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Are Larger Wheels and Tires a Waste of Money? - READ ONLY

59 messages,  Last post on Dec 04, 2008 at 1:23 PM

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Messages Page 2 of 6

#10 of 59 Re: Are Larger Wheels / Tires a Waste of Money? [gagrice] by bumpy

Jul 16, 2007 (8:39 am)

Replying to: gagrice (Jul 16, 2007 7:06 am)
I liked the handling and did not like the ride. I would never buy another vehicle with low profile tires.
 
What was the aspect ratio? I find that 60-series is a good balance between handling and comfort for a daily driver on unkempt roads.
 
As for giant wheels, one thing I'd like to do eventually is put some lightweight 15s and 40-series (maybe 35?) rubber on the S2000. Tricky part is figuring out whether or not a 15-inch wheel can clear the brakes.

#11 of 59 Re: Are Larger Wheels / Tires a Waste of Money? [bumpy] by Mr_Shiftright HOST

Jul 16, 2007 (10:01 am)

Replying to: bumpy (Jul 16, 2007 8:39 am)
Personally I find any tire above 17" of questionable benefit. Aside from the loss of power and braking (not too noticeable in a higher HP car of course)there is stress on suspension. Some cars, like Porsche, were bedeviled with occasional chassis stress, like creaking, groaning and glass seal leakage due to 18" tires.
 
Aesthetically, it's the rare car that looks good with big wheels...certainly the "formal" looking cars like a Benz look very clumsy in those 18" running shoes, IMHO. It's more suited to a Mitsubishi EVO.

#12 of 59 Re: Are Larger Wheels / Tires a Waste of Money? [bumpy] by gagrice

Jul 16, 2007 (10:11 am)

Replying to: bumpy (Jul 16, 2007 8:39 am)
I think they were 235/45X17. The stock 16" road much better. Did not drive it long enough to tell about the handling.

#13 of 59 Re: Are Larger Wheels / Tires a Waste of Money? [Mr_Shiftright] by tpe

Jul 16, 2007 (10:27 am)

Replying to: Mr_Shiftright (Jul 16, 2007 10:01 am)
I was looking at the new Miata when it came out. I like leather interiors and the only way to get this is with the top trim level. Unfortunately you are now stuck with 17" wheels, which I think is ridiculous for a car of this size and power.

#14 of 59 Re: Are Larger Wheels / Tires a Waste of Money? [bumpy] by habitat1

Jul 16, 2007 (11:59 am)

Replying to: bumpy (Jul 16, 2007 8:39 am)
As for giant wheels, one thing I'd like to do eventually is put some lightweight 15s and 40-series (maybe 35?) rubber on the S2000.
 
My 2002 Honda S2000 came with 16" wheels, 55/205 and 50/225 series tires front and rear. If you dropped the wheel diameter down to 15" and put even lower profile 40/35 series tires on them, I think you'd have an ugly mess. Both from driving dynamics (suspension) and aesthetics. Not to mention that your speedometer and odometer would be way off.
 
I'm not a fan of boy racer modifications in general. But with the S2000 in particular, it's so good out of the box that I think it should be a criminal offense to mess it up.

#15 of 59 Re: Are Larger Wheels / Tires a Waste of Money? [habitat1] by bumpy

Jul 16, 2007 (12:37 pm)

Replying to: habitat1 (Jul 16, 2007 11:59 am)
My main motivation for the smaller wheels/tires is to get rid of as much unsprung weight and angular momentum as possible. I'm not worried about pretty, and mine has a 4.77 aftermarket gear so I already have the yellow box to correct the speedo (presumably; I've never actually seen the thing).

#16 of 59 Re: Are Larger Wheels / Tires a Waste of Money? [bumpy] by gagrice

Jul 16, 2007 (1:11 pm)

Replying to: bumpy (Jul 16, 2007 12:37 pm)
Bigger tire diameter takes you further than your odometer indicates. Also you are going faster than your speedo. I believe that is the way it works. So a guy with monster tires will get more miles before the warranty expires.

#17 of 59 Re: Are Larger Wheels / Tires a Waste of Money? [habitat1] by elroy5

Jul 16, 2007 (6:13 pm)

Replying to: habitat1 (Jul 16, 2007 11:59 am)
You can get smaller diameter wheels, and still have the same tire diameter (higher profile). Therefore not changing the speedometer. However, on an S2000 it would look very strange IMO, and it would probably affect the handling. Isn't that what an S2000 is all about?

#18 of 59 What do you get for the money? by oldfarmer50

Jul 17, 2007 (3:16 am)

I guess there are two types who go for larger wheels and lower profile tires. The first wants appearance over anything. The 22 inch chrome wheels on an Escalade come to mind.
 
The second is interested in performance upgrade. I have always wondered just how much better your handling gets as you go to a lower profile tire. Lets say I start out with a car that has 225R50 tires on 17" wheels and go to 235R45 tires on 18" wheels. Would I notice the difference? Assume that the tire brand and type were constant.

#19 of 59 Re: What do you get for the money? [oldfarmer50] by habitat1

Jul 17, 2007 (6:57 am)

Replying to: oldfarmer50 (Jul 17, 2007 3:16 am)
Lets say I start out with a car that has 225R50 tires on 17" wheels and go to 235R45 tires on 18" wheels. Would I notice the difference?
 
Excellent question. I suspect the answer is "not much" - and that's the point of my starting this forum.
 
When I test drove at least 6-7 Boxster S's before buying a 911S in September 2005, about half came with the standard 18" wheel and 45 series tires and half came with the 19" 35 series upgrade (they were also wider tires in the 19"). I honestly had a very difficult time telling the difference in my test drives. Maybe on a track, but not on public streets. Alternatively, for those Boxster S's (and 911's) that came with the PASM option (Porsche Active Suspension Management), the difference was profound. Push the "sport" button, electronically stiffen the adjustable suspension, and what was already minimal body roll completely vanished and you were glued to the road (and felt every bump in the process). That was the case whether you had the 18" or 19" wheels, although at that point, the 19" felt a little "firmer".
 
In the case of my Acura TL 6-speed, I can immediately feel the difference between its stiffer suspension and faster stopping Brembo brakes, compared to the automatic transmssion model. But among 6-speeds, I could not tell the difference in handling between one's equiped with the optional "High Performance" tires and the standard ones. That's not to say there isn't a difference, but relatively speaking, a high performance tire is not going to turn a FWD 60/40 weight balanced Acura TL into a 335i with respect to handling. Suspension set up, weight balance and all those engineering refinements that make a Porsche a Porsche or a BMW a BMW are far, far more important to handling than slapping high performance tires on Honda, Infiniti, Acura or Mercedes, IMO.

Messages Page 2 of 6

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