TSXV6Guy

Hi everyone,
After monitoring this forum for a while, I finally registered since I just picked up a 2010 V6.

Can anyone confirm if I can install the stock 4 Cylinder rims (mags) and 225/50R17 winter tires on my TSX for use in the winter?

the dealer told me that I could only put on 18 inch winter tires but that does not make sense: i have always gone "minus one" when selecting winter tires.
Thanks, and great forum! Lots of useful info around here thanks to everyone!
Manny

09TSXTech

Manny, congrats on your purchase.

Yes, you may purchase the 17" for your V6. I think the dealer is concern about smaller tires on a vehicle that has 80 more hp and 74 more ft/lb of torque than the base 4 cyl which may result in excessive wheel spin on smaller tires and rims.

Nighthawk04

iTrader: (2)

I don't listen to what dealers have to say for the most part. When I first test drove my 2010 V6, I mentioned that I'd definitely be putting some summer tires on the car to which the salesman responded "But the car comes with all-season tires and it's in your best interest to only ever use those tires." I just laughed to myself and thought about how much of a tool that guy was.

Back on topic, though, I was planning on using 17" wheels/winter tires on my V6 and 215/55-17 is the closest overall diameter to stock so I'll likely be using this size and either go with the Michelin X-Ice2 or Blizzak WS-60's. Are 215's going to cut it? It'll look weird but at least the car will be able to get through incliment weather better.

What's interesting here is that the V6's 235/45-18's are actually 2% bigger in overall diameter compared to the 4-cylinder's 225/50-17's. So where 215/55-17 would be an ideal winter diameter for V6 cars, 4-cyl cars would have to use a different size in order to maintain their odo/speedo/tc/stability controller integrity.

TSXV6Guy

Thanks for the replies.

Night, I also wanted to go to 215/55-17 instead of the 225/50-17 for winter. According to tirerack the load factor for the 215's is not the same as the 225's, that therefore there could be a ride difference.

If I had the 4 cyl, I would definitely go with the 215, but I am a bit hesitant for the 215s on the V6.

Other dealers I surveyed here in Canada all recommended 225/50-17, but maybe they wanted to get rid of their existing stocks.

Manny

Nighthawk04

iTrader: (2)

Hrmm, the load ratings on all of the 215/55-17 winter tires listed on TireRack are either 94 -or- 98. The stiffer sidewall of the 98 load rated tires would actually be a good thing in winter because it would maintain a more consistent contact patch on the road; there wouldn't be as much flex so the contact patch would remain narrower, in comparison, to the more flexible 94 load rated tires.

The only trade-off that *may* be noticable with the stiffer sidewall is a harsher ride quality. Pretty soon, I'll be taking off my stock Michelin's (94 load rated) and putting on a new set of summer-only Continental's with a 98 load rating so I'll be sure to pay special attention to the difference in ride quality and post an update to this thread.