This may be a well discussed topic, and if there is a definitive answer I would have found had I searched for I am sorry, but I was having an argument with a friend and needed some quick backup. Of course the problems most often associated with bigger wheels is the weight and because of this the bigger the wheel for the car not to be slower the weight must be reduced. I told him 17 inch wheels weren't practical for road racing in a civic. And he said that people do it and there is nothing wrong with it. I also said that to have a wheel that big you would need a profile of 40 or 45 which are not ideal for handling either. Comments would be appreciated. I would say a really good wheel/tire combo involves getting the most rubber on the road with a light wheel, say a 15 or 14 inch would be good for a civic, and possibly a profile of 50 or 55 for best handling also. There is my rant, have at it.

 

id say small profile tires would be better, say a 40 as opposed to 60. but it all depends on the tires too. stiff sidewalls are better for handling. id rather have a 60 series azeni than a 40 sereis drag tire. but

big wheels=heavy=larger final drive=bad for acceleration generally speaking

so thats why autox people look for like a 13x8 w/ like a 50 series tire w/ a stiff sidewall.

but road racing may be different. higher speeds are encountered in road races so a real small wheel may not be practical due to gearing.

it really depends on the course.
id say smaller wheels 15/15 would be better all around. mostly lighter, cheaper(tires too).
but do not consider me an expert. i dont have the experience or knowledge. just what i think

 

I'm talking Auto Cross too, or something like a Honda Challenge event.


Modified by D15B7turbo at 12:37 AM 4/22/2004

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by D15B7turbo &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">I'm talking Auto Cross too, like a Honda Challenge event for instance.</TD></TR></TABLE>

Honda Challenge is actually a wheel-to-wheel road-racing series, NOT an autocross. Be careful with your words- these guys around here will flame ya

 

Thanks, ok then, perfect tire/wheel combo for a wheel to wheel road racing series such as Honda Challenge.

 

From what I hear, you use the smallest thing that'll get around your brakes. But I'm no expert...

 

I prefer a very large wheel. I use 215/45/16 azenis sports. With my new motor it's a pretty great combo. If you only have 130hp it may not be a good idea.

Once these tires are shot I'll see about getting some 17s under the fenders.

But I also could care less what class I run in. I'm just having fun.

 

i would say lower profile tires are better since there's more hard rim than soft rubber..

 

Bigger wheels and smaller wheels each have advantages.

Bigger wheels - shorter sidewalls for quicker responsiveness; appearance (subjective)

Smaller wheels - lighter weight; lower cost for tires; greater selection of tires; taller sidewall makes wheels less susceptible to road damage

From a performance standpoint, I doubt that you would see huge differences due to the size of the wheel - for example, when compared with changing the much larger differences you can get just by changing to a stickier brand and model of tire.

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by nickgmiller04 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">big wheels=heavy=larger final drive=bad for acceleration generally speaking</TD></TR></TABLE>

Not necessarily. The differences in "effective gearing" (what you are referring to as the "larger final drive") depend on the size of the tire, not the size of the wheel. You can get a bigger diameter wheel, but the outer diameter of the tire may be larger or smaller than stock, depending on the size of the tire (treadwidth and aspect ratio). You are correct that it will hurt acceleration if the outer diameter is larger than stock.

 

Autocross or Road Racing it all depends on what the rules allow you to do. Small wide wheels are common for situations when you are limited/restricted in generating more horse power and changing gears.

Big wheels are used if you're putting down more horse power or have really short gears. 17" size wheels are common in Honda Challenge cars because you can use the 235/40/17 Toyo tire (14, 15, 16 sizes don't come in a 235).

 

another point not yet mentioned:

a 17" 235 tire will have a larger contact patch than a 16/15/14" 235 tire. Plus
there is more rubber on a 17" 235 allowing better heat dissappation/wear life maybe

 

when it comes to wheel size, you're not only concerned with the outright weight of the wheel. I run on a set of 18lb 17in wheels, which are considerably lighter than stock. however, I have no doubt that I am actually losing hp and acceleration due to the velocity of my outer diameter (or something like that). Basically, even though the wheel is lighter, the fact that it is larger means that the weight is harder for the engine to get moving becuase it's further away from the center of the hub. Just like if you held a medicine ball to your chest and tried to spin in a cirlce, then held the medicine ball at full arms length and tried to spin in a circle. It's much more difficult the further away from center that it gets. I'm not that great at physics (shocker, eh) but it was explained to me and that was what I got out of it. However, I feel much more confident whipping corners on these tires, and get lots of hole-shot traction for the start gates and turn exits. Like most suspension mods, it comes down to driver preference and how you can get the car to do what you want it to do when you want it to do it.

 

Depends on what the rules allow..

Depends on what size brakes you are allowed....

Depends on what size tires you allowed to run...

Depends on what mods are allowed to final drive....

Depends, depends, depends.......

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by hybridcrx &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">another point not yet mentioned:

a 17" 235 tire will have a larger contact patch than a 16/15/14" 235 tire. Plus
there is more rubber on a 17" 235 allowing better heat dissappation/wear life maybe</TD></TR></TABLE>

Maybe? No.

I better correct this before you REALLY get flamed. The size of contact patch is independant of the tire size.

Contact patch size depends on the weight of the car, and the tire pressure. Different size tires will just change the SHAPE of the contact patch.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by MightyMouseTech &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Depends on what the rules allow..

Depends on what size brakes you are allowed....

Depends on what size tires you allowed to run...

Depends on what mods are allowed to final drive....

Depends, depends, depends.......

</TD></TR></TABLE>

This is the real answer.