Tire Size Improvements

[Blue07CivicEX]

If this has been asked previously could somebody point me a link and tell me to shush.

I am looking at improvements for my civic which currently runs 205/55/16's on an alloy rim.

I used a tire size calculator somebody posted previously and found if I run something along the lines of a 185/75/14 I will get the same speed readout as my stock tires (which is something i'm definitely interested in).

Now for the question, am I better off keeping stock or going to a narrower tire with a smaller rim and putting solid hubcaps on a set of steel rims? Does anybody have data to show what kind of improvement if any?

[guitarterry]

wow, what a question. No change in diameter, but a heavy aero tire, to a light fat tire. i would say, city use the light tire, highway the aero tire. In my opinion, (no facts) the difference between the two would not be worth it unless you go bigger diameter.

[Daox]

I'd mostly agree with guitarterry. As is the case not only in wheels, but in general with the car, weight reduction tends to help more in city driving and aero helps more with highway driving. However, there may not be a huge difference in weight. The best thing to do would be to get the weights of the tires and wheels and see how they compare. If they are close, obviously the skinnier tire with solid cap would be better.

[Blue07CivicEX]

I have to say, at the same time I joined this forum I joined hondacivicforum.com looking for engine improvements to get better gas mileage and you guys are very pleasant, helpful and intelligent where I didn't get that feel from the other forum (seemed to be a bunch of ricers :-/ )

I am going to see what I can find on weight for the tires I did some preliminary searches and it seemed about an 8lb reduction per wheel on the rubber alone. I need to do some more investigating on the rims, does anybody have a set of 14" steel rims they know the weight for? That would limit my work to finding out what my alloys weigh.

My SG2 should be here by the weekend so I will be able to get some pre-modification numbers before I start. I need to find a hill and do more research on coast down testing (I need to see how you guys are doing it) to get a baseline.

So far I have adjusted my driving habits trying to reduce full stops and changed my shift point from 4k to 2k I was getting around 30mpg before driving a bit aggressive (read a lot aggressive) so this tank will be 200miles eco friendly and 100 miles aggressive.

Anyway! enough ranting I just wanted to say thanks for the help!

[jonr]

I suggest going bigger (in diameter) to get taller gearing and going narrower (to get less rolling resistance).

I'd very much like to see numbers from someone.

[whokilledthejams]

Originally Posted by jonr

I suggest going bigger (in diameter) to get taller gearing and going narrower (to get less rolling resistance).

I'd very much like to see numbers from someone.

In a perfect world, we'd all run dragster/sandrail fronts.

Weld Racing Magnum Import Drag Wheels - JEGS

They come in 15x3.5! Of course, they cost a fortune, too.
At the very least, it would be tempting to find a set of really skinny wheels for the back of my car, which would give me a lot more clearance to do skirts, on top of having the benefits of skinny tires.

[cfg83]

whokilledthejams -

Originally Posted by whokilledthejams

In a perfect world, we'd all run dragster/sandrail fronts.

Weld Racing Magnum Import Drag Wheels - JEGS

They come in 15x3.5! Of course, they cost a fortune, too.
At the very least, it would be tempting to find a set of really skinny wheels for the back of my car, which would give me a lot more clearance to do skirts, on top of having the benefits of skinny tires.

Wow, very tempting (as low as ~7.5 lbs!!!!!!). At that price, covering them with cheesy wheel-covers would be prudent to keep them from getting stolen.

CarloSW2

[Volones]

I have 14" steel wheels on my Mazda and they're 18 pounds each with a similar offset. I don't know for sure but I would expect your wheels would be a little lighter than that, but not much.

Why not go with 14" lightweight rims? There are some manufacturers of forged rims that would fit your civic that have weights nearly half of my steelies. For me the price was the deterrant, but I don't know your finances. The rims can go for around $1,000 for 4, so that may help your decision (it did mine for sure).

Vol

Also, I will try to find the wheel weight spreadsheet that I saw so you can compare.

[whokilledthejams]

Originally Posted by Volones

I have 14" steel wheels on my Mazda and they're 18 pounds each with a similar offset. I don't know for sure but I would expect your wheels would be a little lighter than that, but not much.

Why not go with 14" lightweight rims? There are some manufacturers of forged rims that would fit your civic that have weights nearly half of my steelies. For me the price was the deterrant, but I don't know your finances. The rims can go for around $1,000 for 4, so that may help your decision (it did mine for sure).

Vol

Also, I will try to find the wheel weight spreadsheet that I saw so you can compare.

Might you be thinking of Wheelweights.net?

A good quality 14" alloy can come in around 10lbs or less. Steel wheels by comparison would be like walking with cinder blocks tied to your feet.

If I ever do buy wheels for my car, I'll probably get a set or Rota J-Mags, because they weigh 12lbs @ 15", and look decent. I know my steelies are closer to 20lbs.

[ATaylorRacing]

Those Weld wheels are great for the track but WAY to fragile for street use. I had some Kosei Racing rims that were street legal but all four had up to a tenth of an inch wobble after 2 years of babied street driving and lots of drag racing...never curbed. I say go to Diamond Racing Wheels then click on their ministock button. They have steel wheels that should be tough enough...various 13s & 15s and bolt patterns. Their 13x5.5 with 1 to 3 in of back space is only 10.5 lbs and cost is $75.50.