So i have 4 new steelies but the problem is the width is 5.5. Putting a 205 would fit but what would be the problems? higher stress in the sidewall? Faster wear? Would it be okay to track my car with 205 tires on a 5.5" rim? Im trying to prepare my car for my first hpde and was wondering if theres any negative consequences for doing this. thanks

 

Depends on the tire. I have driven perhaps 30,000 miles & dozens of autocrosses on 205/50 Azenis mounted on 5.5 rims. It's not optimal, but it works fine enough.

 

im debating on either getting falken azenis or toyo ra-1. its for road racing im leaning more towards the ra-1's

 

For track driving, get the RA-1, no question.

You should be fine using most 205/50-15 tires on 15x5.5 rims. The Azenis (new Azenis RT-615 as well as old Azenis RT-215) are notorious for being larger than most other tires labeled as 205/50-15, so you might avoid that particular tire on a 15x5.5 rim. I'm using RA-1 205/50-15 on 15x6 rims and they don't stick out that much, should be fine on 15x5.5.