Will 225/50/16 tires hold 280 rwhp? Run 225's all around or 245/45 in the rear?

[dwadia]

This is going on an SR-powered s13, so not a whole lot of torque but i'd estimate that for my regular driving i'm probably making over 250 rwhp, and if i turn the boost up it is probably at around 290. My wheels are 16x8 all around. I'm running KYB AGX, Tanabe springs, fr and rr sway bars. Whichever size tire i choose, i'd be using a pretty grippy compound-tire, either Hankook RS2's or Dunlop Z1 Star Spec's.

My primary concern in selecting the size for the rear is, will this type of tire in a 225 width do a good job of holding 260-290 rwhp? If so, i'd rather use the same size all around for handling reasons... and i can rotate too :). Please share your experiences with me. Thanks.

[fliprayzin240sx]

Itll come down to your driving style and how you can control the car. Personally, Id ditch the rims and get some 17x9 +20 ish wheels, then get the Star Specs on 245/40 17s.

[ixfxi]

i ran 245/45/16 f/r on 16x8's and it was fine, but i ran bridgestone s03's

compound is key.

[DreamN]

go 245 all around, if not that then 235. With that much horsepower I'd tried to go as wide as my tires allowed. If you don't mind somewhat of a bubbled sidewall go with a 255 in the rear.

[dwadia]

Nah, no 17x9's for me... for one thing i can't afford new rims, but more importantly i like 16's. More sidewall = more comfy :p. If i get 245's they'll still be going on 16's, that's a definite.

Driving style, well, i don't drift. I don't drive on a track and if i do it would be 2x a year at most (road course, not auto x). I get on it pretty hard when conditions permit, but it's still street driving. I DO want the car to hook up... but that said, the 225 and 245 combo pushes more than i like. I'd prefer it to be more neutral. I like how it feels with 225's all around (my cold-season tires), but then i don't drive it as hard on these tires so i'm uncertain how well the 225 star specs would hold my power when i turn up the boost and drive it harder. I don't need it to have massive traction launching from a dead stop, but i want it to be adequate enough that it's not wanting to break loose every time i accelerate out of a curve.

i ran 245/45/16 f/r on 16x8's and it was fine, but i ran bridgestone s03's

compound is key.

You ran 245's all around, on an s13?! Well you must have had some quite different mods than me because 245 would NOT work for me up front. 225 is already a tight squeeze. I wouldn't mind going a little bigger all around, but it just won't fit. Compound-wise, i don't think Star Specs would give anything up to s03's in terms of grip.

[DreamN]

what offset are these wheels? i don't see how 225 can be a squeeze when people running 17x9s with offsets ranging from low teens to mid 20s are running 235s all around with ease.

slight pull and a roll does wonders. nikeboy (forget his full username) ran 17x9 +20 with 245s all around with no issues as far as i know. i think at one point he even ran 255s all around.

[dwadia]

rx7 wheels - 16x8, +50, with a 20mm spacer (so really +30). The rubbing happens on the front of the fender liner before anything else. I'm not sure if it will rub elsewhere but it'll definitely rub there bad when turning. My caster is 8.5* which doesn't make the matter any better. Fenders are not the issue. But anyway, i'm not looking to mess around with other stuff right now. I have very limited time and money to play around with right now - a new set of tires, and that's it for now.

300zx's use 225's in the front and those things are HEAVY, so for sure they're fine on my s13. I have never found a lack of traction from 225's in the front even under heavy braking or aggressive cornering, so as long as there won't be a lack of traction from them in the rear, i see no reason to spend more money, add on more weight, and address possible fitment issues changing my front size. If it worked out i'd do 235's all around to keep the car's handling neutral, but i doubt even that will fit.

[DreamN]

if you're just rubbing the fender liner why not just remove it? reroute your harness to the top of the fender and bang the inner chassis lip so that you don't rub against that either. should be able to clear 235s with no issues at all.

[dwadia]

I'm not saying it's not doable, but i just don't know whether there's any point. The tires i want aren't even made in 235. If i don't need a different size, i'd rather use the Z1 star spec. Also, there is road salt all over the place here in NJ in the winter. I know you won't have this issue over there, but that stuff is really harsh on our rust-prone cars. I'd prefer to keep the fender liner on primarily for that reason, it keeps a lot of the salt off metal parts. My main concern right now is the rears... if they'll be ok in 225, then i'm set.

[dwadia]

DreamN, out of curiousity i just checked on what's available as far as 235's... the ONLY tire i found available is a Toyo T1R, there's no selection whatsoever. This is in 235/50. In 235/45 i was not able to find a single tire. And i'm pretty sure the added grip of the Z1 star spec (or even Azenis, RS2's or similar) would give them more grip in a 225 than the T1R has in a 235. So i don't see changing the front tire width as being practical at this point.

[ixfxi]

http://clearcorners.com/projects/S13_04.jpg

rx7 wheels - 16x8, +50, with a 20mm spacer (so really +30). The rubbing happens on the front of the fender liner before anything else. I'm not sure if it will rub elsewhere but it'll definitely rub there bad when turning. My caster is 8.5* which doesn't make the matter any better. Fenders are not the issue. But anyway, i'm not looking to mess around with other stuff right now. I have very limited time and money to play around with right now - a new set of tires, and that's it for now.


yes, the 245/45/16's fit, and i ran the exact same setup (though, different size spacers, but similar). i think i was one of the first to run FD wheels. fantastic wheels, sexy and light.

ditch the fender liners though, or modify the sections that are rubbing. simple as that.

[s13dan]

Whats the widest tire you guys think you can fit on an 8 inch wheel.? I was thinking 265/60 and 255/50. Im curiouse my self because this spring i will be buying tires for my 15x8's. But i dont want blimps for tires..

[markyboi]

265/60? are you serious? unless you plan on going off roading

[TheArkitekt]

i run a 255 on my 8in wheel. its a bit balooned but not awful. has a "muscle car" look.

http://i53.photobucket.com/albums/g50/tpr240hatch/IMG_2876.jpg

[dwadia]

ixfxi, yes i agree that the FD wheels are some nice ones and i have no plans of changing them - they even have the correct center bore hehe ;) I wasn't clear, my 20mm spacers are in the front. Rears have something like 8 or 12mm iirc. But they don't need any. The fronts need it to keep from hitting the strut.

You ran 245's all around? I guess the handling must have been pretty neutral then, right? How did the steering response feel with 245's in the front on those wheels? Also, what size spacers do you use? 245/45 all around is a possible option for me but i don't really wanna lose my fender liners. If i can modify them maybe it'll work, and it's not bad because i'd only need 2 new tires instead of 4.

Nice looking car BTW - i like your taste :)

[ixfxi]

ixfxi, yes i agree that the FD wheels are some nice ones and i have no plans of changing them - they even have the correct center bore hehe ;) I wasn't clear, my 20mm spacers are in the front. Rears have something like 8 or 12mm iirc. But they don't need any. The fronts need it to keep from hitting the strut.

You ran 245's all around? I guess the handling must have been pretty neutral then, right? How did the steering response feel with 245's in the front on those wheels? Also, what size spacers do you use? 245/45 all around is a possible option for me but i don't really wanna lose my fender liners. If i can modify them maybe it'll work, and it's not bad because i'd only need 2 new tires instead of 4.

Nice looking car BTW - i like your taste :)

People used to laugh at the FD wheels when they first heard about running a +50 wheel, weird.. I guess the thought of running a quality machined spacer (wheeladapter.com) was beyond most back then. Anyway, I believe I ran a 20mm spacer front and a 12mm rear. Fitment was flush and no problems rubbing with my Tokico shocks back then. I sold that setup ages ago, my car isnt fully assembled yet.. its been going through a long, full restoration.

Handling was bliss, very neutral and very sticky for the type of driving I do. My new setup is 275/40/17x10 front/rear, but it looks like I may have to downsize to 255/40/17 front as the tires appear a tad too tall and they hit my OEM aero. I dont think its possible to run a tire that tall.

[dwadia]

ixfxi, how much power and torque were you making with the FD wheels? Just an estimate, not exact numbers. Or if you don't know, what engine did you have and how much boost, if any?

I'm gonna try one of my rear wheels on the front and see what kind of mods it will need to keep the 245 from rubbing. If it won't involve much, i think i'll just do that. Either way at this point i'm pretty set on going with the same width all around, whatever size i choose. I was messing around yesterday on my all-seasons (225's all around) and although that compound couldn't completely hold the power in the rear, the handling was delightful compared to my staggered summer tires. And i'm thinking if a worn-out all-season even came close to keeping its traction, the much stickier Dunlop Z1 should have little to no issues.

[ixfxi]

my car is a `90, it was originally KA-E & auto. at the time i was running 225/50's and loved it.

I then swapped to manual 5-speed, LSD.. I ran 245's at that point. After x amount of years I eventually popped my KA-E and upgraded to stock 96-98 180SX blacktop SR20DET. I have no idea how much power I was putting out, but the setup was acceptable. I was at the fine point of exceeding the 245's performance though as the SR is pretty brutal when boost kicks in and it would just tear up the rear tires. It was stable though and lots of fun.

With the upgraded turbo setup I've widened the body and am running bubble flares with 17x10 wheels F/R. I was hoping to run 275/40 F/R but it appears the front will need downsizing (too tall).

You'll be happy with the 245's, trust me. Ditch the fender liner, its not worth keeping unless you just want to keep the fenders and door jams clean. Other than that, its pretty useless.

[dwadia]

Haha yes the fender liners are a cleanliness thing :) Especially road salt, that stuff is nasty and eats away at any piece of metal it touches. I have an exceptionally rust-free car which i'm thrilled about and want to keep it that way.

What boost were you running on the SR? Do you happen to remember what type of tire you were using? I'm a little surprised 245's wanted to break loose on a stock SR! But it's possible i guess depending on tire type. I'll try to make it work with the 245's, let's see what happens...

[Vatche]

i would reccomend running 245's in the rear.

i have an sr with about 230-240 rwhp. with hankook rs-2's 225/50/16

it doesnt hold 1st gear. and sometimes spins in 2nd. i also have a 2way.

you can stagger with 225 in the front and 245 in the rear if you want. but my reccomendation is to run a 245

[S13 curtis]

It depends if your car has weight transfer.
If you have coilovers you will roast the 245's with 280whp

A friend of mine has a stock Ka with megan tracks and a welded diff and if he punches if from a 20mph roll it goes up in smoke and into 2gear it gets swirly.

Im on kyb gr2's and tien s techs and have a gt2871r w supporting mods&stock cams (10psi), and in first gear i have no traction at all and i dont get traction if i cherp 2nd until about 6700 rpms. if i go from a 40mph roll in 2nd gear it dosent spin,my car also has weight transfer its not that stiff.

[dwadia]

s13Curtis, what size and type of tire do you run?

My suspension is pretty soft compared to how i've seen many people on this forum set their cars up - Tanabe gf210 springs (i think the rear is roughly 145-150 lb/in) and kyb agx set at 2 in front, 4 in the rear.

[ixfxi]

Haha yes the fender liners are a cleanliness thing :) Especially road salt, that stuff is nasty and eats away at any piece of metal it touches. I have an exceptionally rust-free car which i'm thrilled about and want to keep it that way.

What boost were you running on the SR? Do you happen to remember what type of tire you were using? I'm a little surprised 245's wanted to break loose on a stock SR! But it's possible i guess depending on tire type. I'll try to make it work with the 245's, let's see what happens...

with the sr i was running bridgestone S03's, went through several sets.. great tires.

with the new setup i have toyo R888's.

[S13 curtis]

s13curtis, what size and type of tire do you run?

My suspension is pretty soft compared to how i've seen many people on this forum set their cars up - tanabe gf210 springs (i think the rear is roughly 145-150 lb/in) and kyb agx set at 2 in front, 4 in the rear.

225/55/r15