Wheel size help please!!

Canadian Turbo · Post by **Canadian Turbo** » Fri Mar 07, 2008 2:49 am

Help I need advice!!!

I'm planning on getting a set of mags and tires for the summer and I'm debating over 16" vs 17"

I have a canadian 94 ss which lists 195 65 15 as the original tire size on the inside of the door panel. So with 16" I'd run 205 55 16 and 17" 205 50 17.

I will likely be doing 2-3 track days on dirt and 2-3 on pavement this summer, and the car is a daily driver as well.

I have a set of 16" Legacy GT mesh wheels lined up and I really like those, but I'm leaning towards 17" for the pavement and look. How do our cars drive on 17"s ?

I also have a spare set of 15" stock mags that I could set up with tires for the dirt days. So maybe the question is really is just 16" vs 17" for light track duty and hard road driving, what's your opinion??

Arctic Assassian · Post by **Arctic Assassian** » Fri Mar 07, 2008 3:24 am

For our cars, the only 17 I would run are the 04 sti bbs silver. Otherwise I would try to pick up a set of 99 25rs wheels, which are 16's. I would not run a 205/55/16 I find it a touch too large.

I prefer the 215/45/16. While it causes your speedo to read 5% too fast(66@60mph). It improves your 3.90 gearing a tad, and because of the smaller sidewall and wider tire, you'll grip a little better.

You say this car will see dirt competition? 17's that I would trust leaving the ground are EXPENSIVE. Another reason to go with 16's is weight. That extra inch of diameter is a bit more metal that goes to unsprung weight. peace
-Adam

evolutionmovement · Post by **evolutionmovement** » Fri Mar 07, 2008 4:31 am

I run 205/50-16's on Forester 5-spokes which I think is a good size and my speedometer reads better than the original 14's and I'd pick it over 17's. Tires for the 17's on my Mazda are almost twice as much. I also don't think there's much between the sizes for handling, but the ride is better with the smaller wheels. I prefer my tires to slide a little (especially with the wagon's decent weight distribution), but if you prefer greater grip, you might want to go 17's and get them with a little more width (you'll have to pick the offset right so you can clear them).

Post by **DLC** » Fri Mar 07, 2008 5:29 am

The STI BBS wheels are a bit wide for the car and tires you can fit without some serious camber and/or fender rolling.

Consider the Prodrive P7 and the many 17x7" Japanese take-off wheels that were on the Legacy and Impreza. They're kinda pricey, but they will fit your car much better.

http://5mileimports.com/ usually has a set or two on hand, like the B4 wheels they're listing right now. Blitzen wheels too

Canadian Turbo · Post by **Canadian Turbo** » Fri Mar 07, 2008 4:35 pm

DLC

Thanks for the link . I see from the list that I need 55mm offset, especially with 17's, for clearance. But you didn't answer my question, will I see a real diference from say a 16 in 205 50 16 as compared to a 17? The Legacy GT mesh wheels that I have lined up will cost me 400$ shipped plus tires, so say 1000$. That's say my max budget....... unless I have good reason to take some money from elswhere.

Adam

Ya, I guess with 17 I need to start to consider the quality of the wheel cheepo 17 won't do. Why is it that everyone is saying that 205/55/16 is too big, when if I use this calculator it says that my recomended 195 65 15 are almost exactly the same? BTW 66 @60 is 10% that's considerable.

http://www.net-comber.com/tirecalc.html[/quote]

jamal · Post by **jamal** » Fri Mar 07, 2008 10:33 pm

stock size is 195/60-15, not /65.

But I've had 205/55-16 or 225/50s for a few years now.

ultrasonic · Post by **ultrasonic** » Sat Mar 08, 2008 4:24 pm

Canadian Turbo wrote:...
But you didn't answer my question, will I see a real diference from say a 16 in 205 50 16 as compared to a 17?
...
Why is it that everyone is saying that 205/55/16 is too big, when if I use this calculator it says that my recomended 195 65 15 are almost exactly the same?

Yes, I think you will see a noticable difference.

Sport Sedans came with 195/60/15, at least in the US. I can't speak for Canada. That difference in diameter can be felt. I have run 205/50/16, 205/55/16, 225/50/16 sizes for extended periods, and in conditions ranging from autocrossing on summer tires, to snow and ice on all season tires, and most stuff in between.

As far as I'm concerned, I wouldn't run 17"s on an SS unless I had significant power adding mods. The shorter tires and lighter 16" wheels really contribute to the relatively torque-y feeling of the stock drivetrain.

If you want to pay big dollars for very light 17"s, then go for it, or be prepared to give up a bit of the nimble-ness that you would have with a proper 16" combination. Also, search for tire availability in the proper size before you make your decision. Once I decided to go with the stock tire diameter (about 24"), the tire choices and cost made the decision to stick with 16" wheels an easy one.

Also there are a lot of good choices for 16" wheels in the Subaru world. I have a set of 16x7 1.5RS six spoke wheels, and as set of 2.5RS five spoke wheels, and some 2005 WRX wheels. I have also had, and sold, some 2002 WRX wheels. All of those are widely availabl, fairly inexpensive, good looking (IMO), and reasonably light for the price.

That's my opinion, your mileage may vary.

By the way... I'm writing this in a hotel in Montreal right now! I'll keep looking out the window for you...

BAC5.2 · Post by **BAC5.2** » Sat Mar 08, 2008 4:58 pm

I ran 225/45/17 RE070's on a set of 17x7.5 Rota Sub Zero's.

Looked awesome and drove REALLY well. Stuck like glue and turn-in was amazing.

I really miss my old car

EtchyLives · Post by **EtchyLives** » Sat Mar 08, 2008 11:29 pm

FWIW, I had some major rubbing issues with my BBS 04 STi takeoffs with 225 Winter tires. Especially in cornering while parking. However I'm running AGX struts with 8" coil-over sleeves. My rubbing was all on the strut perch, though. Not on the fenders. There was plenty of clearance on the fenders.

That being said I sold them and am going to stick with my 15" wheels. For track duty I'm going to get some 205/50-15 or 205/55-15. Then I'll have lighter tires, smaller sidewalls, wider contact patch and won't have to worry about speedo problems. Otherwise I'm running stock 92 SS Wheels for daily driver duty with cheaper (read: Kumho MX or equivalent) summer tires.

I have a set of RS Brakes and brackets coming so I can keep the stock wheels and still have LOTS of pad options. This is something you may want to look into since the pad options for the stock brakes on your 94 are VERY limited (as I so recently discovered).

EtchyLives · Post by **EtchyLives** » Sat Mar 08, 2008 11:31 pm

BAC5.2 wrote:I ran 225/45/17 RE070's on a set of 17x7.5 Rota Sub Zero's.

Looked awesome and drove REALLY well. Stuck like glue and turn-in was amazing.

I really miss my old car

How did you get past the rubbing issues. I'm assuming you had the +48 offset rims. Did that push the wheels away from the perches? Did you roll your fenders?

jamal · Post by **jamal** » Sun Mar 09, 2008 9:57 am

My car with 225/50-16 on 16x7 +53 wheels rubs the front inner fender liners very slightly with high steering angle and cornering force.

Since I have sti struts there's plenty of room on the strut side though.

I also had to roll the rear fenders slightly.

Can you cut off more of the spring perch on the agxes since you have sleeves?

Arctic Assassian · Post by **Arctic Assassian** » Sun Mar 09, 2008 10:01 am

Canadian Turbo wrote: Adam

Ya, I guess with 17 I need to start to consider the quality of the wheel cheepo 17 won't do. Why is it that everyone is saying that 205/55/16 is too big, when if I use this calculator it says that my recomended 195 65 15 are almost exactly the same? BTW 66 @60 is 10% that's considerable.

http://www.net-comber.com/tirecalc.html

[/quote]

205/55/16 winter tires rubbed hardcore on my car with 2003 wrx takeoffs. I can'texplain why,my car is straight, the fender liner is good, but they rubbed at full lock. 205/50/16's are good, but for grip, 215/45/16's are better. If you have 1000 dollars, look at the tirerack.com. Go check out wheels that will fit our car. They don't murder you on shipping, and you can get them pre-mounted and balanced.

Canadian Turbo · Post by **Canadian Turbo** » Tue Mar 11, 2008 12:12 am

OK, so I think I've made up my mind.

17's are out because driveability is way higher on the priority list than look is, and of course this is still a budget build.

I'll put the 15's on when I take this car onto the dirt, so the 16s will become street and asphalt track only.

Thinking of a combo like; 16" legacy GT mesh mags and some 215/45/16 Kumhos from tire rack. Does this sound right, no rubbing issues with the 215 right Arctic Assassian??

Hey Steve, liking the snow here??!!! I've lived here my whole life and I've never seen so much snow. I actualy live an hour and a half north of MTL in Mont-Tremblant which is a ski town. I wish I knew how to post pics, I have pics of me driving down a street with the snow so deep it was coming over the hood of my SS. The cops even stopped me because I was doing 80k in a 90k area and he couldn't keep up!!!

K, got to go shovel the roof.
Thanks

ultrasonic · Post by **ultrasonic** » Tue Mar 11, 2008 3:56 am

Canadian Turbo wrote:OK, so I think I've made up my mind.

17's are out because driveability is way higher on the priority list than look is, and of course this is still a budget build.

I'll put the 15's on when I take this car onto the dirt, so the 16s will become street and asphalt track only.

Thinking of a combo like; 16" legacy GT mesh mags and some 215/45/16 Kumhos from tire rack. Does this sound right, no rubbing issues with the 215 right Arctic Assassian??

Hey Steve, liking the snow here??!!! I've lived here my whole life and I've never seen so much snow. I actualy live an hour and a half north of MTL in Mont-Tremblant which is a ski town. I wish I knew how to post pics, I have pics of me driving down a street with the snow so deep it was coming over the hood of my SS. The cops even stopped me because I was doing 80k in a 90k area and he couldn't keep up!!!

K, got to go shovel the roof.
Thanks

That sounds like a reasonable plan. The Legacy GT 16s are nice looking wheels. They are 6.5 inches wide, but 16's from any 1998 to 2001 2.5RS are 7" wide. A minor difference, but maybe worth it to you on principle.

Yeah, I liked the snow and I liked Montreal... my flight out on Saturday afternoon was cancelled, so I ended up staying an extra night. I was working all week and so was not sight seeing, etc. but I had a great time. Now all I need is someone who will give me a place to stay during the Grand Prix!

Anyway, as soon as you get some wheels, you've should post some photos.

smh0101 · Post by **smh0101** » Tue Mar 11, 2008 5:48 am

I'm runnin 225/45/r17 on 07 wrx rims... ride is fine, it looks badass... and the RE92s suck!

Canadian Turbo · Post by **Canadian Turbo** » Tue Mar 11, 2008 11:01 pm

6.5 that's really good to know. Do you know if the offset is different?? Maybe the LGT mesh mags aren't my best bet. What would be the major difference between 7" and 6.5" width?

There is no way I'm buying 5 spoke mags, just a question of personal preference. I really like the new 16" 2008 Impreza mags, does anyone know if the offset is the same? Anyone selling??

Dynamic Entry · Post by **Dynamic Entry** » Tue Mar 11, 2008 11:41 pm

smh0101 wrote:I'm runnin 225/45/r17 on 07 wrx rims... ride is fine, it looks badass... and the RE92s suck!

So you are saying that the additional weight was not noticeable?

I found this thread really discouraging b/c I have been hoping to get a set of summer wheels/tires so i can leave my studded tires on the 16" wheels.

As far as I'm concerned, I wouldn't run 17"s on an SS unless I had significant power adding mods. The shorter tires and lighter 16" wheels really contribute to the relatively torque-y feeling of the stock drivetrain.

I want '06 WRX 17s (I think they look better than the BBS even) but not if it's gonna feel like I am dragging them around....

smh0101 · Post by **smh0101** » Wed Mar 12, 2008 3:03 am

Well, I went from a stock legacy sport sedan... to a FWD nA Legacy L back to a Sport Sedan with an exhaust and wheels...

So... Going back and forth, it is possible to "feel" a difference... But this car sure feels faster than my old one, No i dont feel like I am dragging them around.

That said... I love them... But your Butt Dyno may say otherwise... Mine doesnt though.

Arctic Assassian · Post by **Arctic Assassian** » Wed Mar 12, 2008 5:12 am

Those 08 wrx wheels are heavy. I handle them daily.

Dynamic Entry · Post by **Dynamic Entry** » Wed Mar 12, 2008 5:15 am

if you want to slip a set my way, that's just fine

Canadian Turbo · Post by **Canadian Turbo** » Wed Mar 12, 2008 5:58 am

Whoa 700$ for 17s and tires. I know this is kinda contrary to recomendations in this thread, but these seem like a really good deal. Anybody care to make me feel good about my potential purchase.

http://forums.nasioc.com/forums/showthr ... st21468090

They are probably very heavy but they are 53mm offset.
I know I'll lose some feeling in the car, but they must grip really well.

Post by **DLC** » Wed Mar 12, 2008 6:16 am

That's an attractive wheel for sure.

Might search LegacyGT to see if anyone's weighed 'em yet.

Canadian Turbo · Post by **Canadian Turbo** » Wed Mar 12, 2008 5:14 pm

Ha!, So they weigh 45lb with the tires.

what do I do!!!!!!??

Arctic Assassian · Post by **Arctic Assassian** » Fri Mar 14, 2008 7:26 am

I think they look ugly as sin. But great on that gc.

Post by **DLC** » Fri Mar 14, 2008 5:31 pm

45lbs with tires isn't too bad, but it is heavy.

My BBS/BFG 17" set will end up weighing 38.3lbs. 15.8lbs of that is for the wheel and 22.5lbs for the tire. This will vary depending on the wheel, tire and weights, but it's under 40lbs, which is light.

My Prodrive/Falken 18" were close to 47lbs, with 22lbs of that for the wheel and 25lbs for the tire.

A set of 16" RS/WRX/GT wheels is right around 16lbs, and the tire will be 20-25lbs, depending on the maker, so you're in the sub 40lbs range.

If looks > weight, go for 'em. I'd have kept my Prodrive but I don't have the torque of your turbo engines, and my car is heavier than any 1G Legacy.

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Wheel size help please!!

Wheel size help please!!