what will fit

[senor_flame]

I have 17x7 motegi ff7 rims on my car with 205/40/17 tires on it and they do not supply nearly enough traction. i am looking to put something like 255/35/17 on it but i heard that if i go with that wide of a tire i will need 17x8 rims.is that true?

[SilverY2KCivic]

Originally Posted by senor_flame

I have 17x7 motegi ff7 rims on my car with 205/40/17 tires on it and they do not supply nearly enough traction. i am looking to put something like 255/35/17 on it but i heard that if i go with that wide of a tire i will need 17x8 rims.is that true?

Absolutely! But tire isn't your concern, you won't be able to fit that wide of a wheel or tire on your car unless you roll the fenders bigtime AND install some sort of wide body kit or something. Also unless you use spacers (like 20mm+) you won't ever be able to turn your wheel lock to lock. Widest on a 7 width wheel that you can go is 215 width tire.

What on eart do you do that 205 width isn't enough traction? I auto-X and road race my car on tracks, this justifying my need for a wider wheel/tire combo, but 205 is as much as a Honda needs on the street. So what is it that you're doing? And if it's drag racing, then 1st mistake is using 17x7 wheels. And actually you need wider than an 8 width wheel for 255 tires. Buddies of mine run 16x8 wheels on their 240SX's and can only run a 235 width tire on them. So you'd need a 17x9 wheel to run 255 width tires safely.

[00accord44]

Your main problem is most likely with the brand of tires you got. Assuming you have the same brand that came on your tires (my Motegi's came with Khumo Ecsta 712s) you could just upgrade to a better tire to suit your needs.

As y2kciv said, choosing tire options depends greatly on what you plan on doing with your car. There's a million tire options out there... all of which are cheaper than buying a whole new set of rims and tires

[senor_flame]

the tires that i have on my car now are yokahama es100 they get good traction but not enough. as for what i need the traction for i have a b18b with a turbo that i am going to be putting in the car in a few months and i am getting the car ready for it. i plan on using some fender flares because i can't find any wide fenders for my car without getting the whole kit and i am trying to keep as stock looking as possible. i will also be using something like 19mm wheel spacers.i was trying not to buy more rims but from the way it sounds i will need to. just trying to save a few bucks, motor is going to be costing me enough.

[00accord44]

True you'll need better traction with the turbo installed but you don't know how bad it is til its on there. The tires you got now are pretty good but as y2k said youre only gonna be able to get a 215 tire on those rims you got now. But with the amount of effort you'd have to put into getting some 255s on your (civic? teggie? crx? you never said) you can do some suspension work to help keep the tires on the ground. Cuz no matter how wide your tires are, they dont do much good when they aint touchin pavement:

I know a few guys running a turbo b18 b17 or b20 setup and they all run on 17x7s or smaller. Just gotta perfect your launch cuz thats where wheelspin will obviously hurt you the most.

[senor_flame]

thanks for the input. the suspension that i have is a fully adjustible set of tein type ha and the car is a 1989 crx si.like i said i am not putting the motor in the car for a few months so i guess i will deal with this tire problem then. i want 255 tires on there for traction as well as i have never seen a street honda with them so i think that it would look sweet.

[SilverY2KCivic]

A B18 turbo doesn't mean you need a bitter wheel/tire. And the bigger wheel you have, the more power it ROBS from the car. But DON'T get a sticky street tire for your car if you're planning to drag. You'll need a good DRAG tire for that which are NOT street legal as that have no tread on them. With those you'll want say a 13x9 wheel for, which you shouldn't need flares for because of it's small diameter.

[senor_flame]

what i am probably going to do is get a set of rims and tires specifically for the track and i also want something wider for the street. the only reason that i wanted to go with 17's is that i have a set of them already i was just trying to save a few bucks by not having to get a new set of rims also.i will probably get a set of mabye 16x8 for the street. any advice of anyone know a good place to find a selection? i will also probably be doing a 5 lug conversion.

[SilverY2KCivic]

You'll definitely NEED spacers to run an 8 width on a Honda. I have 16x7 and my wheels don't turn lock to lock anymore, in fact the edge of the tires TOUCH the inside of the wheel well on both sides, so imagine what a 17x8 will do being both wider and larger diameter.

What kind of track racing do you plan on doing? Well no matter which a "17 wheel is BAD BAD BAD as they are heavy and WILL reduce your reaction and/or lap times. You want the smallest lightest wheel you can get. Wider is not what it's all about if the weight is high. Then you'll be defeating the purpose and wasting money at the same time. My track only wheels for whan I road race and auto-X are 15x6.5 and I run 205/50 tires on it. PLENTY of traction really and that's what a lot of guys use on Hondas in fact. it's all about the right tire, NOT a bigger width. You best tire bet is either Falken Azenis RT-615s or Hankook RS-2 Z212's. I run the Hankooks both on the street and at the track and they hands down beat the old Azenis RT-215's to the curb. All the grip you'll ever need on the street and even track unless you go R-compound rubber.