Tire size and speedometer error

A taller tire makes the speedometer read low, in exact proportion to the diameter change. The arithmetic is simple; the assumption behind it is the part worth understanding.

The arithmetic

A speedometer counts wheel revolutions and multiplies by an assumed distance per revolution. Change the tire's overall diameter and the real distance per revolution changes while the assumption does not, so the reading is wrong by exactly the ratio of the two diameters.

True speed is the indicated speed times the new diameter over the old. A tire two percent taller makes the speedometer read two percent low: at an indicated 70 mph you are doing 71.4. The odometer moves the same way, undercounting distance by the same ratio.

The assumption that matters more than the arithmetic

Every speedometer error figure, here and everywhere else, assumes the instrument read correctly on the original size. Many vehicles leave the factory reading slightly high on purpose, because regulations in several markets forbid a speedometer from under-reading and allow it to over-read. A vehicle that read three percent high on the original size and is fitted with a two percent taller tire is now reading about one percent high, not one percent low.

So a computed speedometer error is a change from whatever the instrument did before, not an absolute claim about what it now shows. The only way to know the absolute error is to check the indicated speed against a satellite-derived one.

What else is counting revolutions

The speedometer is the visible consumer of wheel revolutions, not the only one. Indirect tire pressure monitoring compares wheel speeds. Stability and traction control compare wheel speeds. Adaptive cruise control and lane keeping use vehicle speed. Trip computers, fuel economy figures and service intervals all key off distance.

None of that makes a diameter change unsafe on its own. It does mean a size change is a vehicle-level decision rather than a tire-level one, and that a big change is worth discussing with someone who can recalibrate what needs recalibrating.

Common questions

Do bigger tires make the speedometer read fast or slow?
Slow. A taller tire covers more ground per revolution, so you are travelling faster than the instrument reports. A shorter tire does the opposite.
How much speedometer error does a 1 inch taller tire cause?
It depends on where you started. One inch on a 28 inch tire is about 3.6 percent; one inch on a 35 inch tire is about 2.9 percent. The error is always the percentage change in diameter, not the absolute change.
Can the speedometer be recalibrated?
On many modern vehicles the tire size is a configurable parameter and a dealer or a specialist can adjust it. Whether it is possible, and whether it affects anything else, depends on the vehicle. This site cannot answer that for a specific car.

Related

Before you fit anything

This is geometry, not fitment approval. It says what a size measures, never whether it fits a vehicle.

SidewallRef calculates the dimensions a size code implies and reproduces the published load index and speed symbol tables. It does not know your vehicle.

Load index and speed rating must meet or exceed what the vehicle placard specifies. The placard is in the driver's door jamb on most vehicles and is the authority for your vehicle, not this site.

Clearance at full lock and full suspension travel, wheel width and offset, brake and suspension component clearance, axle load capacity, inflation pressure and any legal requirement where you drive are the owner's and the fitter's responsibility.

Nothing here approves a fitment. Confirm any change with a qualified tire fitter and with the vehicle manufacturer's own specification before driving on it.