EK4 17" vs 15"

[**Ghost**]

Hey guys, i'm considering upgrading to 17" rims pending the sale of my stockies

Now i gotta ask, what are 17" Rims like to drive with?

Right now i'm thinking

1. 17s will make my car accelerate slower cos more surface area to move. BUT, i wanna ask will this be a dramatic effect or just a little bit? ALso will it affect only my standing acceleration (from full stop) or all acceleration

2. Obviously 17s will be a killer to change tyres for (shudders). But how much? i paid around 100 bcuks for 15" falkens, how much for 17s (approx)

3. Will 17s improve handling or detract from it/

[wynode]

Go for 16s.......a nice comprimise :)

[**Ghost**]

i'm getting a personal deal outta the 17s : ( so its 17s or nothing

[heist]

i have 17's on my car....i do have slower accel...it is noticeable....

i have the cheapest 17" tires u can get...$150 each....

handling is better, going through corners at high speed you dont wobble as much because of the smaller tire wall...

[**Ghost**]

u mind me asking wot brand those tyres are?

and whether acceleration is slower only from stand still or in all circumstances?

[edw-R]

I would like to go 16", Better accelaration at all!!

[MrPlow]

I went from stock ek4 rims, to 17s then back to 15s...

Acceleration from a still position was laggy... took awhile an extra few seconds to get up and going, but once your going i believe it is better having larger wheels, cause more surface area to grip... yes they slow the car down abit, espicially for a stock car with no extra grunt...

16's is a good comprimise, but since thats not an option, its up to you wether your wanna a bigger visual impact, or stay with stockies to keep the "kg's" off...

in the end.... it your call

[**Ghost**]

extra few seconds? that bad?

Well i'm thinking of using the following benchmark... would my father, if he were to drive my car (he is a car nut but he's driven it less than 10 times) notice that my car is slower? or does it take pedantic ppl like us, who with the car everyday, to notice?

Or maybe in 1/4 mile terms, if i get a flat 15 now wot would i get with 17 inch rims APPROX

[Tu88y]

I have 17s on my EK4 they are 205/80/17 on my car. My car handles very well.

The cheapest I seen around is about $170 each. I even asked about the Good Year Eagle 1 and they cost about $280 each.

[heist]

hey dude, the brand is silverstone. with bigger wheels in theory you have a higher top speed....once they are going accelleration is fine for me....its only the standing still start....

[**Ghost**]

thanks for teh help guys... 150 is ok... bearable. And in the end i like a car that handles more than anything else.

Alright, who wants my stockies? look in the for sale thread? : )

[J-MuN]

yeh i was thinkin the same thing... if i went to 17's i didnt wanna lose too much go from stand still but no choice but to mod under the hood...

[barefootbonzai]

Yeah, i'm sitting on 18's it's a bitch. Very slow of the mark

[**Ghost**]

The thing i wanna know is... HOW SLOW? I had the opportnity to play with a RSM once and i think i clocked 0-100 in 7.3 at best (but that was trying VERY VERY VERY HARD after MANY MANY ATTEMPTS).

with 17s am i looking at 9 seconds? 8?

[egSi]

17s = :thumbdwn:

keep teh 15s man.

[**Ghost**]

but i'll look so cool with 17 5 spoke gold rims!!! :(

[Zdster]

I am running 17's on mine, but I can't tell you about speed as my hatch is a little ek1 :o .


The real pain in the backside is tyres. I am running 205/40/17 and they cost me an arm and a leg :thumbdwn: but I have the pleasure of seeing how good the 17's look on my car :thumbsup: :D .

PS If you are interested in 17 inch tyres I have three for sale at the moment (sorry for post whoring) :p .

[Steer^Gimic]

do not get silverstone tyres. i would go for the practicality option and get 16's, if not, just stick with 15's.

[SPEEDCORE]

but i'll look so cool with 17 5 spoke gold rims!!! :(

Why ask us then if you have practically made up your mind bro?

[aimre]

its about weight, im sure crap 16 could weigh more than some 17's

how much do the orriginal wheels weigh?
how much do the new rims weigh?


and does n e one know how much stock 14 steel wheels weigh?

[panda[cRx]]

15's man!
i put my stockies back on for a lil while and it felt so much better perforance wise!

i'd like to go back to 15's myself but i need to find some mulistud rims i like :(

[ViHatcher]

Is that right with the bigger the size, the slower to take off? I am looking at this wheel from Honda Japan. I should forget it? Just check around on wheels.

http://www.honda.co.jp/ACCESS/automobiles/civic/img/modulo_ph13.jpg 17x7JJ aluminum wheels

[|N|]

for me i would rather stick with 15s.. max 16s and get some good tyres...

[NightRyder]

Dude,
I agree with |N| and PandaCRX, and all those who said that 15" is the best. When I bought my car it had 16" rims on them, and even I sometimes struggle to pay for tyres for my 16"'s (205/45/R16). I'd rather go back to the stock 15" if I had the chance.

However, although 16" is the median of both 15" and 17", I am only bitching because of the cost of tyres.
:)

[jackosimm]

when i changed from my 14's to 17's I didn't notice it any slower, however its a gli, tired cost me about 130 each I think

[Nuttz]

i got something for u to think about....
do u like accelerating quickly off the line when driving around town? or try to reach speed limit quickly? ;) ...
then stick with the 15"

if u drive like that normally, the 17's will piss u off.

[SiR]

As taken from clubsi.com

http://www.grassrootsmotorsports.com/plustest.html

Hope this helps.

[perhapz]

get the 17s~ refer to SiR website most of the fastest laptime are done with 17s so.....and i heard my fds said that changing from 14sto 17s. its gonna make u half second slower in 0-100(just what i heard not usre if it is ture)
so...oh yea by the way i got 17s too....its looks awesome....XD

[sesshoumaru]

what kind of 17" rims are you getting? You do realise some 17" rims can weigh just as much as your stock 15" rims? If you're getting heavy chromies then obviously its gonna make a huge difference.

I have lightweight 17" on my car... compared to the stock 14" the difference in acceleration was negligable really, you'd probably only notice if you had something to benchmark it with...like an rsm. The differencing in handling was much more noticable, due to the wider lower profile tire. So was the difference in tire price o.0;

its around 150 a tire for the base falkens... =\

ideally i want to have my 17's for daily driving, and a nice set of 15x7 with semi slicks for any track work. :)

[type one]

15 x 7 with semi`s for track work ?? i use them for daily drivng hehehe

good point on the lightweight 17`s weighing close to a 15 this could well be the case but i doubt it cos they would be in excess of 800 per rim...

i like the stock 15 vti-R rims... why not just get a good set of tyres?? stuff the rims... i`d say the difference between handling in a honda civic between 15 and 17 is negligible... wider profile yes - more direct feel no...

[sesshoumaru]

15 x 7 with semi`s for track work ?? i use them for daily drivng hehehe

i like the stock 15 vti-R rims... why not just get a good set of tyres?? stuff the rims... i`d say the difference between handling in a honda civic between 15 and 17 is negligible... wider profile yes - more direct feel no...

haha unfortunatly i can't afford to run around on semi slicks all day... i'd probably end up wearing them out so fast.

whats the fattest tire you can fit on a stock vtir 15" ?

[type one]

stock rim?? 205...

[**Ghost**]

i actually have quite alright tyres... and to be HONEST, i want my car too look good and i dont plan to track this car in either case (i'll buy an import evo3 or something for that kinda work)

neway thanks for all the opinions guys!!!

I've decided on the 17s!! they are 8 spoke, gold, ROH

[**Ghost**]

what i am getting

http://www.lucar.nl/wheels/lenso/ap2.html

[qup70c]

mate....everyone will tell ya "don't get 17's, too heavy blah blah blah", yes you will slow yourself down a bit if you go heavy rims, but there are 17's out there that don't get to expensive and are light, and they look a lot better too. my 2c.

Oh and btw...those rims are nice :thumbsup: