fatter tyres

[android]

my van has original(i think)vw bog standard steel wheels on it with tyres that wouldnt be out of place on a racer. was wondering if anyone knew if its possible to get fatter tyres on these type wheels and if so what sizes are they? looking for a bit more traction in the mud thats pretty much garanteed this festi season
cheers xxx

[Red Westie]

On standard rims..205/70R14C is about your lot.
Or a M+S (mud and snow) tyres.
I must admit to having a similar problem with my California, it gets stuck too easily, not helped by the fact I had the limited slip differential replaced with a standard one two years ago (the limi slip was making some very weired noises)
Martin

[asahartz]

Fatter tyres will do exactly the opposite for your traction - narrow tyres give better grip in mud/snow. Serious off-roading Landys are a good example - you don't see farmers fit wide tyres to their 4x4s. And it's why my little classic Mini got me everywhere in the snow while modern cars were getting stuck.

Wide tyres make you "float" on top of the mud - narrow tyres dig in to get some grip. What you do need to look for is the right tread pattern, a proper M+S tread. Even 4x4s get stuck off road if running on road tyres (I regularly used to pull Discos out of the mud on caravan sites because they had the wrong tyres).