17's or 18's

[95kate]

ok opinion. 2G GS-T w/ body kit. should i get 17's or 18's? i'm thinkin 17's 'cause i dont want a lotta wheel weight. but everyone i know says i should get 18's minimum, 'cause of wheel gap. what you guys think?

also, will this affect my speedometer any and if so does anyone know where i can get it recalibrated?

 

[David15151]

first of all ask your friends to explain how going from a 17" rim to a 18" rim is going to help wheel gap. Bigger rim = less tire. wheel gap is fixed with ride height. If you get the correct size tire for that rim size thatn you wont have to worry about the speedometer being a problem. If you are going for more of a head turner go with 18... if you want just a good looking car go with 17. The thinner the tire the more you will feel the road as well as the danger of blowout from like a pot hole.

A 17" rim should fit a 225/45/17 without problems

and a 18" rim should fit a 225/40/18 without problems

you may be able to go wider but thats up to you and what you are able to fit.

 

[99gst_racer]

IMO, I like 18" wheels better. Mostly because they look much better. They fill the wheelwell with more wheel and less tire, which looks better IMO.
David is right. For 18" wheels, get a 40 profile or even 35. With a 35 profile the speedometer will read 4 mph higher than actual speed. example. If you are traveling at 55mph, it will read 59 mph. With a 40 profile, the speedo should read acurate.

 

[G_S_X]

I have 17's , and personally I think I would have gone with 18's just for looks, but I am happy with my rims because of their weight, and they look ok.

 

[fulanititoo8198]

Thats weird my car reads 15-20 mph more on 17" 40 tire height. I guess its not the wheels than

 

[smokintalon]

18's are too big... go 17's... the price diff is huge between 18 and 17... use your money on performance instead of that extra inch.

 

[bhop]

When people say "18's are too big" they are expressing their opinion.

My opinion is that 18's fill out the wheel well much better than 17's do and look much better. Of course, the car will still need to be lowered to drop the gap.

17's still look pretty nice on a stock bodied car if you're on a budget, but considering you have a body kit, i'd say that's even more reason to go with 18's.

Also, as far as weight goes, it shouldn't be much of an issue if you get quality rims. My 18's weigh FAR less than my stock 16's.

 

[95kate]

thing is.... the oil pan sits awfully close to the ground. i'm not too sure about lowering the car because of that. the last thing i need is my oil pan busted.

 

[bhop]

thing is.... the oil pan sits awfully close to the ground. i'm not too sure about lowering the car because of that. the last thing i need is my oil pan busted.

You planning to go off-roading?

Many people have lowered cars with no problems. Mine is 2". 1.5" should be fine if you're worried. If you stay on the roads, it shouldn't be a problem.. but it's your car, it's up to you whether you want it lowered or not, but if you want to get rid of the wheel gap, just getting a bigger rim isn't going to help as much as you probably want.

 

[paul s]

I have 18x8 with 235/40 tires(yoko avs sport)and they are perfect for drag racing and ocassional lapping day. the car is lowered 1.6 inches, it still gets 1.73 60foot..

 

[99gst_racer]

17's still look pretty nice on a stock bodied car if you're on a budget, but considering you have a body kit, i'd say that's even more reason to go with 18's.

Also, as far as weight goes, it shouldn't be much of an issue if you get quality rims. My 18's weigh FAR less than my stock 16's.

^^^ I Agree ^^^


95kate - You dont have to worry damaging your oil pan. They are pretty strong. My car has been lowered most of it's life and my oil pan is just peachy. And we have horrible, pothole-filled roads.

 

[91boost]

A 17" rim should fit a 225/45/17 without problems.

Which is what I decided on going with on my car. But my only question is- what offset?

 

[paul s]

17x7.5 and 225/45 you want around 42mm offset..

 

[sonicnofadz]

I recommend 17s, because the more tire you have the better (for fwd). The thicker the tire, the more traction you will get at launch. This could be pretty critical for a crappy fwd gst (like my car =) which doesn't have any traction. The difference won't be huge, but could help some...

 

[doug]

In my opinion, the main reason to go with an 18 is because you can generally find them in wider widths-- wider wheels mean wider tires and more traction. I'd love to find a nice 17x8, but it's not that easy-- 18x8 wheels, OTOH, seem to be plentiful.

 

[cuttheduck]

My 18's are about 18 pounds. I know they have more outer rotational weight then a 17inch w/ similar weight but it's more about preference and goals.

Many of the turbo cars came w/ 17's stock. 18's look much better IMO. A big difference.

 

[91boost]

Many of the turbo cars came w/ 17's stock. 18's look much better IMO. A big difference.

I think you meant to say most of them came with 16's stock. 17's would be +1 and 18's would be +2.

 

[PaleDSM]

IMO, I like 18" wheels better. Mostly because they look much better. They fill the wheelwell with more wheel and less tire, which looks better IMO.
David is right. For 18" wheels, get a 40 profile or even 35. With a 35 profile the speedometer will read 4 mph higher than actual speed. example. If you are traveling at 55mph, it will read 59 mph. With a 40 profile, the speedo should read acurate.

So if you know that the smaller sidewall tire would be the wrong size and throw off the speedo why would you do it? You have a worse ride quality, speedo is off, more of a chance to bend the nice new rim, and you have just increased your wheel well gap.

 

[PaleDSM]

I think you meant to say most of them came with 16's stock. 17's would be +1 and 18's would be +2.

Depends on the year you are talking about. From 97+ all of the GSXs came with the factory 17s and alot of the 97/98 Talons AWDs had the Eagle five spoke 17s.

 

[91boost]

Depends on the year you are talking about. From 97+ all of the GSXs came with the factory 17s and alot of the 97/98 Talons AWDs had the Eagle five spoke 17s.

You said turbo cars, which is what threw me off. (Mine is a 98GST, and has the chrome 16's.)

And I did not know that the newer GSX's came with 17's. You learn something new everyday! Is it common for people with 15's or 16's to want to upgrade to the 17 inch stockers?

 

[99gst_racer]

So if you know that the smaller sidewall tire would be the wrong size and throw off the speedo why would you do it?

Well, IMO, a 35 profile looks much better than a 40. It's a small difference, but noticable.

You have a worse ride quality, speedo is off

There is no difference in ride quality between a 35 profile and a 40. I have used both. If I wanted ride quality, I'd be driving a Cadilac. And My speedo is only off 4mph, I've seen much worse.

and you have just increased your wheel well gap.

Increasing wheel gap by decreasing tire. I want to see less tire and more wheel. It wouldnt look good to fillthe wheelwell with tire just to get rid of wheelgap. Thats just my preference. 17's look too 'stock' IMO. I like my 18's and I like my tire profile.

In 2 years of driving on Michigan roads, I've never dented my wheels. I have pretty good traction. And they fill the wheelwell nicely, not just fill the wheelwell. I have no complaints about the set-up. It looks great and it's not hurting me in any way.

 

[fertez_turbo]

Well, IMO, a 35 profile looks much better than a 40. It's a small difference, but noticable.


There is no difference in ride quality between a 35 profile and a 40. I have used both. If I wanted ride quality, I'd be driving a Cadilac. And My speedo is only off 4mph, I've seen much worse.


Increasing wheel gap by decreasing tire. I want to see less tire and more wheel. It wouldnt look good to fillthe wheelwell with tire just to get rid of wheelgap. Thats just my preference. 17's look too 'stock' IMO. I like my 18's and I like my tire profile.

In 2 years of driving on Michigan roads, I've never dented my wheels. I have pretty good traction. And they fill the wheelwell nicely, not just fill the wheelwell. I have no complaints about the set-up. It looks great and it's not hurting me in any way.

here you go p-dizzle
someone say all rim no tire?

 

[SexyDSM95]

I was always told:
17 = racing
18 = looks

Not sure if it's right but I always have followed it.

 

[99gst_racer]

I was always told:
17 = racing
18 = looks

Not sure if it's right but I always have followed it.

You're close..... Actually it's more like:
18" for the street.
15" and slicks for the strip.

 

[SexyDSM95]

You're close..... Actually it's more like:
18" for the street.
15" and slicks for the strip.

Man, you are just following me around everywhere to correct me huh? Fun Game! :laugh: