Wheel info

[TAndrus]

So here's my story... I bought my car back in september. Right now I have a set of 18" Motegi racing wheels on it with 225/40ZR18's on it. He told me the chrome would come off with the winter salts so he gave me another set of tires for the winter. This things are FAR from pretty but I'd like to keep my Motegi's nice. It's started to get nasty here so I was thinking it was time to put on the crap wheels but the guy mentioned I would need wheel spacers. No one here will put them on or sells them. Here is a picture of the wheel.. I don't know anything about them besides the tire size which is 225/50R16's.

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Would anyone happen to know if I could just stick these on without spacers and be good to go? Or what size wheels would fit those tires if I wanted to buy some nicer looking wheels for the winter? Any info would be appreciated seeing as I know nothing about it.

 

[casper_talon]

I don't know about the tires or the spacer, but you could always paint them some charcoal gray color or black, maybe tape the ring around the edge to make it look like it has a chrome ring and polish it with some mag & alum. polish. That would be the cheaper way to make them look good for winter, then change them back.

 

[XxRedDevilxX]

You would need spacers if there was clearance issues. If you put the crap wheels on and they don't rub on the caliper or around the fender than you should be fine. Just jack up your car and put the crap wheel on and spin it with your hand and see if it rubs on anything. Don't put it on and drive cause it could mess your calipers up if it does rub. If it does rub you need spacers, you should be able to find them online. Also if you wanted a nicer wheel any 16x7 inch wheel with the right offset should work.

 

[casper_talon]

Here, I painted your tire with the MS Paint to show you how it could look. It would be better in real-life, just so you get the idea. I would preffer this, since the paint would be at $5 at most, just need tape and a few hours. And if they end up getting messed up by the weather, it's not a big cost.

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[TermTrky]

Hahaha MS Paint dubs!

What's odd, 2000 Honda Prelude rims have the same 5 lug that we have, but they don't mount flush against the rotor because the wheel bearing hole in the rim is angled a bit differently, rim stops about 1/4" away from being flush against the rotor.
If you don't have Mitsu wheels, you can bore out the center cap hole. Ha.

 

[wret]

I can't immagine that you would need spacers, even without knowing the offset. Stock offset is +46mm and not too many wheels go much higher than that. (High offset could cause contact with suspension and require spacers). Mount one on the rear and see if it spins freely.

 

[Bender]

Don't forget to turn the steering wheel each way in the fronts to make sure they wont rub while turning.

 

[bjbaxter]

I think the guy might have been talking about a clearance issue with the tire and the upper control arm. If the car is jacked up with the wheel on, it might not hit anything. This could be because the springs have little to no weight on them. Try putting the tire on an let the jack down easy and keep checking everything with the more weight you put on the tire. If anything, i think the guy you bought it from might have been talking about the tires rubbing the upper control arm when the tires are on the car and the car is on the ground, not jacked up. Try that and see what you come up with, that very well might be your problem. The tires might be a little wider than the stock ones and are rubbing with the weight on them.

 

[wret]

I think the guy might have been talking about a clearance issue with the tire and the upper control arm. If the car is jacked up with the wheel on, it might not hit anything. This could be because the springs have little to no weight on them. Try putting the tire on an let the jack down easy and keep checking everything with the more weight you put on the tire. If anything, i think the guy you bought it from might have been talking about the tires rubbing the upper control arm when the tires are on the car and the car is on the ground, not jacked up. Try that and see what you come up with, that very well might be your problem. The tires might be a little wider than the stock ones and are rubbing with the weight on them.

The tire cannot hit the upper control arm because it's attached to the steerig knuckle and moves with wheel and tire during suspension movement. And, since the clearance between the tire and steering knuckle doesn't change during suspension movement, lowering the car to test for rubbing there is not required. If if doesn't rub the knuckle while jacked up, it won't rub when on the ground.

The clearance between the tire and fender lip does change with suspension movement and is a factor with lower offsets and wider tires. You would either need to disconnect the spring and shock or load several hundred pounds of weight in trunk to see this on a stationery car. Or just put the wheels on and go for a ride around the block.

 

[bjbaxter]

WTFSo you're telling me that even if the tire is wider than what the stock one is, that there is no possible way that it can rub that upper control arm?? I realize that if you bottom out sometimes with a wider tire and not having a stiff enough suspension you will rub the wheel wells, but i was sure that the wideness of the tire would effect it hitting the upper control arm or not.

 

[wret]

WTFSo you're telling me that even if the tire is wider than what the stock one is, that there is no possible way that it can rub that upper control arm??

That's correct. No possible way.

 

[bjbaxter]

OK i'll take your word for it. Thanks for the piece of advice for future refrence.