CE specs vs other lines

-------------------------------- Since you've already purchased the car, you might be interested why I specifically sought out the 14" wheels even though the current trend is toward larger and larger wheels. My Camry is older - 14" was stock on the LE four cylinder that year, but the 6 cylinder LE had 15" wheels. Actually, the outside measurement of the tire and wheel combination should be the same (or very, very close) for all wheel sizes. What changes is the sidewall height or "aspect ratio." Stated simply, taller sidewalls will flex more, so supposedly, shorter sidewalls (that flex less) offer better handling when turning. However, I like some sidewall flex because it makes the ride more "compliant" - ie., more comfortable - the tire sidewalls soak up some ride harshness. Then you can fine tune that to some extent by adjusting tire pressure. I finally settled on 30 front and 26 rear as the best overall compromise for 1-2 people in the car most of the time. (However that could compromise the tendency for the car to "understeer" at the limits of traction where the front wheels slide instead of the rear tires sliding out of control (car can spin out into a ditch with oversteering

- with understeering you just let up on the gas to regain control - a natural reaction for most people) - so you might want to stay with the factory recommendation of equal pressures front and rear which is safer for most people.) Larger wheels are also heavier and that would be inertial (rotating) mass which has an even greater effect on (slowing) acceleration than weight in the body of the car. My Toyota (older) pick up truck has even taller sidewalls (75 aspect ratio - means the sidewall is 75% of the tire width), and it actually rides even more smoothly than the Camry in some ways. For the truck the taller sidewalls also mean the tire holds more air for more load capacity. With the 15" inch wheels, you'll also find those tires are somewhat wider than yours. (shorter sidewall - wider width - maybe 205mm instead of 195mm for example). The wider tread width is also supposed to improve cornering traction. On the other hand, more tread on the pavement increases rolling resistance and aerodynamic drag. Plus, if the weight is the same, wider tread width means less weight per square inch so traction could actually be reduced - tires need to be matched to the car.

I had an LE before I bought the CE. The LE was a 97 and was equipped with a cruise and ABS brakes. The CE ( I bought because of a lot lower mileage ) has no Cruise Control, and no ABS. other than that, the wheel sizes were the same, but the CE had Steel rims, and the 97 had alloys. I had the Dealership swap out the wheels as part of the deal, "cause I had tires on them that were, in my opinion, better tires.Alloys v Steel doesn't really matter much to me. other than that I cannot tell any difference between the two vehicles I have owned. They're even the same color and I have friends that don't know I have traded up year model, they are so much alike. There may be a radio upgrade to the LE , but I can't imagine getting a better sounding AM/FM/CD radio than the one in the CE I have Currently.

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