gonna give you a more comfortable ride. The wider tread will absorb the shocks and jerks from the road more actively, which will result in a smoother ride.

Conclusion:

In the conclusion, I would say that next time when you think of upgrading your tire, don't just blindly consider the aesthetic point of view, also consider the other parameters and what you want out from your vehicle. If you want more performance, stick to the company recommended spec tires and if you want your motorcycle look more cooler and want a smoother ride go for fatter rubber.