Have mixed matched tires............

My son just bought a 1996 Dodge Neon as his first car, it needed a couple of tires. When I looked at the front tires to see which tires to get, the tire size was P185/70R/14. Then I looked at the rear tires which read, P185/65/14. Is it alright to run 70's in the front and 65's in the rear?

 

First of all, let me advise you that no manufacturer or expert will recommend mismatched tires, due to the possibility of causing handling/steering problems, and resulting in an accident. It also has the potential of throwing off your some of your computer controlled devices on the vehicle. With all that said, even if your rear tires meet all load range & speed ratings etc. that the auto manufacturer recommends, your still at risk of altering the original handling & safety of the vehicle, when you change the tire size, especially if only 2 of them. Different tires, size, air pressure etc, may cause more sway, less sway, etc. I'm sure there are plenty of people who would say, "It's no big deal" but if it were my kid behind the wheel, I'd want it all to be correct, for piece of mind, if nothing else.

 

Agree with Mike. About all you can say on the good side is that it's better than having the mismatch on the same axle.

 

Go by the door plate or the manual. Some cars do have mixed tires...but I don't think you'd confuse a corvette with a neon. Well, is it an SR-4?..they may very well have diff tires. Basically performance cars could have mixed tires...the regular beaters most of us drive don't.