about tire sizes

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BrandonW963
Posts: 4
Joined: Tue Apr 16, 2013 2:20 am

about tire sizes

Post by BrandonW963 »

Hello, I'm sure you've seen sim. questions but after looking I couldn't find out what I was looking for so it never hurts (not much anyway) to ask.

I've been thinking about going to a larger wheel for quite a while and looking at tire's that are available for the wheels sizes. I have a 95 NA Miata that isn't lowered, have the stock 14" wheels and I'm trying to decide between a 15" or 16" wheel.
What I'm trying to find out is what sizes in the larger size will fit without having to roll the fenders and what offset will let me get away with different sizes.
I've seen a great tire in the 16" wheel that I am almost sure I can get away with in a 195-45-16 size but just in case I would like to know if the car can handle a 205-45-16 tire without having to roll the fenders. There isn't many high quality tires in the 195-45-16's choices that I'm looking for and if I go with a 16" I'd like to know my limits before I commit to that size.
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I'm not sure what part of the tire's measurement give's me the most trouble. I noticed on here that a 205-50-15 won't fit without rolling the fender and is it the tire's width that is the problem or is it the diam. or a mix of both? The 195-50-15 keeps the same overall 22.7" diam. as does the 195-45-16 so the spedo and overall gearing will be the same which I prefer but I'm more interested in my options if I can choose a wider tire or not in the 205mm range? Will the offset of the wheel give me more room to choose?
The major issue I have is I am not looking for a summer only tire and also looking for a high quality all season tire and this makes my choices very small in the larger wheel sizes. There is lots of good summer tires in both larger sizes.
So I'm looking at what size option I can work with best and what limits on tire sizes and wheel offsets that I have to deal with. I will prob. use a +40mm offset in the 16" wheel but if I go to the 15" I may go with the +35mm as the wheel I like comes in that size offset. Any help?
Oh yeah, the car is my daily driver so this is why I'm looking at the type of tires instead of a max traction type.
Thank you lots for your input...
B. W.
Sean @ GWR
Posts: 79
Joined: Wed Oct 22, 2014 12:55 pm

Re: about tire sizes

Post by Sean @ GWR »

It sounds like a 15x7 wheel with a +35mm offset paired with a 195/50/15 tire would be the best choice. With a 15x7 you have a much larger tire selection and the wheels in this category are generally light weight.
Brian
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Re: about tire sizes

Post by Brian »

205-45-16 does fit without rolling fenders with a conservative offset wheel such as 40mm Konig 16x7 Feather.
205/50/15 also fits without rolling fenders with a conservative offset wheel such as 38mm Konig 15x6.5 Feather.

You can pick a 35mm offset and still fit those 205mm wide tires without fender roll if you have over one degree negative camber, but under that amount of camber you might need a touch of fender roll. Thus you see the more camber you have, the more aggressive offset you can fit without fender roll.

If you don't know the amount of camber you have currently, then indeed 195/50/15 is a safer bet and 15x7 and 15x6.5 choices from 35mm to 42mm will all clear easily without a fender roll.
Brian Goodwin
Good-Win Racing
www.good-win-racing.com
BrandonW963
Posts: 4
Joined: Tue Apr 16, 2013 2:20 am

Re: about tire sizes

Post by BrandonW963 »

Thank you for your feedback, one reason I ask about other sizes is because of overall choice of tire brands and types of tires I can expect to fit on them. One thing that is getting obvious is the major tire makers are shifting to the trend of larger lower profile tires and try to even find a Michelin tire at all in the 14 or even 15" line is next to impossible and I think this trend will spread as time goes on. This is the main reason I'm going to larger wheel sizes. The overall choices for 14" tires is starting to suck and will only get worse. I like what Michelin has in their 16" tire but I'm looking at buying a wheel just to fit a particular tire which seems a little screwy too. Oh well, thanks lots again for your replies. I'm going to start buying in the next few months, I may end up picking a 15" after all and go with a BFG comp 2 tire and just get winter tire's thrown on my current 14" wheels, best of both worlds kind of thing.
Brian
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Joined: Tue Feb 15, 2005 11:44 am
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Re: about tire sizes

Post by Brian »

I suggest 15 inch choice, there are MANY tires to pick from, and lots of light wheels to pick from. Keep the package as LIGHT as possible for best ride quality. Thus, for 100% street driving I suggest one of our several choices in the 11 or 12 pound range...and 10 pounds would ride even better.

Brian
Brian Goodwin
Good-Win Racing
www.good-win-racing.com
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