17" Rims on a Mk3 GL

[Pullstarter]

Nexen? You serious? Had them on my SX Corolla and hated them. 22"s FTW!

[evorobin]

N3000's rock but again had them from new tyres age regardless of brand...

[bboyskidz]

i've got a set of 17's on mine, i'll see if i can find a pic. next step, suspension.

16s look awesome , drive well and work well all round
17s are my fav size in looks but it is a compromise on cost. (i've already popped a tyre from a nasty pot hole )
18s are friggan huge and you would get defected, but i'm sure they would win the points at a show - no way i would drive on the roads with them - you would also have to get the speedo/odometer fixed due to the circumference change.

I am quite happy with my 17s and i get alot more grip that the stock 14's (obviously - less tyre bending.)

here it is:

[DubSteve]

I will tell you now 16s are your best fitment for a mk3 I reckon, they fit the guards well and look awesome, not to mention that you will not lose any rolling diameter with a 16s as with 17s you will! Mark 16s are not cheap, for a good set of BBS wheels, SChmidts or for instance Keskins I was willing to pay up to $3000 for them shipped here. I say 16s for the win!!!

Oh and 16s for the money shot

[bboyskidz]

not to mention that you will not lose any rolling diameter with a 16s as with 17s you will!

rolling diameter?

[DubSteve]

rolling diameter?

Yes with 16s you won't go out of alignment with your Speedo

[bboyskidz]

the distance around the outside of the tyre at its biggest point is the circumference... let me reference this pic from wikipedia

i've got 17's and mine didn't go out. confirmed with a gps unit and multiple speed cameras on the freeway

[The_Hawk]

You can play here to see what difference it makes:

http://www.miata.net/garage/tirecalc.html

My 16's are almost perfectly aligned with my speedo, 17's would make me a little faster, but not enough to worry about. For the difference it makes (with the right profile tyres) it's not an issue to go to 17's, just be aware of what your speedo reads vs reality. If you don't have one, borrow a GPS and check it. Better to know you have to sit on 95 in a 100 Zone than to get fined.

[DubSteve]

My 16's are almost perfectly aligned with my speedo, 17's would make me a little faster, but not enough to worry about. For the difference it makes (with the right profile tyres) it's not an issue to go to 17's, just be aware of what your speedo reads vs reality. If you don't have one, borrow a GPS and check it. Better to know you have to sit on 95 in a 100 Zone than to get fined.

16s actually make it a tad faster than 15s and 17s actually make it a tad slower

[Pullstarter]

All depends on your profile and width of tyre regardless of what size wheels you run. You could run 15"s and still feck your speedo up by running 80 series 245's, if such a thing were available.

[nabes]

Sorry guys, picking my thread back up again.

After lots of looking around and an eBay snipe I am now looking overseas. Particularly at these borbet LS rims:

http://www.tirerack.com/images/wheels/borbet/swap/bor_type_ls_ci3_l.jpg

I love the OZ Superturismo but have been quoted $500 per RIM new and I reckon I can import these Borbet LS wheels for about @250 a rim including postage, they are German made and look just as good.

Has anyone imported rims from the US before and in particular was freight a hassle?

Will post pics of my ride soon, just had the 2" exhaust done which sounds and looks better than I expected.

[rayray086]

nabes, I don't know if you'll be interested (give me a PM if you are) but I'll be selling my wheels soon as I have new ones coming in about a month. They're (what I believe to be the first generation) OZ Superturismos. 16x6.5, similar-to-stock offsets (high 30's/low 40's). They sit very similarly to the stock wheels so no rubbing issues.





Borbet produces good wheels though so you'll won't go wrong either way.

[evorobin]

Nice price on 17" tyres

http://cgi.ebay.com.au/Brand-New-205-40-17-LEXANI-Performance-Tyres-Quality_W0QQitemZ260217469257QQihZ016QQcategoryZ66471QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

[MattyT]

VERY nice rims ray, from your personal collection??

I'm half tempted to snatch them up myself. Did have my heart set on a set of OZ superleggra's in black tho...

Tirerack have a stack of OZ rims that fit our golfs.

[rayray086]

I've got 4 Dell computer boxes that I can use for shipping, which actually carried wheels from WA for a mate of mine! So depending on if you really want them or not, I'll be happy to organise the shipping for you.

And sorry to Nabes... I completely overlooked the fact you have a GL. Thanks for the PM in interest though!