OEM 16 Inch Wheels
 

I'm toying with the idea of getting the OEM 16 inch rims used for JDM G model and Australian GT trim (maybe others too?). This is for my '17 86 which serves as a daily commuter on some not so great pavement, and I'd be keeping my stock 17" wheels for more aggressive track-day tires.

My '06 Civic Hybrid came with aftermarket 17 inch wheels, and when I swapped those out for 16 inch RSX rims it perked up a lot. I've been very happy with the change, not just from the handling improvement from the reduced weight and the quieter ride, but also more piece of mind for potholes and avoiding curb scrapes with the extra tire height.

I realize the effect on handling is apples and oranges, but given (as was also the case with my Civic) that this is an OE tire size, I can't be going too far astray, right? What I do wonder though is whether the cars that shipped with 16" wheels had springs/dampers that were tuned accordingly, or if tires aside, the suspensions were identical to 17" wheeled cars. I strongly suspect the latter. Does anybody know for sure?

The other thing I'm wondering is how these rims would get along with TPMS. Photos of the JDM wheels I'm eyeing show rubber valve stems. I couldn't find any Japanese literature, but the Australian owners' manual makes no mention of TPMS and presumably also have plain valves. Are there be any issues with fitting TPMS senders to these rims?

The suspension is the same for 16 inch wheel cars.

Since the OEM 16 inch wheels were never offered in North America, it's not likely to be easy or cheap to get them here. Not impossible but probably not worth it since there are plenty of other options. I used 16x7 Enkei RPF1 with winter tires for a while.

- Andrew