I have a 1985 VW Vanagon camper. Mechanically, it's a POS with 99.9% NLA parts. It has 16" truck tires. Before that, it had properly weight-rated 14" trailer ti

I have a 1985 VW Vanagon camper. Mechanically, it's a POS with 99.9% NLA parts. It has 16" truck tires. Before that, it had properly weight-rated 14" trailer tires (the owner before had under-spec, unsafe passenger car tires on it.) The 16" are much easier to find and cheaper than the 14". Geometry-wise, the OD isn't excessively different that before because it's a massive, strong "pillow" between surfaces and the OD of rim. It's when you get to the point where you can't hop a curb at low speed without worrying about wrecking the rims that there's a problem with low profile tires. There always exists a high enough speed over a large enough obstacle that will cause mechanical damage to rims. If you want to drive a super car with perfect aerodynamics everyday, don't use driveways with any incline to them, don't get near to curbs, and don't drive anywhere with potholes. The challenge is how much optimization for efficiency vs. durability vs. cost manufacturers want to or are ordered to sacrifice.