So i'm sure this has been asked but the search wont work on the site at the moment.

I have a 94 accord and am buying 16x7 wheels. I want a thicker tire so would a 205 45 work?

or do i need a 215 45 ??

If anyone has any input or pics on what they have I'd appreciate it. I want a more comfortable ride.

 

Im running 225/50/16 they have about 3" of sidewall
Ride great almost like stock

 

Keep in mind that changing the tire size of your car will make your speedometer off. Just wanted to let you know.

 

205/45/16 is too short and will give too harsh of a ride.(~23" tall)

205/50/16 is not only the 'correct' size(closest to stock size), but would be the most optimal performance wise for the available sizes.(~24" tall)

205/55/16 will allow a bit more comfort at the expense of gearing and ultimate grip, but generallty, tires are a little less expensive and easier to come by.(~25" tall)

I highly recommend shopping around different sizes on www.tirerack.com

Just a quick search on TR turned up 22 results for the 205/45, 44 for the 205/50, and a whopping 166 for the 205/55.

I'm in the same boat, I already have my 16x7 wheels, and after going back and forth on sizes, I've come down to the 205/50/16 based on wheel width, tire/size availablity, height, and performance. Definitely the best comprimise of the bunch. I'm probably going with Continental DW's because of my need for something a little longer lasting(compared to a max performance tire), good wet grip(the DW is considered the 'best' wet non-r compound tire by many autocrossers), and good dry performance. While the DW isn't the best in the last category, it's wet performance makes up for it, IMO. I commute about 70 miles a day, and autocross 1-2 times a month; I already have a set of non-summer tires to run in the colder/snowier months, so I can go with something a bit more performance oriented in the warmer months. I considered a max performance tire(205/50/16 Dunlop Direzza ZII's), but because of my commute, I'd wear through a set in about 2-3 months. At almost half the cost, the DW works out the best for me. I'll be purchasing them within the end of the month, and will post pictures/review throughout the season.

 

My 225/50/16' s are 24 1/2" tall here's a picture
won't let me attach pic
Look in my garage photos it shows tires on 16 x 7
wheels on the honda, Tires are brand new !!!

 

What wheel width are you running? A 225 width isn't optimized on less than 8" wide. Tests have shown it's best on a 8.5-9" width depending on sidewall size. It'll fit just fine, but the sidewalls are a bit pinched and less than optimal for performance. R-compounds can deal with the pinching pretty well since the sidewalls are typically very stiff and the construction of the tire allows for it. This is why we see stock-class Integra Type-R's in SCCA autocross cramming 275's onto 6.5" width wheels. For a street tire, it's best to stay within the limits that the tire manufacturer specifies, erring on the narrow side. A very slight stretch preloads the sidewalls allowing for faster transition response from the tire. For maximum response/performance out of a street tire, it's generally best to match tread width(not section width) to the wheel's width. +/- half and inch in tread with compared to wheel width is generally acceptable.

I'll search around for the testing, I belive 949racing and Grassroots Motorsports have pretty solid info with back to back testing results.

Here's some articles from GRM, they'll be updating this section VERY soon with the testing of the new crop of street tires that came out this year:
http://grassrootsmotorsports.com/art.../wheels-tires/

 

There 225/50 zr 16 16 x 7" wheels,
Im not going to autocross !
im more of a Drag racer
& I don't like the rough ride of 40-45 side walls

 

https://honda-tech.com/album.php?alb...ictureid=92027
https://honda-tech.com/album.php?alb...ictureid=90432

It's a little hard to see(try getting a shot of the wheel/tire combo from looking at it vertically/profile), but you can see a bit of pinching. A tire of that width would definitely benefit from more wheel width.

Drag racing changes things significantly. You can run a wider tire on a narrower wheel and get away with it. It's not really increasing the contact patch as much as going with a taller tire would, though. Once again, it's all VERY dependent on the tire itself. Usually a taller tire with a softer sidewall will increase grip at the start, and lower pressures are usually run to increase contact patch. Sidewall strength isn't really important as in drag racing as in other forms of racing.

That's a bit of a generalization, as sidewall aspect ratio depends on tire width to determine it's total size. A 40 series sidewall height is MUCH different on a 195 or 205 compared to a 255 or greater.


Looks like a heavy combo. What tires are those?

 

Also im no kid im 54, I have been doing this a
long time & like my wheels protected from curbs

 

Thanks everyone for their input. Still have some time so im sure ill be obsessing over tire sizes for the next couple weeks.

 

 

Domenge:

I probably spend 3-4 hours at tirerack's site per day looking at tire specs.... when I should be getting work done. haha!


I'm not sure what you're getting at here/point you're trying to make. You wouldn't have to run a tire with a width greater than optimal to protect your wheels from curbs if you didn't hit curbs. Kind of a backwards way for tire selection, don't you think?

 

225/45/16
225/50/16
depending on how much sidewall you want. But for a 7" rim 225 will suffice.

 

225 is not optimal for a 7" width. It's throwing money away at tire width that isn't beneficial. All you're doing with a 225 compared to a 205 on a 7" wide wheel is (most of the time) adding more weight and improper sidewall flex with a street tire. A 205 is almost ALWAYS faster than a 225 in the same height(sidewall aspect ratio will change due to width) up to a certain width wheel; 7" wide wheels work better with a 205 than a 225 width with street tires. Don't waste the money on a 225 when a 205 works better. A 225 doesn't 'come alive' until its on a 8" or wider wheel.

Adversely, a 225 r-compound will be faster than a 205 r-compound on a 7" wide wheel because of the stronger sidewalls and compound. It won't feel as 'good' though.

All of the above is well documented(and proven) with tons of information with a little bit of googling. In fact, in the ST* classes of autocross, in STS and STC/STF a 195 Toyo R1R on a 7.5" wide wheel has been faster than the 205 or class limit 225 widths.


Also, to address your initial tire size question, a 215/45/16 is not only too short, but a bit too wide for a 7" wheel as well. It'll fit just fine(within the range from most manufacturers), but it's less than optimal and would work best on a 7.5-8.5" width wheel. Not only that, there's not a big selection. Being an odd size(really only used on the front of older NSX's and ITR's with 16" wheels), prices are a bit higher. Stick with a 205/50/16 or 205/55/16, there's tons of great tires in those sizes.