So I think I'm going to pick up a new set of wheels soon and I am trying to decide if I should stay with 16's or bump up to 17's. I currently have 16" OEM bridge spokes (yes with Conti RF's) so I'm sure anything will be better in terms of both noise, comfort, and handling.

So those of you that have made the switch to 17's (from 16's)....are you happy with your decision or do you wish you would have stayed with 16's. What differences have you found from one to the next? Thanks!

 

Are you going for the looks of a 17, why not an 18?

I run 16s on the track and 17s as my DD. I did run the 16s for a number of months before I converted over to full time track with the 16s.

Primary reason, ride comfort with the 16s, 205/50 is more comfortable than 205/45/17.

But it all depends on the tire you select and what/why you want to switch.

My 17s are a set of webbies and the 09 Challenge wheels.

Don

 

Thanks for the response. I do not want to run 18's b/c I put ~24000 miles a year on the car with a decent commute. The roads here in NY are horrible and I'd hate to hit a pothole with such a thin tire and be stuck somewhere!

 

I made the switch not too long ago and really didn't notice a big difference in ride. but then I went from 16" runflats to 17" non runflat (Kumho). handling will be determined mostly by the tire not the diameter although a shorter sidewall will give you quicker steering feel.

 

toolazy: I've got 2 sets of 17's (one run-flat one not) and a set of 16's that I change every so often. I would say for my tastes the ride/handling balance is optimum with the 16's w/Goodyear F1-D3's (205/50/16 no longer made). The steering response is probably greatest with the 17-inch run-flats but ride is the most harsh of the 3 sets. The 17's with the non-run flat tires is not a bad ride/handling compromise but the 16's with the sticky Goodyears is my favorite of the 3. Good luck but IMHO you might want to give some thought to some sticky 16's.

 

My MCS came with 17" Crown Spokes. I now have a set of light-weight 17" and a set of lighter 16". If I had the same tires on both sets, I would only run the 16". Much more comfortable on the rough roads.

While turn-in response might be a little better with 17" unless you spend a lot of $ on the wheels, they will probably be heavier, which can offset the turn-in advantage. However, with abundant pot-holes, you don't want expensive wheels.

Turn-in can vary with tire model, so stay with 16" and get great tires if handling is what you want.

If you are more interested in looks than function, go for 17" and avoid pot-holes.

 

I originally had OEM 16in with runflats and switched to 17in aftermarket wheels (~20lbs ea) with a 205/40/17 tire. The ride was harsh on the crapy roads in LA and I had to be careful of potholes, but the look was good. Switch back to 16in light weight wheels (~13lb ea) with a 205/45/16 tire - wanted a little bit more rubber between the car and the road. The ride is not as harsh when compared with the 17in wheels.

 

I'm still torn....I think I'm leaning towards the Konig Feather's (black) in 17" with a 205/45/17 tire...most likely the Bridgestone Potenza G019 Grid.

The 16x7 Feather is 15.2 lbs with a 40 offset or the 17x7 is 16.8 lbs. with the same 40 offset.

The 16" 195/55/16 G019 tire weighs 23 lbs while the 205/45/17 weighs 22 lbs so the difference between the two would make the 16" wheel 0.6 lbs lighter.

I don't track the car (just an MC) and if I'm going to spend $ on wheels they had better at least look good right? Chime in and help!

 

So, going for all-aeason tires? IMO, they are compromise tires that are mediocre in any season. You could put snow tires on you OEM wheels, and summer tires on the Konigs.

Rota Slipstream 16x7 are only 13.9 lbs. but $70 more each.

With some tires there is very little weight difference between 205/45-17 and 205/55-16. Michelin Pilot Exhalto PE2 (summer tire) for instance, the difference is 1 lb. and there is no weight difference between 205/45-17 and 205/50-16. So, same tread width, and little weight added.

You will be giving up comfort going to 17" from 16". If you like the big wheel/small sidewall look (it is popular) and are willing to give up a little ride comfort, go for it.

My 2 cents: If you want performance, safety, and ride comfort go with 16" wheels and summer tires, and snow tires on your OEM wheels.

 

Up intil this morning I was all set to move into a set of aftermarket 17's with UHP, Z rated Michelein Pilot Plus all seasons. Then I talked to one of the SA's at my dealer [initially about the advanteages of a strut bar]. Although they look better, they do offer a much harsher ride. So instead I will be using the money to fund the Stage 1 JCW upgrade and keep my 16" Crown spokes with the Michelins in a 16" wheel.

Any comments about my plan?

 

Sounds GREAT, you will love it. Keep motoring

 

Honestly, I noticed no difference in ride comfort between my stock 16's with runflats and my 17" Rota's with 215/45 non-RF summer tires. I batted back and forth between this very decision for quite awhile, but in the end I'm glad I went with the larger wheels .. it just looks better. It helped fill up the wheel wells a bit, and since I have no plans to tinker with lowering, that was a plus for me.

Granted .. having extra money to put towards a JCW kit is a big plus as well

 

Thanks t0ad. It really is driving me crazy. I don't want to regret whatever decision I choose. If I do choose 17's I'm not sure if I should go 205/45 or 215/45 - do you have a picture of your car with your Rota's on there? I'd love to see the difference with the wheel gap - thanks!


Do you think the 215/45/17 rather than 205/45/17 would make the ride more comfortable with the extra .17 inch sidewall

The stock 195/55/16 tires are 24.44 in high with a 4.22 in sidewall
and the 205/45/17 tires are 24.26 in high with a 3.63 in sidewall
and the 215/45/17 tires are 24.61 in high with a 3.80 in sidewall

 

have mc also w/17's imho 17's better !

 

Uggghh, I really need to take new pictures. The weather just hasn't cooperated around here FOREVER. But anyway, here's the car back when I was still waiting for my centercaps to arrive..





It's pretty much impossible to tell the difference in wheel well gap compared to the stock 16's with the naked eye .. the majority of the better looks came from the smaller offset of the Rota's compared to the stockers, which pushed the wheels outward more. Still wish it was lower, but ehh.. roads and driveways and such around here just won't permit it.

As far as the difference between 205's and 215's, I doubt you'd be able to tell the difference from a comfort standpoint.. and like they say, wider is better

 

Thanks for the pics. I was actually asking about the 205/55 vs. 215/55 for the difference in sidewall height rather than the width of the tire!

 

If you had non-runflats on both, you would notice a significant difference. The runflats cancel the effect of the increase in side wall height. I notice a significant difference between 16" with 205/55-16 and 205/45-17. I have two sets of wheels and swap them frequently.

 

No personal experience with 215/45-17, but I doubt that 0.17" would have much effect. The difference between 205/45-17 and 205/55-16 is about 0.8" (radius). Since the tread thickness is not going to vary much, that 0.8" has to all be in the sidewall.

Here is what the wheel gap looks like with 205/55-16



Regarding the difference between 205/50-16 and 205/55-16, the first will give you better acceleration, and--depending on the tire brand--a little less weight. The latter will give you more ride comfort (0.4" sidewall difference), less wheel gap, and a little more accurate speedometer reading.

 

I just made the switch from 16" rft's to 17" non-rfts (and wheels of course) and I'm very glad I did. I wanted to maintain at least as good a ride quality but better handling and a quieter ride....and get the nicer "look" of the 17" wheels. I feel like I accomplished all of that.

I don't do any really aggressive driving in my Mini and ended up with the Michelin PE-2 which are very nice. My short list included the BS - Potenza 760; General Exclaim UHP & BS G-019 Grid. All of which were available in the 205/45/17 size that I had selected.

Bottom line...going from 16" rft's to 17" non-rft' I got ....a little better ride quality, definitely quieter and about the same handling. All in all I'm happy.

PS...kudos to Alex at Tire Rack for his help.

 

If those were OEM runflats, I'm surprised you didn't get better handling with the 10mm (0.4") increase in tread width. The PE2 should have at least as much grip as the runflat.

I have PE2's on my 17" wheels. Wish I had them on my 16 wheels. They are good tires. The Bridgestone Potenza RE-11 looks interesting. It may have a little better handling than the PE2, but may also be louder. The favorite for ultimate handling on the street seems to be the Dunlop Z1 Star Spec., but louder than the PE2 and RE-11.

 

TOad:

Are those the Rota RB in Hyper Black? Right now I am running 205x50x16 tires on 16x7.5 wheels. The ride is good and it does handle very well. Considering 215x50x16 tires since they are the same diameter as stock, although the 205x50's with their lower gear ratio makes around town driving real zippy with the automatic trans.

 

Robin...they were OEM rft's (GY's) and you're right, the handling is noticably better. I understated that aspect.

The only downside to the PE2, as far as I can tell is the treadwear rating. Alex advised me to rotate, rotate, rotate and go in a crisscross pattern so that they will wear evenly.

 

Yea, you wont get 20K miles out of any Ultra High Performance summer tires, but it isn't an issue for me. I commute on the internet so I don't put that many miles on the car. Might as well wear it out before it goes out of date.

Having two sets of wheels, I rarely go more than 1,000 miles between swaps, and I always cross rotate when I swap.

 

Thanks to all who have posted and will continue to post. I think I am going to go with the 17" Konig Feather with a set of Bridgestone Potenza G019 Grid in 215/45-17 - My logic is similar to rwwilsonjr's in that the 17's will give me the look and since I am going from 16" RFT's to 17 Non-RFT's I will notice some improvement in handling etc.

I do plan on taking Robin's advice and running winter tires on my OEM 16's but I can't fathom buying a 17" summer tire to put on the Feathers with a horrible tread wear rating since I put ~24,000 miles a year on my MC.

From what I'm told by Alta the OEM lug bolts are a pain in the a$$ to use with this rim in that I will scratch the lug holes with my torque wrench. So of course my next question is does anyone know of a place that I can buy these "tuner" lug bolts in black? Thanks again

Oh and this crisscross tire rotation..... Is that front goes to back and opposite back goes to front? I'm usually a straight front / rear kind of swapper.

 

Front to back is the standard rotation method. The "X" pattern only applies to non-directional tires (e.g., the Michelin PE2). Not sure about the Grids. http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tiretech/techpage.jsp?techid=43&