2007 Scion tC tire sizes & fitment
Approved tire and wheel sizes for the 2007 Scion tC, sourced from manufacturer fitment data and refreshed monthly.
Approved fitments
| Tire size | Rim size | PCD (bolt pattern) | Offset | Load index | Speed rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 205/55R16 OEM | R16 | 5x100 | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| 225/40R18 OEM | R18 | 5x100 | N/A | N/A | N/A |
2007 Scion tC wheel bolt pattern & specs
| Bolt pattern (PCD) | 5x100 |
|---|---|
| Wheel thread / lug size | M12x1.5 |
| Center bore | 54.1 mm |
| Source | adaptitusa-reference |
Best by use case
Four tires, four jobs
Best all-season
Bridgestone
Turanza QuietTrack
all-season touring, UTQG 800, 80,000-mi warranty
Best budget
Goodyear
Assurance MaxLife
Lowest cost per mile in this size; UTQG 820
Best quiet
Bridgestone
Turanza QuietTrack
68 dB cabin noise (EU label); quietest in this size
Best winter
Bridgestone
Blizzak WS90
Dedicated winter (premium compound); ice/snow grip
See the best tires for the Scion tC, ranked by category →
Tire recalls & safety complaints for the Scion tC →
Compatible alternative sizes for 205/55R16
Sizes within the ETRTO ±3% overall-diameter safe-fit tolerance. Each row links to the size's own page.
| Alternative size | %Δ OD | Category | Verdict |
|---|---|---|---|
175/50R18 |
0.05% | plus 2 | Safe |
225/50R16 |
-0.08% | wider | Safe |
195/45R18 |
0.13% | plus 2 | Safe |
185/75R14 |
0.19% | alternative | Safe |
175/65R16 |
0.32% | winter narrower | Safe |
For the full list of alternatives with comfort/handling impact, see 205/55R16 upsize options. To check an arbitrary size pair, use the tire compatibility calculator.
Check a different size against this vehicle
Type any tire size below; we'll compute its overall-diameter delta against the OEM 205/55R16 and verdict using the ETRTO ±3% rule.
Common upgrade paths
- Plus-1: 225/45R17; one rim size up, 0.38% OD change. Sharper steering, mild ride penalty, modest cost premium.
- Plus-2: 175/50R18; two rim sizes up, 0.05% OD change. Noticeable ride penalty, higher pothole risk, meaningful tire-cost premium.
Use the plus-size calculator to evaluate any rim step against the OEM size.
How to choose tires for the 2007 scion tC spec-package
The 2007 Scion tC Spec-Package ships from the factory on 205/55R16 tires mounted on R16 wheels. 2 approved fitments are documented for this model year, allowing some flexibility between performance, comfort, and winter compounds. The Compatible alternative sizes table above lists every safe substitution within the ETRTO ±3% overall-diameter tolerance.
Tire choice on the Scion tC comes down to three trade-offs that matter more than brand loyalty: load index (must equal or exceed the OEM number), speed rating (must match or exceed the placard), and UTQG treadwear (higher means longer life, lower usually means stickier rubber). Owners replacing factory tires with the same compound class, for example all-season for all-season, generally see no change in ride characteristics or fuel economy. Switching categories (performance summer to all-season touring, for example) is where the trade-offs show up at the contact patch.
For 2007 Scion tC Spec-Package owners considering a plus-size upgrade, the safer option is a Plus-1 step (one rim size up with a 10-point aspect drop and ~10 mm of additional section width). Plus-2 is technically viable on this chassis if the alternative-sizes table lists a Plus-2 candidate within tolerance, but expect a meaningful ride-harshness penalty and a tire-cost premium of 30–60% per tire relative to the OEM fitment. For winter use the recommended pattern is one width step down (e.g. from a 235 to a 225) with the aspect ratio bumped up to preserve overall diameter; narrower tires apply higher contact pressure per square inch on snow, which translates directly into shorter braking distances. The plus-size calculator evaluates any specific rim step against this OEM size.
Before purchasing, verify the tire size on the driver-door placard of your specific 2007 Scion tC Spec-Package, since trim levels and option packages can shift the original fitment from what is documented here. The placard reading is the authoritative source per FMVSS 110, and dealers will reference the placard rather than aftermarket catalogs when validating warranty claims.
NHTSA-reported issues for 2007 scion tC
Top issue category: Tires (General)
Reported across: 2007 – 2007 (1 year)
What owners described
Sidewall failure appears in 26% of these reports; about 1.7× as often as across all tire complaints. Percentages are shares of the 27 reports covering every model year of the Scion tC that include a written account; a single report can describe more than one problem, so they do not total 100%.
| Reported problem | This subject | All tire complaints | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sidewall failure | 26% | 15% | 1.7× |
| Blowout or sudden deflation | 22% | 20% | 1.1× |
| Pressure-monitoring (TPMS) fault | 19% | 2% | 7.7× |
| Loss of control, rollover or collision | 15% | 8% | 1.8× |
| Bubble or bulge in the tire | 11% | 6% | 1.9× |
| Cracking or dry rot | 11% | 9% | 1.2× |
Mileage at failure
18 of these reports state an odometer reading. The middle report is at 27,950 miles, with 8 in 10 falling between 1,700 and 64,395 miles.
In owners' own words
Verbatim excerpts from complaints filed with NHTSA about Scion tC. Reports are published by NHTSA as filed and are lightly cleaned here only to remove intake codes.
DRIVING SURFACE WAS PAVED DRY TWO LANE ROUTE. SPEED APPROXIMATELY 40 MILES PER HOUR. LEFT REAR TIRE CATASTROPHICALLY FAILED. THE STEEL BELLED TREAD BECAME TOTALLY (100%) DETACHED FOR THE INTERIOR SIDE WALL OF TIRE. TIRE WAS BRIDGESTONE TURANZA (T0506) EL4PNZ 215/45ZR17. THIS IS THE SECOND TIRE IN LESS THAN A MONTH THAT HAS HAD A SIDE WALL FAILURE. I HAD ALREADY REPLACED A TIRE EARLIER IN THE SUMMER OF 2013 FOR SIDE WALL FAILURE. THREE OUT OF FOUR TIRES HAVE HAD SIMILAR FAILURES IN LESS THAN A YEAR.
2007 SCION TC BOUGHT USED 2-18-14 TOYOTA DEALER HAD PUT 4 BRAND NEW 215/45/ZR17 91W ON CAR AND LESS THAN 100 MILES HAD 2 BLOWOUTS, NOT FLAT TIRES BLOWOUTS. 1ST ON 2-27-14 GOING 55 MPH ON HWY. 169 MN. RIGHT FRONT TIRE BLEW OUT FOR NO REASON 2ND ON 3-1-14 GOING 55 MPH. ON HWY. 100 AT HWY. 55 IN MINNESOTA TIRE BLEW HAD STAKE IN CENTER OF TREAD, TIRE BEADS STAYED SEALED IN PLACE ON RIM BUT THE BALANCE OF TIRE CAME OFF AND ENDED ON OTHER SIDE OF ROAD ABOUT 50 FEET BACK. NO REASON FOR TIRE TO COME OFF THAT WAY. CAR HAD BEEN ON ROAD FOR 20 MILES AND OUTSIDE TEMPERATURE WAS 5 DEG. ABOVE 0 MN HWY. PATROL WAS CALLED BECAUSE CAR WAS ON LEFT SIDE OF ROAD BUT SPARE WAS PUT ON BEFORE THEY ARRIVED SO CALLED AN ADVISED THEM CAR WAS OFF OF THE ROAD.
I TOOK THE CAR IN FOR AIR PRESSURE CHECK.THEY TIRE SHOP SAID TIRES WERE EXTREMELY UNSAFE. BOTH FRONT TIRES HAD SIGNS OF DAMAGE. THEY WERE PURCHASED AT THE SAME TIME AND ARE 1 YEAR OLD NOT WORN DOWN. WERE THE TREAD AND SIDEWALL MEET, THE TREAD LOOKS LIKE ITS GOING TO PEEL OFF TOOK TIRE TO ANOTHER DEALER AND AND THEY SAID I HAVE NEVER SEEN A TIRE FAIL LIKE THIS. NO SIGN OF HEAT DAMAGE. I KEPT THE TIRES FOR FUTURE INSPECTION
Just entered the interstate and was 2 miles from home when the car started shaking cause the car to make a sudden hard right across multiple lanes of traffic going down an embankment and hitting trees. Witness who saw the accident while traveling behind the car saw smoke coming from driver rear tire, then car began to shake and car abruptly went to the right and off the road. Highway patrol stated based on witness and driver accounts, the driver rear tire failed. The collision center states the interior portion of the driver read tire separated and failed. The entire tire separated clean.
Complaints are voluntarily submitted to the NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation and are not verified by NHTSA; they represent owner-reported problems, not proven defects. Counts can be useful as a relative quality signal across comparable tires or vehicles.
Frequently asked questions
What size tires fit a 2007 Scion tC?
What is the bolt pattern of a 2007 Scion tC?
Can I run a different tire size on my 2007 Scion tC?
Where can I buy tires for my 2007 Scion tC?
What is the recommended tire pressure for the 2007 Scion tC?
Can I fit winter tires in a different size on my 2007 Scion tC?
How often should I rotate the tires on my 2007 Scion tC?
For broader tire questions; replacement timing, UTQG, EV-specific tires, winter swaps; see the tire FAQ.
Sources for this page
- Vehicle owner's manual tire & wheel placard; door-jamb placard on the Scion tC is the authoritative source for OEM tire size, load index, and cold-inflation pressure for your specific trim.
- NHTSA SaferCar; recall lookup for the 2007 Scion tC.
- ETRTO 2024 Standards Manual §2.3; overall-diameter math used for the alternative-size verdicts above.
- Tire & Rim Association 2025 Yearbook; load-index to maximum-load reference.
Last verified 2026-09-02.