Hey guys,
Was at autocross the other day and I saw someone with an Audi TT who put bigger tires on her stock wheels and used spacers to prevent them from rubbing. Has anyone done this?

FYI I posted up a similar post on Tire fitment thread but I lost myself in there

 

wut?
thats not over stretching...

stock tires for our stock wheels are 234/45/17's however, I am running a wider tire on the stock wheel.
I am running a 255/40/17 without any spacers.


255/40/17 on stock '06 wheels

 

Ive done this on my other car with no rubbing issues but I wanted to check with the TL's. I thought you could but I asked a tire installer the other day and he said he wouldn't recommend it. Guess I wont be asking him any questions anymore!

 

^there are limitations.
physically, a wider tire cannot fit on some stock rims.
since our stock rim is 8inch wide, it can accommodate a 255mm tire nicely.

now, i understand your terminology of "over stretching". fitting a narrower tire is called "stretching"
putting on a wider tire would just be called putting on a wider tire. lol

 

Man putting such a wide tire must look pretty weird on a stock rim, i recommend sticking with OEM specs. Now if you have aftermarket wheels then you'll have a bigger variety of tires you can use depending on the wheel specs. Me personally i like a slightly less wide tire so you get a nice stretch. On my 18x9.5's +20 i have a 225/40 and it looks SICK and its only a slight but noticeable stretch nothing at all to be worried about.

 

^errr.....

I dont think we're talking about the same things here.
255 isnt that wide for an 8inch rim.

 

225 on a 9.5" wide rim? And you're balking at the idea of a 255 on a stock 8" rim? Holy shit.

 

His idea of "sick" actually looks broken and unsafe. So.............I guess SICK is actually somehow correct. suprised it isnt actually a 215 with 6degrees negative for the ultimate in sickness. somehow installing......"aggressive" fitting rims so that the tires stretch is so much that you can actually see the inside surface of the rim bead is appealing and actually a goal? its just mexi poke around here. basically rooted in not being able to afford the correct size tire and running what was on the tree swing.

 

*sickly

 

Just to sum up what people are saying on this thread Performance>Form

 

Sarcastic much are we? Yes i think it looks great, ask anybody on the forum if they've had an issue with a 225 on a 9.5 inch wheel there are MANY of us on here... I'll wait (the majority will say no). Please dont bash somebody over their opinion or what they like to do on their own car that they have paid for. I am 2 years strong with my "EXTREMELY CRAZY AND UNSAFE STRETCH OMGAHH" and havent had so much as a flat tire and this is not even my first stretched wheel/tire combo, when something goes bad on me i will agree with you that it is unsafe but till then i rather leave the balloons at birthday parties and not wrapped around my wheels.

 

Is this a serious question?

 

So much for this huh? So Chin gets the "All that matters is that YOU like it" pass and others with the same specs dont? Like i said there are many of us on the forum. Lets keep things mature and fair for all on this forum, i was not recommending these specs at all i was speaking on my own car. Also lets not forget that opinions and taste greatly varies between individuals.

 

i agree with you and lets keep the convo civil. however, the OP was talking about putting a wider tire on the stock rim.
if he was slammed and had wide aftermarket tires and wanted to look good, then your assessment of a stretch would be correct.

nonetheless, your "opinion" does not apply here


Ive found a friend that wants to sell his Volk TE37's. they are 18x9.5 +22 all around.
even tho, I know a stretch would LOOK FUCKING AWESOME ON them, I will choose to put a beefy tire on it.
Because RACECAR.

 

You forgot the part where i recommended the OP go with the original tire size. Yes he can get a beefy tire if he likes but lets not forget there is a reason why there is a sticker on our door jam that states the recommended/original tire size. By the way i am having a perfectly civil convo i was not the one who began bashing nor did i continue it. The man even went as far as saying i cant afford better tires because i like a stretch... Gotta love the ignorance huh? We are now off topic speaking about forum manners and i apologize to the OP but its imperative we make the forum a better place and let go of ignorance and the arguing opinions. In the end we all belong to the 3G family, good day.

 

^correct, but he asked for a wider tire.


which, I showed my 255's on stock rim!

 

That's a good looking rear end with those tires, by the way!

 

It really only matters what the person modding their car thinks. If some people want to handicap their vehicle for the sake of vanity its totally their choice. Its absolutely wrong, but its there choice. Form should always follow function. there are no exceptions.

 

The fact that form should follow function is completely opinion based, im two years strong with this "OMGAH YOUR CAR IS GONNA BLOW UP" stretch and no issues. I love it, no grandma baloons on my weekend car

 

not an opinion at all. its actually fact. just check with mother nature.

 

We're talking about whee..... Nvm man you win cuz i haz no moneyz to pay 4 my internet to continue having this conversationzz.

 

A 225/40-18 on a 9.5" wheel is not recommended, the same as a 255/40-17 on an 8" wheel, but that doesn't stop someone from installing what they like, wide or small. The only problem going 225/40-18 is that most of the tires in that size the load rating is under the factory spec, but once again that doesn't inhibit one from installing the tires. They are both short at 25.1" tall, just one skinny and one fat. To each their own.

 

I agree! Thats why i love Darwin. Poor decisions by others will ultimately benefit me.

 

there is an entire thread on 255's on a stock wheel. pics and all

why are we discussing this again...?

 

cuz we are tired of CAI's getting all the threads

 

I understand your point and its valid. If everyone on here followed all instructions based on the manufacturer recommendations all our cars would be stock!


Lets all get together shall we?

What I am looking for is performance over look.

 

Well im not saying to follow ALL the manufacturer recommended specs im just saying that about the tires. Performance wise im not sure if there is anything to gain from a wider tire for your wheels so i'll let somebody else chime in on that.

 

I'm not sure what's going on in this thread anymore but here's the basics:

In a racing setting the goal is to get the most rubber onto the road! Fitting wider tires to the rear can accomplish this provided the tires fit properly! Stretching tires is when you have a 10 inch wide rim and stick a 245mm or 255mm wide tire on it! It simply needs at a minimum 275mm to allow the tire's tread room for the sidewall so it will sit as perpendicular as possible to the rim. When the tire's sidewall is stretched it forms a shallower angle with the edge which can lead to tire failures.

What the OP is talking about is wider tires on factory wheels. You can easily put a 245mm wide tire on the stock wheels. However with some tires you can go to 255mm. You won't need a spacer on our cars since we have the clearance for that much room. If you want to put 275mm tires or wider on the car you'd need to look into wider wheels with the correct offset (to avoid spacers) and as well rolling the fenders!

 

As the last post states:

Wider tires, equals more rubber contacting the road equals more grip!

Thank you Gentlemen.

 

There's always a range of tire widths that work on a certain rim, too wide of a tire for the rim and the sidewalls bulge, too narrow they stretch which also causes you to lose grip. Going 20mm wider will not be any issue as long as the tire has similar load/speed ratings. One one of my old beaters I had 275s on a 7 inch rim, a little bulge but no issues with it. I have 295's on a 9" wide rim on my Impala no issues either. My Trailblazer SS came stock with 255/50/20's on a 20x8" rim, so 255 are definitely in range, I wound up going to 275/45 on that truck zero issues. Within a half inch or so of diameter the speedo will only be off by a little bit. The only reason not to go wider is fuel economy (more rolling resistance on the road), snow and heavy rain. A skinny tire uses less fuel and can cut through snow better, just sucks on dry pavement for performance. When its time for new tires on the TL I'm going 255/40/17 instead of 235/45.

 

I wish I had not seen this.

You think a 255 on a stock rim looks weird but you have a ricer stretch? Wow. 255s on stock rims look factory. No one would ever know the car did not come with that size from the factory.

I hope you're not tryin to argue the performance aspect of a stretched tire vs a slightly wider tire because you're not going to like the outcome. I've seen 275s on 7" rims on cars that are autocrossed and road raced. One of our turbo cars uses 275 drag radials on a factory 7" rim. I've always thought our cars looked like they had a slightly stretched look from the factory which I hate. The 255s made it look so much better and since I used to track it, the performance gain was welcome.

The sidewalls are not made to handle a horizontal load. Just because you've gotten away with it does not mean it's ok.

To the OP, you can run a 255 on all four corners with no problems. No rubbing ever and the car not only looks better but it performs better.

 

prolly never saw a 9.5 with a 225 at an autocross

 

Now you're calling me a ricer because i like some stretch on my tires? Wow talk about bashing, i thought we were done with arguing opinions. Dont bash anybody for what they like on their car. The tire size i want to use is at my own discretion NOT yours so grow up because there are probably plenty things i find about your car that look like horse shit to me but i wont go as far as bashing you or calling you names because i understand that people have different taste for things. Lets leave this to the high school kids shall we?

 

I said a ricer stretch, take it how you want.

You can't say wider tires will look weird and to stick with stock specs with absolutely no facts to back it up and have stretched tires on your own car and expect to not be called on it.

Tell me, what on my car looks like horse shit? The only visual changes are a very slight drop, 255 tires that look like they belong there more so than the stock tires, and the BBK which has black calipers in order to not stand out. My car looks stock to most non TL owners but it handles and brakes with the best of them.

You call wider tires balloons. Have you ever seen a 255 on a stock rim? No you haven't because you wouldn't be making the balloon comments if you had. I've seen plenty of stretched setups. A 255 looks factory on a stock rim. A 225 on a 9.5" rim not even close. You're trading performance for vanity (for those that actually like the look). You're reducing performance over stock and then you have the nerve to say you don't know if a wider tire on a stock rim will boost performance? Let me make it easy for you. It does. A wider tire on a stock rim increases performance. I'm not relying on my feelings like "I was able to go 70mph around a 90 degree corner" and all of the other BS people post. I've measured lateral g force and measured stopping distances on every set of tires I've had on the car. I've also had it at Willow on several occasions which is a place anyone with stretched tires should avoid at all costs.

I still don't get how people will give up performance which is also safety for looks.

Again, for the OP, you will gain performance by going wider but there are other more important things to consider if performance is the goal. Compound for one. A 225 ultra performance summer compound is going to outperform a 275 all season on dry or wet pavement. If your climate allows, I highly suggest a nice set of summer tires.

 

"Our cars when new came with tires specifically chosen by the automobile manufacturer. Those tires weren't picked just because they were a cool size and a familiar brand OR because Honda thought those size tires were nice to look at. The manufacturer weighed the attributes of various tires and tire sizes, and chose the best fit for your car's performance profile on the factory wheel."

^^^^ THOSE ARE MY FACTS TO BACK UP THE "STICK WITH STOCK SPECS", IF A 255 TIRE WOULD BENEFIT MORE THAN THE STOCK SIZE WHY WOULD HONDA NOT GO WITH THE 255?

By the way i didnt say anything on your car looked like horse shit i said everybody has their own opinion on other peoples cars but it still leaves no need to bash.... AGAIN, grow up... or how you said, take it how you want it. Im sure you'll ignore this as you did in my previous post. I really hope you dont greet our new members in this manner.

 

OP im from the same area as you i live in NYC and it snows a lot so for what its worth a narrower tire is also better when it comes to the snow because it has more weight per square inch since it isnt as wide so it can "plow" through the snow easier than a wider tire can. Again, from a 235 to a 255 the differences arent huge but just stating the facts. (Also just because i know and state these facts doesnt mean i necessarily follow them on my weekend car which is my TL but on my daily i do) a 255 is also heavier which could lead to a slight drop in gas mileage... There are MANY variables to consider when comparing two sizes and trust me Honda considered them all and came up with what they know is the best mix of all things combined.

 

lol, because of cost, young one.

 

 

Factory tires are chosen for a variety of reasons. The car is expected to operate everywhere from Canada to Phoenix, in snow and on dry pavement. They have to be low noise and low rolling resistance where an additional .1mpg is a concern when you're selling a million cars. They have to last decently long. Factory tires are a huge compromise. You can greatly improve on what the factory put out when you tailor the tire to your specific needs and goals. Don't fool yourself, performance takes a backseat to the other attributes, don't be so naive.

Going by your logic quoted in that wonderful paragraph of nothingness, are you saying there's no performance to be gained by going wider? Are you going to argue something that has been backed up at the track and validated with objective data?

In addition to that meaningless paragraph you quoted that contained no facts, you yourself are running on aftermarket rims that significantly differ from factory rims and a narrower tire than factory. Does this only work in one direction, you should stick with factory specs if you're thinking about actually increasing performance by going wider but if you want to use a narrower tire on a wider aftermarket rim and hurt performance and safety that's ok? I've never seen a 18x9.5/225 combo on any factory setup from Acura.

You didn't post a single fact, do I need to link to the definition of fact for you?
Wait you're talking about weight but you're running wider 18s? Lol. If your last sentence is true, why did you go with something different? In reality, the "manufacturer knows best" argument is used by people who don't know what they're talking about. Maybe I should switch back from my 255 NT05s to the stock 235 Michelins, that's sure to make the car perform better.

Just curious, how much testing have you done on both the stock tires and wider tires on stock rims? How many 255s on stock rims have you personally seen? I'm guessing you must have seen some if you can say they look like balloons. I hope you're speaking from experience and not just repeating stuff you hear on the Internet.

 

i think its safe to say; gil05 doesnt really know what he's talking about