[cornflakes]

Which combo is better and why? (I'm running on stock 16" 205s).


option A - 215/45/16
option B - 205/45/17



so basically.....wider tire but same size rim or same size tire but bigger rim? and why?

[D-Dub]

none will work cause both will throw off your speedo
16 is 50 profile and 17 is 40 profile

[ZX3TUNING]

either will work.
your car will not break if you run a different sized tire.

from the stock 205/50/16 to a:

215/45/16 there would be a -1.917% difference or if your speedo was at 100km/h, your speed would be 98km/h.

205/45/16 there would be a -3.469% difference or if your speedo was at 100km?h, your speed would be 96.5km/h.



the 215/45/16 would be the better size but i'm not sure what you mean by a "better combo"...?


what are you looking for?

[cornflakes]

i dont want to add too much extra weight and thus lose performance and handling....so im just wondering if getting a bigger rim (1 inch up) or getting wider tires (10mm wider) is what i want.

I think going up 1 inch in size + going 10mm wider together is going to make everything heavier and lose steering/handling performance.


215/16s
205/17s

or both
215/17s

...which option is best for what i mentioned above...+ gives a nicer appearance too?

[D-Dub]

It depends how heavy the rim is also.....I ran 17 with 40 profile and 205 width, there was no difference. The rims and tires acctually wieghed out to be the same as stock. I think AnthonyD still has the rims I sold him, so he could vouch for keeping it as close to stock specs as possible.

[D-Dub]

"215/45/16 there would be a -1.917% difference or if your speedo was at 100km/h, your speed would be 98km/h.

205/45/16 there would be a -3.469% difference or if your speedo was at 100km?h, your speed would be 96.5km/h."

215/45/16 would be heavier so why would his speedo be effected less then 205/45/16?

[LOFOCI WAGON]

18's

215/35/18 :D

[NikiterZTS]

LOFOCI WAGON,Nov 4 2006, 01:13 PM Wrote:18's

215/35/18 :D
[right][snapback]214579[/snapback][/right]

^^^thats right, go BIG or go home!

[kamilk69]

i have 17's on my pos they look kind of small on it, but then again, i have no bumpers.

[ZX3TUNING]

ok,
on a focus the difference of wheel/tire weight is not going to have an effect on the handling of the car unless you are a national level AutoX, Solo1 or Club racer. you will not feel ANY difference in a wheel that is 1" taller with a thinner profile tire unless you are going from really really s***ty tires to really really good tires.
the weight of a wheel/tire combo also will have little effect on the handling again unless you are a national level racer or are talking about going from a 15lb rim to a 30lb rim. most rims made in the last 5 years are not going to be above 20lbs in a 16" size and iirc, the stock 16s are about 17lbs. the differences in handling and performance from the weight of the setup will make a difference but i highly doubt you will be able to feel any difference. considering it takes a very consistant, very skilled driver to be able to show repeatable results on the track, you will probably never be able to duplicate such things on the street.

the difference in the speedo has nothing to do with the weight of the rim tire combo, it is a matter of Math and rotations per KM. you remember that whole Pie-R-Squared thing from school... a shorter tire requires more rotations per mile. the car is calibrated for a certain size tire for accurate speedo readings, altering the size of the tire changes that calibration.

weight weight may have an effect on gas mileage but again, the differences are so minimal any true effect would be masked by standard driving irregularities. unless of course you are talking a 10lb/corner difference.

205/40/17s are smaller than the 205/50/16s by -2.618% or if your speedo read 100km/h you'd actually br traveling about 97.4km/h.


fact of the matter, your suspension will dictate the handling of the car no matter what rim tire combo you put on. HOWEVER the tires are the vital link between your car and the road. if you are looking for the best performance you are better off NOT looking at cheap tires like the Nexxan or similar garbage a lot of people like to suggest. Toyo T1-Rs, Falken FK451s and 452s or RT615s and the Kumho MX are all extremely solid tires at decent prices. look at those in the size you want and you wont be disapointed.

Cornflakes,
i'd suggest a 16" with a 215/45/16 tire.
you can run a 17 with a 215/40or45/17 without issue aswell, i currently run a 215/40/17.
Go with something like a 16" Rota Slipstream and toyo T1-R in 215/45/16 and you wont be disapointed!

[02ztsian]

Go with a lightweight rim like an OZ or similar. This site Wheel Weights had a pretty good variety of rims and their weights. The weight not only aids in handling (small gains for sure) but a lighter wheel/tire combo is easier to get spinning.

[dBlast]

Here are Focus friendly wheel and tire sizes:

175/70-14...23.8"
185/70-14...24.3"
185/65-14...23.5" OE size
195/65-14...24.0"
195/60-14...23.2"
205/60-14...23.7"
215/60-14...24.2"
195/60-15...24.2" OE size
205/55-15...23.9"
205/50-15...23.0"
215/50-15...23.4"
215/55-15...24.3"
225/50-15...24.0"
195/50-16...23.5"
205/45-16...23.4"
205/50-16...24.2" OE size
205/55-16...25.0"
215/45-16...23.7"
205/40-17...23.5"
205/45-17...24.2"
215/40-17...23.9"
215/45-17...24.6" OE size (SVT)
215/35-18...23.9"
215/40-18...24.6"


As you can see 205/45-17 is identical to the OE diameter size.

[cornflakes]

whoa, nice posts....it really makes things a lot clearer.

[cornflakes]

i checked out the rota slipstream....looks nice...but wonder how it looks on a silver focus sedan? Your rota attacks look good on the hatchback...

[euro]

I know a guy that runs P225/45zr16 on his foci. His rims are ASA JH5 16x7.5". Lots of traction for a low price, the rims are 19lbs. Me I'll run P225/50zr15 on OZ aleggera, the rims are 12lbs and the tires are nice and sticky (toyo RA1). Tire/rim combo of 32lbs. His running a combo of 42lbs. I do autocross so everything must be light!

[cornflakes]

so with my stock 16" rims.....i could just put on 225/45/16s tires without changing the wheels/rims too right?


At what statistic does it tell you you must change the wheels? Is it the 16 to 17" or is it the 205s to 225s or the middle number (45 to 60)?

[dBlast]

The first number is the width of the tire in millimetres. The bigger this number the wider the tire. More width = more grip, however, above 215mm the greater the possibility of rubbing.

The second number is the aspect ratio. This the distance from the bead of the tire to the tread of the tire as a percentage of the width of the tire. For example, a 50 series tire would have a sidewall height that is 50 percent of the width of the tire. The lower the sidewall heigth the less the tire will deflect in corners, however, the stiffer the ride.

The third number is the diameter size wheel in inches that the tire will fit on. Bigger wheels will give you lower sidewall height (to maintain same overall diameter) for better cornering, however more wheel and less tire weighs more and is slower in a straight line.

A 195/60-15 tire has a 195mm width, a sidewall height of (60% of 195mm) 117mm, and a wheel diameter size of 15". Double the sidewall height (117mm x 2) 234 and divide by 25.4 to get 9.2" plus 15" wheel to get a total of 24.2" total overall diamter.

In order to not affect the speedometer, try to maintain the same overall diameter. Otherwise pick a size that offers the characteristics and look that you are desiring.

[darkpuppet]

between zx3tuning and dblast, I think this topic is pretty much covered.

except which wheel is the prettiest (I vote OZ Chrono!)...

[PerfectSaiyan]

right now im running 205/40/17s


with my stock rims on, the car looked LOWERED, on these wheels, not so much.

so when the time comes to replace the tires, should I go with 205/50/17 to make them back to the stock size? or would i go with 45?

[dBlast]

PerfectSaiyan,Nov 11 2006, 08:19 PM Wrote:right now im running 205/40/17s


with my stock rims on, the car looked LOWERED, on these wheels, not so much.

so when the time comes to replace the tires, should I go with 205/50/17 to make them back to the stock size?  or would i go with 45?
[right][snapback]215574[/snapback][/right]

205/45/17 should match stock diameter.