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As most of you guys know - I am looking at switching out the plain jane 14" hubs with 15 16 or 17 on my coupe SE (2005).

If I go 16 or 17" - will I have to drop the car? I am thinking of plus sizing up to 17" since it still looks like there is alot of rubber on the 15". I do not want to have to do any mods to the speedo, etc... want to keep the wheel circumference the same.

Will it look stupid with 17's? Anyone have any pics?

 
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yes, low profile tires without dropping your car looks terribly IMO, makes the car look like its standing on tippy-toes. doesnt help that the civics have such a huge wheel gap. but this is a personal thing...i cant stand wheel gap.....some of us can....

 
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I would have to agree with Liro, you will need to lower it because of the huge gap that will be created.

 
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agree with them, wheel gap will make it look retarded imo

 
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So would 16" be too big? Or 15" is the max I can go with out it looking wacko...

Also - what about tire width... how wide can I go ? As you can imagine, I am pretty new to all this

 
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When you increase the size of the rim... you decrease the sidewall of the tire. The overall diameter of the tire/rim stays the same whether you get 15" rims or 17" rims.

195/55R15 is the same diameter as 205/45R17

The reason your wheel gap seems larger when you get bigger rims is because the low profile tire... the actually wheel well gap doesn't get any larger.

BTW: I'm selling my rims if you want them.

 
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tire width will depend on the size of the rim, as R1 eluded to. if you're going with 15 probably 195....16's 195-205......

i dunno if you were asking about availability?

seriously think you need to drop the car if you're gonna add rims though...looks whacked

 
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first thing when it comes to modify your car - Lower it first

u will see huge gap when u slap the 17s on with stock springs. the first mod i did was lower my car with Neuspeed springs

 
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my first mod was to lower my car too....first significant mod.....

 
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fist thing u want to do is to take off ur hubcaps and clean ut tires and steelies really good, so everything blends in..... then nobody will see ne wheel gap

 
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i remember those days....yeah.....i like steelies more than the caps....

 
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A couple things to keep in mind, since you're newb. Everyone around here likes to throw a single liner your way..........

- fuel economy. With bigger wheels, come more weight. Even if you pick up some super light 17s, which would be super expensive, the weight of the overall rim + tire would almost certainly still be heavier than your 14s... Heavier means slower acceleration, and also worse fuel economy.

- Going up in rim size also means you'll usually get a fatter tire. By fatter, I mean tread width. More contact patch means better grip, which also means lower fuel economy. I've heard of people with lead foot on stock tires get 350km per tank. People with not so bad a lead foot on 17s probably get 400km I suppose. I get 500-550km per tank on my auto.

- 17" rubber is expensive.

- Depending on the tread width, your over all tire may look round and "bubbly" at the edges, or square like hell. I could never really figure this one out.

- Lowering your brand spanking new 2005 Civic, depending on how low, will definitely void your warranty. Why do you care? Because when you lower, you put more pressure onto your shocks, and you could possibly bottom out alot easier (hit the bottom of the shock over bumps)... 7th gens are notorious for having crappy shocks. I had my front driver side replaced after 24k, under warranty.

- Lowering your car, depending on how low, will also mean you'll get some camber (google that one)... Bad camber means bad tread wear, which means $$$ to get new tires. Or, get a camber kit, which is more $$$. Most of the guys here only recommend the rears, but if you have money, get front and back.

- Once again, depending on how far you lower, you'll have problems in the winter (snow plow), and possibly doing full turns (tire rubbing).

In general, yes, you must almost definitely drop the car. It looks so "NEWB" or "CHEAPASS" to have a floating car.

And that's your Midas, tip of the day. That's all folks!

 
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Thanks FurBall!!

 
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Agreed. The difference is noticable, but it's not that bad, and frankly if you're getting 17's you're not trying to go faster in a straight line.

I get 500+ on a tank, mixed highway and city driving. I don't drive that quick but I LOVE to open it up around the curves. One thing about lower profile tires is that since there isn't as much sidewall, which is flexible rubber, meaning more of the tire is rigid metal (the bigger wheel). That, coupled with most performance tires' stiffer sidewalls, mean a little bit of an improvement in handling. It's noticable.

No argument there, I paid over $450 for my Kumhos installed

Example: last year I had 205/40/17 rubber on 17x7.5" Rotas. The tire wasn't "square", it looked like it was "pulled" in a little. I've currently got the same rubber on 17x7 IKONs. The tire is more square looking on the side. If there were 17x6.5, then it would be coming out the side a bit. It also depends on tire pressure of course.

Raze, think carefully before you lower your car. It is an upgrade that will eventually cost you at least a cool grand. Even if you lower just on springs right now, you WILL eventually need aftermarket shocks - the stockers WILL blow in time. Could be two months, could be a year. But they WILL go, and your rear end will bounce up and down in maddening fashion once gone. The ricer bounce is not only embarrassing but dangerous, as when your vehicle's weight is being tossed around like that, your ability to control the car can be compromised. Some guys just go whole hog and grab a full shock/spring combo or full coilover set right away. Some like me got springs first to get the lowered look, knowing full well shocks would follow. When you lower, you only kill the suspension warranty. They can't deny you service on an engine or air conditioning problem just cause you're slammed for example.

Unless you're dropped over 1.75", there's no point getting a camber kit, no matter what anyone tells you. A good alignment will be all you need. There WILL be camber wear, but it won't be enough that you'll have to replace your tires significantly sooner. Example - my rear camber has always been off by a couple off degrees in the negative. Yes I do have camber wear in the rear, but you REALLY have to look to see it. There isn't significantly more wear on the inside of the tire than the outside surface.

I was slammed almost 2" last year and YES I was plowing streets. No rubbing with 17's. This year I bit the bullet and bought a full coilover set, so I can raise up in the winter months.

If you're gonna rock 17's, 99.9% of people would tell you to drop. As some of the guys above have implied, you really should consider a drop before rims. After your car is dropped, the looks and handling will have improved considerably, and you can then make an informed decision about which rims you can get to improve your looks. Or you may decide to rock a lowered car on stock rimmies for a while. IMO I'd rather drive a lowered car on stock rims than a non-lowered car with 17's or 18's. It's personal opinion of course, and most people end up getting a drop WITH rims eventually. It's your decision which to get first I guess. Good luck with your choice man.

 
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definately man....i would never wanan touch any of the exterior before dropping

 
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drop your car will definitely look and perform (turning corner) much better than STOCK. Just imagine your car with exhaust, Altezza lights, HID and carbon fiber hood, but it's not lowered, it will look stupid\rice IMO

 
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I agree with the advice above. Especailly the stuff about the true costs of lowering your car (camber wear, tires, shocks, danger)

As far as rims without lowering...I sported this look for a while before I got my drop. The non-tuner crowd basically doesn't notice and says "nice rims" or "nice car" etc.

The tuners will yell things like "drop it" or " it needs a drop" etc.

Anyway I do have some old pictures of my car with rims and no drop.

Number 1
Number 2
Number 3

I personally think its much better dropped.

JD

 
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You're not a tuner till you have to drive diagonally over speedbumps, LOL.

 
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To true .. its fun to watch those people - whereas I'm still 4x4ing it, will for a good while still

 
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Ahhh Telly, now you went and got me all paranoid about my struts, this will be my first winter with my car lowered, and yes I've had my struts replaced under warranty once (before I lowered my car) I do plan on getting coilovers, but the longer I can put that 2G + investment off the better! I just try to drive "conservatively" and avoid all the huge bumps and SUPER hard cornering...

 
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one of the best quotes ever....

 
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I'm rather quotable apparently.

 
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another one...

pure gold telly...pure gold....

liro