Tires: Upsize tire on 2007 Ford Escape, michelin ltx, general tires

Question
I finally have to replace the tires on my 2007 Ford Escape XLS 4-cyl 2.3L. The original General AW tires took me to 75,000 miles, which I think is incredible. The size of the stock General tires is 225/75-15 and that size is slowly being discontinued. I would like to get a good long tread wear brand and decided on the Michelin LTX M/S2, but they only come in the 235/75-15 size. The folks that I asked at the store said they have no problem installing those, but wanted me to research before since it is a slight upsize. I know my speedometer might be off, but I am more concerned with gas mileage and safety. Are there any safety concerns with handling? And would it reduce my gas mileage noticeably?

Answer
Paul,

My major concern would be tire rubbing.  Unfortunately, no one publishes a chart that lists how big the fenderwells are.  but if the tire dealer is willing to put a larger size on, that probably means that he's done a little research to verify that it won't rub.  Even if he didn't, he is on the hook - and he knows it.

But you other questions:  I can't state categorically that is a perfectly safe change .  To do that one would need to know a lot about the vehicle and the best source would be Ford, of course.  And they would want to do a lot of testing to verify.  But on the surface, I can't think of a safety related issue.

Fuel economy.  I can guarantee you will take a fuel economy hit - and not because of the change in tire size - that's actually in the right direction.  OE tires are designed to give good fuel economy - and they do that by sacrificing treadwear and or traction.  The fact that you have gotten good wear from your OE tires is probably more a reflection of your driving conditions than the tire.

Replacement market tires are generally designed to deliver good treadwear - and they do that by sacrificing fuel economy.  I can't tell you how much of a hit you will take, but it really will be pretty close to the same regardless of what tire you put on - unless you put on the same OE  tire.

So I don't see any reason not to do this.  Just be aware that your fuel economy is going to drop.