I remember when I had my h22 '94 civic coupe. thec ar came with some cheesy american racing wheels. 195/50/15. I never had a tach, so I would know when to switch gears by looking at my speed. First gear would take me to 35 and 2nd would take me to 65. Pretty soon those tires became bald so I put some 14 steelies with 185/65/14. They were pretty high tires. THen I noticed that my 1st gear took me to 40 and my 2nd took me to 68.

Right now I drive a B18C hatch and for some reason my car seems slower than it should be. It seems like it takes forever to finish 1st gear. Would lowering the tire height in this case help me rip through my gears faster (or atleast my 1st gear)

 

i dunno but im guessing the smaller the tire and wheel combo the faster it would make one revolution of the tire compared to a bigger tire and wheel combo. then theres the matter of the weight of the tire and wheel. i dont think the tire HEIGHT would make a lot of difference.

 

The wheel/tire is essentially the final gear in the drivetrain. Therefore changing the diameter will change the gearing ratio. Yes, you can accelerate a smaller diameter tire with less energy than a larger one. Your speedo will be incorrect, however, as well as your gearing limits: you'll have to shift sooner.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by blueeg &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">i dont think the tire HEIGHT would make a lot of difference. </TD></TR></TABLE>

Smaller height = smaller diameter = smaller circumference.

ie. the height of a 20 inch tall tire is 2.7 inches less than a 175/70/13 (or 195/50/15).
I top out at ~57 in second with a 20". The 175/70/13 will allow ~62.