hey can anyone post up pics of thier 205/50/15 tires on a 6.5 wide rim? i ran some 195/55/15 winter tires this past winter and had some rubbing issues on bumps and dips. just want to know if the 205/50's will be to wide and rub even worse. it would be really great if you had pics of them on an em1 but any pics will help alot. the wheels i will be running these on are drag dr-23...like slipstreams. thanks for the help

 

Cooper Cobra Radial GT 205/50/15's...they rub on turns in the front...well, I'm lowered a lot in the front so that is expected. Go with 195/50/15's.

 

thanx for the quick post. ya our cars call for a 205/50/15, but i was wondering about runnning a 195/50 instead. im lowered about the same as you are in the front so im sure i would witness the same rubbing as i do with my 195/55/15, since you notice the same. thanx again

 

also...even though the 195/50/15 isnt the right tire size for my em1, would someone have pics of this size on their 6.5 wheel? thanx

 

what is the reason u wanna see the piks..too se how low u gotta go to make it look good.. i mean there isnt gonna be no rubbing issue with either side unless its dumped..

 

im already lowered..comparable to the pic in the second post. im trying to decide how the sidewall will look on a 205/50/15 on a 6.5" wheel. im afraid it will be too wide and rub or the tire will be too wide for the rim. i currently have enkei's with a 205/40/17 and my winter setup which are drags with 195/55/15. the 195/55/15 dunlop graspic winter tires rub when i hit dips and humps in the road. im thinking about running summer tires on the drags to change it up and maybe sell off the enkies. soooo...im trying to compare the 205/50's and 195/50's on a 6.5. ive searched an not many pics show me what i want and i also have all of the dimensions of the different tire sizes...just need to physicaly see them mounted. thanx

 

i think the only reason my 205/40/17's dont rub is becaue the tires are falkens and have a tapered sidewall, allowing the tread width to be narrower than a true 205 series tire. even though my speedo will be off, i think ill be safe going with a 195/50/15. my speedo is already off my 3 mph (my speed is 3 mph less than what the speedo is reading) and the two current sizes im running are the specified sizes for my car.

 

heres an idea of my different sizes. thanx

 

Here are 195/50/15's on my 15x6.5 summer wheel...the side wall as you can see doesn't stick out bubbly like a 205/50/15 tire.



You can see here that the 205's stick out a bit like a bubble.

 

nice! this is exactly what i was looking for. those are even the exact tires that im looking at picking up. i think the 195/50/15's will be worth the speedo being off a few mph's. how do you think your 195/50/15 set up performs? hows the handling on the freeway with higher speeds and also in the twisties? did u notice any difference in mpg's and speedo reading? thanx for all of your help man...i didnt think id find someone with this model and size tires on the same car to see how they perform. by the way, very good and clean looking em1. makes me wish i had fbp.

-you wouldnt happen to have a side shot so i can see how they fill the wheel well would you?

 

The 195/50/15's handle good on the highway...smooth and not much vibration if the wheel is balanced correctly. On back roads and twisties, they grip good with the experience I've had. Very responsive. I never really paid attention to the speedo or mpg ratings to be honest but I don't think it made a big impact.

Heres a side shot

 

Never rubbed, but had to modify some stuff.

 

arent si's 15x6 though? that could be making them look bubbly

 

 

They are 15x6, and I believe USDM ITR wheels are too.

 

I believe that 'bubbly' look you're talking about, really depends on the tire manufacturer.

 

Yeah, I forgot to put that into account...some tire brands of the same size (say 195/50/15) can look different when mounted. Although, a 205/50/15 on a 6.5 inch rim does make the tire seem kind of bubbly...in the cases I've seen.

 

yea...it all depends on the tire manufacturer. thanks for all of the help. im pretty sure im going to go with a 195/50/15 set up. by the way, do you guys agree on selling off the enkies? they were from back in the day when 17's were the cool thing in my area. now im getting sick of the 4x4 look they give my little si and the rough ride they generate. even though the drags are of lower quality, they are lighter and the five spoke gunmetal design and finish set off the appearance better imo.

 

the buddy clubs posted in the pics have an offset of 42 right? my wheels have an offset of 40. would this combined with running a 205 series tire cause it to rub? this is why im thinking of going with a thinner/skinnier tire. for an idea... the dunlop direzza dz101 205/50/15 has an o.d. of 23.1 and a tread width of 8.3, the 195/50/15 has an o.d. of 22.7 and a tread width of 7.9. keep in mind that i was rubbing on bumps and dips with my 195/55/15 dunlop graspic winter tires that have an o.d. of 23.6 and a tread width of 7.9. the 205's aren't that much shorter than the 195/55's, making me think they could still rub.

 

by the way by never rubbing....did u roll the inner splash gaurd fender tabs to prevent this, because this is what i have done and its helped somewhat.

 

Yep rolled those tabs and ran no fender guards ...well one side ripped off on the highway so I just took the other one off. Also had to bang in some piece on the inner fender that was rubbing the top of the tires. The offset on those were +38 I think.

 

Yes, they are +42.