I know this is done too much, but I am having a hard time making the decision. I drive my car very hard, but don't really auto-x it. On my stock height 2000 Civic EX Coupe I have narrowed it down to the following:

MB Weapon 15x7 (my favorite wheel) with 195/55/15
MB Weapon 15x7 with 205/50/15 - probably fits better,
but I don't really like the extra $15/tire
Drag DR-31 15x6.5 with 195/55/15

I like the Weapon wheel, but like the price of the 195 tire. I also read something about turn-in being better with a 195. I am not really sure what that means though.

Thanks for any assistance.

 

The differences between the 195/55 and 205/50 will be minimal. If you don't know what turn-in is, and you're only going to be doing spirited driving at best (no track time)... I'd pick a tire that was a good Summer street tire, and call it a day.

 

Oooops...I left off part of my info. I was definitely going with Yokohama S Drives.

I guess what I am really asking is if the S Drives are wide enough that a 195 will look ok on a 15x7 rim. I know it is approved for it, I just don't want it to look lame. If so, I could spend the extra to go to 205s or go to the smaller, second choice wheel.

I hope that makes sense.

Thanks

Dave

 

The S drive is a decent summer tire that wears well. Its not as good as the kumho xs, yoko advan ad08, bridgestone re11, dunlop star spec, etc. The difference in 195 and 205 is small, but there tends to be better quality selection in the 205 size. Appearance wise the 205 just looks a bit wider on the rim, a very small difference though.

 

run 195/55/15 since its the proper tire size for your car. the 205/50/15 is 1.5% smaller than the stock tire size. the 205/50 would work but the 195/55 is just the "better" size