Tire Selection / Wheel Size Master Guide

[Peregrine]

The below information was selectively gathered (with some enhancements and modifications) from another resource publicly available on the Internet. If the viewer of this content recognizes it (in its parts or entirety) as of his/her authoring, please PM me to add your credits to this post.

OEM Specs:
Tires: 215/50-17
Wheels: 17x7, +55mm offset, 5x114.3mm (5x4.5") bolt pattern, 64.1mm centerbore
Wheel bolt torque: 11 kg-m or 79.6 lb-ft (although 80 lb-ft should be ok)
Rim weight (2004-05): 23 lbs.
Rim weight (2006-07): 21 lbs.
Tire: Michelin Pilot MXM4: apprx. 22 lbs


Wheel Size:
Owners have been able to mount anything from 16" up to 20" on the TSX. So long as the outside diameter of the tire doesn't change, you will be fine with any size in that range. Wheel widths can range from 6.5" for winter tires up to 8" for summer. Some people have fitted larger wheel widths but selecting a tire and offset that fits is difficult. Members are encouraged to post the particulars of their setup if it they have a solution that works.

Offset:
Higher offset means the wheel sits deeper inside the wheel well. Lower offset means it is pushed out towards the outside of the car.
In general terms, the higher the offset, the better. The TSX seems to have all kinds of space on the inside of the wheel well.
The only problem with high offset wheels is trying to find them. Few manufacturers make an offset > 50mm.
Ideally, keep the offset higher than 42mm and you'll be ok. Several members are running 8" wide wheels with 235mm wide tires at 42mm offset and don't have any trouble with rubbing, even when lowered.

the above values were obtained from the Miata Tire Calculator
(For other calculators see post #7 below)

Anything bigger than a +/-2% difference is considered a mismatch and should be avoided if possible. Speedometer, odometer, and VSA/ABS systems can be affected by mismatched tire sizes.

Generally speaking, when you reduce the tire's sidewall to compensate for a larger wheel, the ride quality will diminish.

The less rubber there is between the wheel and the road, the more stress is being applied to the wheel itself. Watch out for pot holes if you reduce the sidewall of your tire. A forged rim is generally going to be stronger and resist bending better than a cast wheel.

Centerbore:
The centerbore of a wheel is the size of the machined hole on the back of the wheel that centers the wheel properly on the hub of the car. This hole is machined to exactly match the hub so the wheels are precisely positioned, minimizing the chance of a vibration. With a hubcentric wheel, the lug hardware will not be supporting the weight of the vehicle, all they really do is press the wheel against the hub of the car. Some wheels use high quality, forged centering rings that lock into place in the back of the wheel. This is an acceptable alternative.

If you have non-hubcentric (lugcentric) wheels, they should be torqued correctly while the vehicle is still off of the ground so they center properly. The weight of the vehicle can push the wheel off-center slightly while you're tightening them down if left on the ground.

The centerbore on the OEM TSX wheel is 64.1mm. Many reputable wheel/tire shops will cary an assortment of hub rings to fill the gap between the centerbore of the aftermarket wheel and the OEM hub. A set of hub rings will cost about $20 and IMO that's money well spent. An out of center wheel will behave much like an unbalanced wheel (it actually is unbalanced because it's rotating around an off-center axis).

[bimmer_w]

How sensitive is the VSA when changing wheels and tires size?

[Peregrine]

the only thing that can relatively answer your question, bimmer_w, is this phrase copied from the first post of this thread:

"Anything bigger than a +/-2% difference is considered a mismatch and should be avoided if possible. Speedometer, odometer, and VSA/ABS systems can be affected by mismatched tire sizes."

Other than that, I don't think you'll be able to find better answers on the VSA sensitivity.

[bimmer_w]

Originally Posted by Peregrine

the only thing that can relatively answer your question, bimmer_w, is this phrase copied from the first post of this thread:

"Anything bigger than a +/-2% difference is considered a mismatch and should be avoided if possible. Speedometer, odometer, and VSA/ABS systems can be affected by mismatched tire sizes."

Other than that, I don't think you'll be able to find better answers on the VSA sensitivity.

mismatch tire sizes meaning all four tires? I just had this question when I was reading the owner's manual last night and I know that the NSX has this problem when using different tires that are not OEM size, your traction control is screwed big time. I don't know what the problem specifically is but from NSX owners they say that it gives them really big problem that can't be fixed.

[afici0nad0]

mismatched, meaning that the new wheel/tire combo size you choose to install are +/-2% different than oem specs.

it can include all 4 tires.

but, you may have oem specs up front, and decide to run wider tires in the back for a staggered look. this also may affect the systems/controls mentioned.

[Peregrine]

i don't think "wider" is of any particular problem, but if you mismatch the overall size of the wheel (in height) then you might have a problem. So whatever combo you use, check to see that the "Difference" from the table above is the same.

But I think Lance (aka LannyM) would be a better authority on tires and matching.

Here are some good calculators:
tire size calculator
wheel offset calculator

[06NBP6MT]

If all tires are matched how is that going to mess up your vsa? Shouldn't it just make your speedo off? For it to mess anything up the car would have to measure it's speed relative to position via gps and realize it's not consistant with the vss.

[elmo]

Originally Posted by 06NBP6MT

If all tires are matched how is that going to mess up your vsa? Shouldn't it just make your speedo off? For it to mess anything up the car would have to measure it's speed relative to position via gps and realize it's not consistant with the vss.

The VSA/ABS ECU measures differences between each wheel's speed in order to calculate when to initiate VSA or ABS. It also communicates with the vehicle PGMFI ECU and to take vehicle speed and rpm inputs. It takes all these measurements and compares it to predetermined values. If anything is off value, it will set DTC's (diagnostic troouble codes) and your warning lights will come on.

So let's compare these two tires:
Stock: 215/50-17 = 792 revs per mile
Mod: 235/35-20 = 762 revs per mile 4% difference

As you can see, the example modified wheel will revolve less than stock at any speed. The ECU will see this and determine that something is wrong. Even if all 4 modified wheels are the same size. Hope that helps in understanding the basics of the system

[yungwunn911]

Do front and rear wheel/tires have the same specs?

are they interchangeable?

[shitbox]

i'm deciding if i should get this set of wheels, the size of the wheels are 17X8 with 42 offset, for tires i will be running 225/45/17 and my car has a 3'' drop, does anyone with this similiar kind of setup? my concern is will there any rubbing issue?

[blue_accord]

Is there a different offset on the OEM wheels starting with 2007? If I go to H and A accessories, they list the wheels as only fitting the 2004-2006 models. They're still 17x7, and I can't imagine there would be a significant difference in the offset for the wheels, but I'm curious what the difference is, if any.

[Peregrine]

Do they have a separate listing for 2007 wheels ?? Noah... they probably just didn't update the listing description. It should read 2004-2007. They're all the same for all years.

[blue_accord]

Originally Posted by Peregrine

Do they have a separate listing for 2007 wheels ?? Noah... they probably just didn't update the listing description. It should read 2004-2007. They're all the same for all years.

That's what I suspected, but they had other items listed that were inclusive of 07. I had no reason to suspect that Honda changed something other than that.

[silverrex]

yo someone weight the 05 rims to be at 22.9 lbs, so why is it posted as 26 lbs on this forum?