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Just bought a 2009 TSX about 2 weeks ago. The old owner was running 255/40zr19 wanli tires on the front and 245/40r19 tires on the rear... He told me the tire shop told him that was a good setup to make the riding more comfortable. Doesn't make sense but whatever lol You guys explain if that is actually correct and why.
Anyways, down here at Puerto Rico the roads are a mess with holes and wondered what would be the best protection for my rims as in whats the biggest/wides tires i can get without them rubbing or giving me issues. The front don't seem to rub at all but i wonder if in the rear they will. He also installed 10mm spacers if i am not mistaken so that helps i guess. Will appreciate you all's input and insight.
My concerns are:
1. What's the best size to give my wheels a better tire rubber amount to protect it from podholes and bumps?
2. Would a higher tire load index be better? Or lower to have it softer and it damps better? Right now the front tires are 100W XL vs the rear 98V
3. Would higher tire pressure give better damping or lower tire pressure? Something like 35psi vs 40 psi.
Trying to see my best choice given my need and scenario... I wouldn't mind 17" wheel recommendations either, might just move the car back to 17 even thou it looks awesome in 19s... But i hate the stock 17s so looking for other nice looking honda/acura or other branded wheels. Nothing too fancy, just nice/cool looking within stock budget.
You can do 45 series sidewall
Speedo will be off
But you get protection
Go to 17 sell us your 19
Would taller be better? Was going to roll with 255 since it already has them on the front and they don't seem to rub. Haven't tried the rear thou... Guessing 255 gives more meat on the sides where 45 would be taller. What about air pressure thou?
Honestly, 255/40s on a (relatively) narrow 19" wheel is gonna look huge. I'd probably step down to 245/40/19 all around. That should be plenty of protection for your 19" HFPs.
To put into perspective, we have 225/50/17 tires on 17x7.5 OEM wheels. I believe the HFPs are 8" wide wheels, which is an increase of 12.7mm (~13mm) from the OEM TSX 17s. A 245mm wide tire is 20mm wider than the 225s on the OEM TSX 17s, so you're guaranteed (at least from a width perspective) at least the same amount of protection as you did before.
In terms of sidewall coverage, it's hard to get a tire sidewall as large as the OEM 17s because the 19" HFPs wheels take up 2" more in diameter already. Trying to achieve the same amount of sidewall will result in a monster truck look. IMO, you can downsize a bit here. OEM TSX 17s on stock Michelins have 225/50 = 112.5mm (i.e., 225 * 0.50) of sidewall height (how thick the tire looks; i.e., from the top of the wheel to the top of the tire). Running 245/40s = 98mm of sidewall. This is plenty for a 19" wheel. Go 255/40 and your car will look like a monster truck.
As for load index, I'm not sure how it affects dampening ability, but likely not much. It's more about the structural integrity of the tires and how much load they can handle... which may indirectly affect dampening but I suspect not by much. Dampening will be determined mostly by your tire size. Thicker tires will feel more comfortable than low profile tires.
Lower tire pressure will feel softer. Higher will feel tighter. You can play with this a little, but note that it affects MPGs and there may also be safety concerns. Keep the PSIs within reasonable spec.
Thanks for the intel guys. Hmmm I see your point xtcnrice but the rear has 245/40 right now and i had to fix one of the wheels because it got bent... I will post an image in a bit so you can see the amount it bent but thankfully it was fixable. The roads here are probably Top 3 in World's most terrible asphalt roads. The front actually has 255/40 and it does not look that bad... Strangely enough, it almost looks the same as the rear which has 245/40. Might be thread wear difference but not sure. Well i see your concerns but i rather not bend the rim anymore and roll with the 255/40. Question is, will it rub in the rear? Car has 10mm spacers not sure if i mentioned it earlier.
I am not planning to do any performance mods... Nor any lowering or suspension mods. im considering going back to 17" because of the stress on the plates or so. Also makes the ride more comfortable... But i am loving the rims so I am trying to best to stick with them LOL Going into family mode soon so I am loosing my "wanna make my ride look tight" illness hahaha
Both rear wheels got bent somehow, but only one got it badly. The other side was very minimal, you could see it but shouldn't affect ride or make any noise. Well that was not actually me but the old owner... i got the car like that.
Those wheels are one of the best looking Honda OEM wheels out there, congrats! Your car looks great.
Actually, you proved me wrong. The front fitment looks decent even though you aren't lowered. Probably the first time I'm seeing 19" wheels on a TSX without a drop that looks decent. Will it rub? Hard to say for sure. Since you're not lowered, chances are definitely not as high. However if you compress the rears perhaps they might rub the rear fender lip with 255s.
But that's okay. You said you have 10mm spacers all around right? If the rears rub, take the 10mm spacers out and you're good. You're essentially upping the tire width from 245 to 255 (10mm), so it should only poke about 5mm more on each side of the wheel. If you remove the spacer you should clear it just fine. With spacer, you'll need to experiment.
Thanks xtcnrice. I'll take your advice on it. 45 would make it taller right? I think ill stick with 255 just for safe sake because i do agree with you that too big tires will mess the cars look and it does look quite nice with thinner tires. One thing i might try is switch the tires around for like a week and see if they rub (front to back).
One last thing... The owner said that the shop where he bought the tires recommended him to buy 255 on the front and 245 on the rear supposedly to balance out the car and gives more comfortably than 255 all around, does that make sense? I would never do that specially on a front wheel drive car because the handling feels terrible, specially in these feather steering cars -.- But no idea why would that be any better, for me same size on all is best for 4wd and fwd. The only case i would go small/big is on rwd... But you guys maybe could explain the real "good" reason for his tire size choice.
Yeah definitely try switching the fronts/rears first. If it rubs, remove the spacer and try again. If it still rubs, go back to the drawing board. I doubt they will rub without the spacers though.
As far as I know, having wider tires in the front for a FWD car makes sense from a performance perspective. You will have more contact patch (hence more grip) for the wheels that are connected to the drive shaft. However, our cars aren't exactly fast lol so that shouldn't be of concern. A non-staggered wheel/tire setup will perform fine on the TSX. If you end up boosting your car (super/turbo charge), then yeah having a wider setup up front will help with traction. I'm also guessing wider tires up front helps with understeer, as I think having a staggered setup that is wider in the back would increase understeer. If you're just daily driving the car, these things shouldn't matter to you. If you push your car to the limit on sharp turns, then they might matter to you.
I'd just go with a square setup. Especially since your wheels themselves are square.
...
With that being said, I'm one of the odd guys that are running bigger tires/wheels in the back on a FWD car. Why? The answer is because I like the way it looks hahah (call me a ricer LOL). Honestly, it fills the wheel wells better, and since my TSX isn't particularly that fast, I don't really care about the slight negative side effects of having a staggered setup on a FWD car. Performance wise for a FWD car, the best option is to do reverse staggered (wider up front). Just ask yourself if you care about increased traction up front, a bit less understeer, and you'll find the answer. I'm probably missing something so maybe someone else could chime in. But it's all negligible for a daily driver if you ask me.
Yeah your statement makes sense. But wider on the front wont make the ride more comfortable... Plus it will make the steering more sensitive i think. Lol i respect your ricer preference, if you have the money and it makes you happy then why not have it your way? Meh people sometimes are too pushy about making others think their way of thinking is the "correct" way. Plus now days common sense is the least sense lol As long as it does not make a hazard or affect others, then go for whatever look/feel/smell/whatever you like. That's my way of thinking ;-)
Yeah your statement makes sense. But wider on the front wont make the ride more comfortable... Plus it will make the steering more sensitive i think. Lol i respect your ricer preference, if you have the money and it makes you happy then why not have it your way? Meh people sometimes are too pushy about making others think their way of thinking is the "correct" way. Plus now days common sense is the least sense lol As long as it does not make a hazard or affect others, then go for whatever look/feel/smell/whatever you like. That's my way of thinking ;-)
Lol thanks! And yeah it won't be more comfortable. His statement makes no sense. Wider tires means more contact patch means there's even more road for you to feel when you're driving. Meaning more rocks/holes/etc that you go drive over, leading to an uncomfortable experience. The 225/50/17 on the stock Michelins are pretty comfy. Likely because of the relatively narrow tire width, but larger sidewall. Off topic, but the stock Michelins are pretty crap in all weather conditions lol
Just an aside...
The word ricer has sort of deviated from its original intention. RICE = race inspired cosmetic enhancements. Taking that term literally would mean that my OEM front underbody spoiler is rice; my OEM side skirts are rice; my Work wheels, which aren't necessarily the lightest of all wheels, potentially rice; and the configuration of my wheel+tire combination (staggered on an FWD) is rice.
However, by today's standard, a ricer is mostly known for being "tasteless". That's obviously subjective, but I guess the community mostly categorizes giant wings, useless hood scoops, altezza lights, and fart cannon mufflers as rice.
So I mean sure, I call myself a ricer jokingly, because well, I am one if we follow the strict root of the acronym. And again, although this is subjective, I don't think any of my mods really fit the modern ricer term.
I Just bought à set also 4x(Hfp pds10) paid $950 with tires
they came with 245/40 so that's what im gonna run for now
idéal size would be 235/35 but i'll take all the protection i need!
i need 4x rdx tpms and center cap!
picture soon
looking at ur pics i might only lower the front ONLY with koni
or Progress springs....
Ultracool ...
Also i think it's the first time i've seen double mud guard at the back ???? Anybody else with back double mud guard ??,,
Sorry for the delayed reply... didn't noticed u asked about the center caps. I bought the car like that... i think those are black and he painted them to match with the wheels.
LOL yeah when i took the car home i did also noticed double mud guards hahaha The only thing that worries me is that if they come loose the tire will take em in probably. Also, not sure how he did to keep them in tightly, he probably drilled some holes or something... I think they are front mud guards or civic 06+ mudguards. They don't look like the rear-rear ones ;-)
Assuming they line up, previous owner could've used the self-tapping screw holes that hold down the OEM side skirts. So yeah, there would be holes, but hopefully they're in the factory place.
Double mud guard is a bit odd though. Was he hoping to prevent slinging of mud while in reverse?
Sorry to hi-jack your thread. Got the same HFP rims and I have 245/40 on Michelin PSS but I feel the steering is sensitive on bumps. Maybe the tires are little bit worn too - just guessing. Planning to do 245/35 next time to get the same diameter as stock rims? No?
Where did you get your Acura center caps for the the Honda HFP wheels
I bought the car like that bro... pretty sure ebay. I think they are black really and he painted them galaxy gray which is the name of the color of the HFP rims. If you find galaxy gray nuts let me know cause i can't find them -.- rolling with black ones now. Those that it had in the image were like bronze. Good luck!
Im from Europe. So I have the Accord CU3 (diesel) but equal to your TSX. This is the 180hp car. Stock it comes with 17, 225/50-17
I already ordered and got the AEZ Crest dark and at the same time the new 2016 TEINS FLEX Z coils that include 16 dampening from soft to hard. I'm a family man and this is merely for the look. No racing or speeding.
Just looking for a very sporty but clean look.
The AEZ crest Dark are: 19x8 and ET50.
I will moint the TEIN 1st on stock wheels this weekend. Next Tuesday i will put the rims.
However, im very confused about the tires to go with. I dont want to do anything to the fenders. Im not plan to go very low to avoid big camber issues or rubing. Still, this ET50 seems nice. BTW, i cant use spacers. Police doesnt allow that here because of car inspections.
Therefore could you please help?
I've seen:
1. 235/35/19
2. 225/40/19
3. 245/35/19
4. 235/40/19
It looks like:
1. will have a smaller diameter and the car will be 6mm lower
2. will be bigger and the car will go up 4mm
3. will be almost the same to default 1mm difference
4. will be bigger and the car will go up by 6mm or so
Portugal roads are +/- and going inside garages bellow the buildings can lead to hit the ground with the chassis if you go too low.
So i was wondering what option to go with .....
I have the teins coils to mount this weekend.. so.. i would be able to adjust the car no matter the tyre.. just wondering about look, confort and not hitting the ground...
I mean.. if the tyre goes up a little bit... then i dont need to lower it that much... getting a mix with sporty and lowering + no hit the ground..
Still 35 spec tyres look damn good.. not sure if the diference to 40 is a lot..
I personally would've gone with a little lower offset on the wheels if you're going for a better look, but it seems it's too late for that.
You're definitely on the right track... you're using the right tools, and you're making sense of the information it gives you.
I personally would go with option 3. You mentioned there is minimal difference from stock overall diameter, and this means your speedometer will not be affected by the new setup. Plus I personally like wider tires, but that's just me . Do note that going up from 17" wheels to 19" wheels will naturally mean you will lose a bit of ride comfort, because your tires will have to be a thinner profile now.
Your Flex Z will have so many features and adjustability, you'll be able to pretty much dial it in to your exact liking. But do note that, each time you change the ride height, you'll need a new alignment. I would install them, drive around for a couple of weeks until they "settle" or "break in" (at the same time, see if this initial height works for you), then make some more fine-tune adjustments and get an alignment.
If you're not familiar with coilover adjustment (height adjustment, damping adjustment, preload adjustment), I suggest you get a knowledgeable shop mechanic to do the "tuning" for you, so that you can obtain the optimal ride height and comfort for your liking.
I personally would've gone with a little lower offset on the wheels if you're going for a better look, but it seems it's too late for that.
You're definitely on the right track... you're using the right tools, and you're making sense of the information it gives you.
I personally would go with option 3. You mentioned there is minimal difference from stock overall diameter, and this means your speedometer will not be affected by the new setup. Plus I personally like wider tires, but that's just me . Do note that going up from 17" wheels to 19" wheels will naturally mean you will lose a bit of ride comfort, because your tires will have to be a thinner profile now.
Your Flex Z will have so many features and adjustability, you'll be able to pretty much dial it in to your exact liking. But do note that, each time you change the ride height, you'll need a new alignment. I would install them, drive around for a couple of weeks until they "settle" or "break in" (at the same time, see if this initial height works for you), then make some more fine-tune adjustments and get an alignment.
If you're not familiar with coilover adjustment (height adjustment, damping adjustment, preload adjustment), I suggest you get a knowledgeable shop mechanic to do the "tuning" for you, so that you can obtain the optimal ride height and comfort for your liking.
Thanks a ton for your quick and constructive reply.
My concern with 245/35-19 is that it might rub or request fender work. I don't think so, because I have et50 on those... And they are 19x8...
Nevertheless, I think 235/35-19 would be nice for the look and avoid 245 rub possibilities... But... 235/35 gives smaller diameter than factory , meaning the car will go lower even without the suspension tunings... That's a problem... I don't want yo hit the ground when entering garage... Etc
So..
235/35 - nice... But lower ride...
245/35 - almost stock diameter but... Maybe too large tyre... Can rub... Or fender work? And sluggish ride ?
225/40 gain of 5mm (so almost like stock also) and 225 is OK for me.. I don't race or so... Maybe.. Less sluglish.. And no fender work needed... 40... Should give a mix between good looking and comfort
235/40-19 .... Gain of 10mm in height...(so.. 1cm or so), allowing me to be away of the ground.. And then take tein flex z down like H&R 35mm drop... Give a mix between lower suspension... Sport look... No fender.. No rub... And away from ground...
So.. Maybe I'm more between 235/40 and 225/40...
Do you get the reason for it?
You definitely won't rub with 245/35R19 with an 8" wide +50 offset wheel. But if you prefer a less wide tire, for sure you can consider the other options. Just don't forget that some of those options may throw your speedometer quite off.
You definitely won't rub with 245/35R19 with an 8" wide +50 offset wheel. But if you prefer a less wide tire, for sure you can consider the other options. Just don't forget that some of those options may throw your speedometer quite off.
Hey hey again. Some updates.
AEZ Crest Dark 19x8 + Tyre Trials
I went to the shop for a TYRE trial. TEIN FLEX Z Coilovers in my garage to be mounted this weekend. So, car will get lower suspension... thats mainly why i dont want to lose RIM+Tyre diameter. Instead, i would like to increase that wheel diameter to compensate the droped suspension i will put in. I need to avoid that close to ground....
Pictures SETUP Rear 235/35
Front 225/40
Rear 235 wheel look Rear perspective. Looks awesome rim + 235/35, but the space gets reduced - lower diameter than OEM in 1,6%, meaning the car drops in height around 6mm. Not good for me because the bigger the space between wheels and chassis, the more i need to lower my car. Then.. i wont be able to enter the office garage, or building apartment garage. 235/35 perspective in AEZ Crest Dark. Looks awsome
Now the front 225/40-19 . Looks a little bit weird because of the stretch doesn't it ?
Front perspective ...... Front perspective. You can see the rim at the tyre level. No Rim protection for the side-walk These 225/40 on the front are a little bit stretched by the 19x8 it seems.... Again.. Front perspective of the 225/40-19
So, maybe this was asked but i need to ask again because today the 235/35 seems like it might rub after lowering the car (in case i have family on the back).
a) Will 235/40-19 rub ? Why this size?
Because i like the way 235 looks on the rear rim, but i didnt like the 35 height increasing that much the gap to my chassis. Also i cant lose height. So, no go for 235/35. On the other hand, 225/40 seems to have a good height but the 225/40 seems to get stretched and the rim seems to pop-out.
So, its all about 225/40/19 (i've seen a lot of 19x8 setups with 225/40 wheels around, even in Subaru, Lexus, etc), or if you're sure 235 wont rub, i dont mind going with 235/40 (that will increase my height in 4mm and the speedo error will be -2%. Not a big deal for me).
The problem is that the lady already ordered the 225/40.... so.. going to 235/40 might mean i will have to offer her some beers. But you tell me..... I just need to know asap... :\
05-07-2015, 10:36 AM
