With the Kosei K-1 Wheels do you think I should run with the 215 40 17's or the 215 45 17's?

Will both fit ok? Is the 40 or 45 better? No difference?

I'll call Tire Rack tomorrow to get the absolute fit. :smile:

Tanks in advance,

-Jim

 

I just went thru same decision and decided to go with 215/40/17 SO 3. I
talked with Randy many times about rims/tires, read the posts & went back/forth with till I was nuts & didn't want to think about it anymore. Decided to go with light Centerline rims Centerline Randy offered. I spoke to him again yesterday about 215/40 vs 215/45/17 before ordering them. Thought 215/40/17 would look nice and with my H-sport springs and handle a bit better.

Randy assures me 215/40/17 are fine- he seems to know his stuff on everything else so i took his word. Know many are running these without issue from postings. Tire Rack advises against 215/40/17 and says use 215/45/17 due to load rating. I called Randy back today & he advised that he is absolutely 100% sure that 215/40/17 are fine and won't cause any issues at all. Said he's seen 215/35/17 on track running full out entire race with no load issues so 215/40 are fine.

On 16" RIMS Tire rack also advises against using 215/45/16 which many are using successfully.

 

Take you pick of sizes. Tirerack will still warn you for tire sizes they don't recomment for various reasons stated in the previous post. Both sizes will fit- that is not the issue. One thing to think about is if you use any non standard size tire on your stock or aftermarket rim with the car and anything happens to the car- the dealer could say that the cause was the non standard size tire/rim combination. I have heard this argument before and I could see a dealer saying that.

If you are not overloading your car and not doing too much track driving you should be fine. Randy has seen alot so most likely you are safe. Just be aware of your choices. Tirerack is being conservative with their recommendations due to liability issues when they sell tire and wheel combos.

Good luck.

 

Thanks a lot guys!

I failed to mention that I'm going to run Yokohama AVS ES 100 tires. Does that change the argument at all?

I don't run the car with three 300lb passengers. I do take passengers from time to time (who doesn't! ) and I autocross about once per month over the summer on average.

Still say 40 series?

BTW, Tire Rack didn't warn me against the 215 45 17's. Just an observation that I've had of Tire Rack, you can call them 5 times and get 5 different answers.

-Jim

 

>>I failed to mention that I'm going to run Yokohama AVS ES 100 tires. Does that change the argument at all?

The tires you select may not always come in all the sizes. The ES 100 comes in both these sizes.

>>I don't run the car with three 300lb passengers. I do take passengers from time to time (who doesn't! ) and I autocross about once per month over the summer on average.

That will help. It would be a bit crowded with that much weight in a MINI.

>>Still say 40 series?
It is still your choice.

>>BTW, Tire Rack didn't warn me against the 215 45 17's. Just an observation that I've had of Tire Rack, you can call them 5 times and get 5 different answers.
This is possible. I'm getting 215/45-17 for my new wheels. There is not much to warn for this size which is just slightly wider than the stock 205/45-17 tires. It is the 40 series tires that are rated for a slightly lower payload.
Still your choice.

 

My 2 cents...

I bought from somebody OTHER than TireRack and heard nothing of the load rating issue for the 40s. For the record, I have 215/40/17 Nankangs on aftermarket wheels and everything seems to be fine. I have scrubbed the tires once or twice around cloverleafs and they were totally predictable.

 

I think the biggest difference will be that the 40's run slightly stiffer. This is both good and bad. They will respond a little tighter and quicker, but will pick up more road noise and vibration.

Wes

 

The 45's will almost certainly rub the fenders if you've lowered your car; mine did. I had to do a bit of surgery to the plastic fenders and even the metal fender under the plastic to get them to stop rubbing.

This is with SSR Comp wheels and H&R springs. There was no rubbing at all with stock MCS springs.

The 40s will throw off your speedo a little bit so you'll need to adjust how your read it. It will say you're going faster than you really are. A nice and safe mind game to play with yourself

 

>>The 45's will almost certainly rub the fenders if you've lowered your car; mine did. I had to do a bit of surgery to the plastic fenders and even the metal fender under the plastic to get them to stop rubbing.
>>
>>This is with SSR Comp wheels and H&R springs. There was no rubbing at all with stock MCS springs.
>>

Thanks for the info! I'll probably go with the H-Sport because the H&R are just a bit too low for me.

-Jim

 

Yeah, I wish the H-Sports had been available when I got my springs. I may switch to H-Sports if I upgrade the struts to the Koni's.

 

If you go with H-sports and 45 series tires with wheels that are about 42 to 45mm offset then you should not get rubbing. Smaller offset like 38 to 40 maybe. Depends on the wheels.

 

>>If you go with H-sports and 45 series tires with wheels that are about 42 to 45mm offset then you should not get rubbing. Smaller offset like 38 to 40 maybe. Depends on the wheels.


I run the Kosei K-1's. I think those are 45mm.

-Jim