Need Advice before Making a Purchase
 

Hey all, I've been browsing the forums for a little over a year now and this is my first post. I've been looking into Rims because soon I plan on buying a new set of summer tires with it being right around the corner.

First off, can anybody tell me anything about TSW Rims through personal experience? I've read some customer reviews online and generally people have good things to say about their Interlagos, Nurburgring, and Mallory rim styles. However, the TSW Sebring are really what catches my eye. I would like to go with 18" x8.0", but I don't know if I'd have good fitment without but buying a set of coilovers (and they're out of my budget at the moment). 17"x8.0 are likely the size I will be buying to avoid having to buy coilovers for a proper fitment. I could probably buy lowering springs with a 1" drop and it would be okay..

Secondly, with 17.0x8.0 rims, what tire dimensions would provide the best daily drivability while also giving a "flush" look? A few friends have reccomended 225/40/R17 or 215/40/R17. I've also considered 225/35/R17 or 215/35/R17. I've checked many fitments with the Wheel Directory thread, but haven't been able to find the specific Make and Model of rim I'm interested in. In your opinions, what dimensions would provide the best look/function without having to adjust from OEM ride height?

Next, what tire brands do you guys run with your rims? I think I can get good tires from Tire Rack for right around $115/tire but I'm unsure what brand and model would pair appropriately with the rims I'd like.

Lastly, would I require spacers in either the front or the rear in order to have my rims flush with my body fenders? I'm assuming I would need a small spacer for the rear but I figured I could ask you guys and get some much needed advice before I make any purchases.

Thanks in advance to all the 86 members on the forum, you guys have already been so helpful!

TSW for the most part I've heard they're ok. They make light wheels.

18x8 is ok for stock suspension.

For 17x8 225/40 is the size you're gonna want.

Tires... depends on what you're looking to get out of the car. How do you drive, where you live, etc.

Depends on offset if you need spacers. For the most part 17 x 8 will look pretty flush w/o spacers.

I ran some TSWs on my GTO for a while. Nice looking, no issues with coating, and they were pretty light. They also balanced out nicely every time. Not a premium wheel per se but a great bargain for the money. I have definitely considered the nurburgring for the brz.

Should I be running the same size tires on the front and the rear? I know that some people run larger tires in the rear; is this recommended?

Same front and rear preferably

Really? Not 225/45?

he is mistaken.

only 3 good choices.
225/45 best choice.
235/40 slightly smaller diameter.
245/40 slightly pinched but still fits ok.

225/40 is for 18's
35 series is for 18's

225/40r17 is not a very common size, only a couple manufacturers make it and it is very expensive...

Fitment is more determined by wheel width and offset than anything. An 18x8 +35 will fit the exact same way as a 17x8 +35 provided you use an appropriately sized tire. On a 17x8, you would fit a 225/45r17 and on a 18x8, you would use a lower profile tire like 225/40r18 instead and they would fit very close to the same.

That said, it appears that the Sebrings are available in our bolt pattern at either 17x8 +35 or 18x8.5 +35. I know plenty of guys run 18x9+35 successfully on our cars although a bit of negative camber is needed to help to pull the top of the tire under the fender to get a flush look but that is just some camber bolts and an alignment. I'll also note, I haven't seen any 18 inch wheel setup that I thought looked good on stock ride height, I really do think you need to lower the car at least an inch to make them look good.