I am very interested in getting new wheels and tires in a package deal either on the net or on island. I want to get either 18's or 17's. I don't know too much about all this car stuff, but I'm learning what I can. I have an 03 WRX. I want a versitile tire, that I can drive year round and has good traction for racing if I decide to do that. I need to know what the pros and cons of a 17 vs and 18 is for racing and everyday driving. Also is there a good online store that you guys recommend, or a good local store with a large selection. If anyone has the gold sti rims (they are 17's right?) that they want to sell I would be interested. I just need some help.

Thanks,
Nathan

 

look cooler (if you're into that) and have a smaller sidewall. If you hit a nasty pothole, that could be trouble. 17s are lighter, cheaper, almost as cool (if you're into that) and have a medium sidewall, offering more protection. 16s are even lighter, much cheaper, not at all cool, and have lots of sidewall. Two words, Rotational Weight.

San

 

I have the stock 16's on my car right now and I am content with how they look. If I upgrade my wheel size is there anything new that I need to get, like brakes? Also could you direct me to a good website to look at rims and possible by some. The looking cool part matters to me some, I want them to look good, but more than that I want good wheels that have the best traction for racing and regular driving.

 

How much are you willing to spend should be the first question? Because there are less expensive wheels out there that will hold up good or you could get some expensive it depends on what you want to pay you could look in the vendor section sometimes there are vendors with good deals...http://www.gruppe-s.com sells wheels and I have delt with them before nice and quick. There are many places just look around...

 

I'd recommend 17's on a WRX for good looks and you can still get a fairly lightweight rim. Plus tires aren't as expensive.
A lot of guys like Rota's. cheap, good looking, lightweight, and cheap. check out subydude's website.

 

If looks aren't that big of a priority, keep the stockers and get Bridgestone S-03's.

Personally, I think wheels can make or break a car's looks. The WRX looks hideous with the stock wheels and ride height IMHO. Add some bigger wheels and less wheel gap and the WRX has the looks to back up its performance. I suggest getting some Rota Tarmac II's or Downshifts and the best tires you can afford.


Tarmac 2


Downshift

 

For a really good All-Season tire that can be used for racing, check out the Bridgestone KDWS. Go to tire rack for more info. Mach5WRX has some good things to say about those.

Rotas = good wheel@cheap price. Nobody is going to go, "WHOA! Check out those Rotas!" But they do look mighty damn fine and won't break your bank.

If you want a bigger wheel, then get the 17's. 18's will:

a.) Cost more
b.) weigh more
c.) break easier (under severe conditions, of course)
d.) require the purchase of a more costly set of tires (this could go under cost more, but is something to think about)

A word about tires: For the exact same set of tires, I will pay $130 for my 16's, and $70 for my wife's 14's for her Neon.

my $0.02 worth
-Greg

 

So where can I find these Rota's Tarmac2's I like their looks. Could someone give me a link?

 

www.subydude.com

 

I think I'm going to get the Tarmac 2's, but where can I get tires, and what does everyone recommmend for tires?

 

BFG KDW's

or

SO-3's

www.tirerack.com has some really good deals, and the shipping is not that bad.

 

what is the right size tire for the Tarmac 2 wheels?

 

215/45/17?

BTW, I think this should be in the wheel and tire section.

 

hey greg, since we are on the subject about rims, thanks again for helping me transfer san's stock rims to my car that day, you install the brake pads yet?

 

Since you said you're learing about this car stuff, allow me to educate a little bit. The real question is not "what is the correct tire size for the wheels?" but "what is the correct Plus 1 tire size for the WRX?"

"Plus 1" means that you're upgrading to a wheel that is 1" larger than your current wheel. If you take a wheel that is 1" larger in diameter than stock, and you mount a tire with the same sidewall height as stock, then you'll end up with a tire that is 1" taller than stock. At a given speed, that tire wouldn't have to rotate as many times, hence you would be turning fewer RPMs to go the same speed. That's could be a good thing, but at the same time your speedometer and odometer would be thrown off, which is bad.

So, if you use a bigger wheel, you need to use a tire with a shorter sidewall so that the overall tire diameter remains the same. We can figure that out using the numbers on the sidewall of the tires - check out this webpage for info: http://www.nepa-scca.com/tirespecs.html . Now that you understand what the numbers mean, here's an excellent tool to help you figure out what you need in a 17" tire: http://www.miata.net/garage/tirecalc.html . Put 205/55-16 in the stock tire size blocks, then fill in 215/45-17 and 225/45-17 in the new tire blocks, and you'll see that both match up really well. I personally run 215/45s with my 17" wheels, but that's because my Legacy's wheel wells are a bit tighter than a WRX's. I think most WRX owners run 225/45-17s because they can fit the wider tire without any rubbing problems.

As already mentioned, www.tirerack.com is an excellent resource for this stuff. Most of what I know about tires and wheels I've learned on their website. Take a look at http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tirete...l/sidewall.htm - there are all sorts of good articles there about tire tech. Tire Rack will also show you what wheels will look like on your car (although they don't carry Rota, so you won't be able to see those).

Pat Olsen
'97 Legacy 2.5GT sedan