As the title states, I'm looking for not only pictures of tires in the above sizes, but also where I can buy them... but there's a catch...

I'm looking for (very much preferably the 16") those tires with raised white letters on them. The tire code might have "RWL" in it.

Anyone know of any? I can't seem to come across them.

Thanks in advance!

 

Try Tire Rack and Discount Tire Direct.

Most cars would not use both of those sizes, because the outer diameter of the 16" size is larger than the 15" size. For example, cars that use 195/50-15 - such as del sols, CRXs, and pre-'96 Civics - should be using 205/40-16. And cars that use 205/45-16 - such as Integras and '97-00 Civics - should be using 205/50-15.

 

205/40/16?

Every tire calc. that I'm checking says that 45's only increase the diameter of the tire by .3", and the circumference by 1". However, if I switch them to 40's the diameter drops by .5" and the circumference drops by 1.6". These measurements are compared to my stock tire size.

By those measurements, is the 40 REALLY going to be the best bet? Or would it even make that big of a difference?

 

Yes, it makes a difference.

What kind of car is this for - model, year, version, engine, body style?

 

1993 Honda Civic EX, EJ1, D16Z6

 

Okay, here is how the outer diameters of these sizes compare with your stock size:

175/65-14: 22.96" (stock)
195/50-15: 22.68" (-1.2 percent)
205/40-16: 22.46" (-2.2 percent)
205/45-16: 23.26" (+1.3 percent)

As a general rule, tires usually fit if the tread width is no more than 20 mm wider than stock, and the outer diameter isn't larger than stock. When you go more than 20 mm wider and/or when you have a larger outer diameter, you risk rubbing of the tires on the wheel wells and fender liners. In this case, with 205/45-16, you have both of those going on. That doesn't mean it will definitely rub, but it might, and it's something to think about. Another downside of larger tires is that they reduce the rate of acceleration, because it's like getting taller gears on your transmission.

That being said, this is one of the closest cases you can find - most pre-'96 Civics use 175/70-13 tires, which are 1.4 percent smaller than your 175/65-14 - so your case is more borderline than most. As you can see, the 205/45-16 is actually closer in diameter to stock than the 205/40. So if you want to try 205/45-16, feel free... (With 15" wheels on your car, you might also try 205/50-15 rather than 195/50-15, since the 205/50 is only 0.5 percent larger in diameter than your stock size.)

 

Alright, all that makes sense. I'm thinking I might go with the 205/40/16 just to be safe. Sounds like having less rather than more would be a better bet here.

Now, back to the question I had originally asked:

Do you know of any tires in the sizes we've been discussing that have raised white letters rather than raised black letters (solid)?

 

On the Tire Rack website, you can do a keyword search for "raised white letters". However, all of the search results are for larger tires. I suspect this is because that "look" is usually associated with RWD muscle cars which use larger tires than our cars.

You could always do it yourself with white tire paint...