widest and narrowest summer tires

[Lynxis]

8 inch wide wheel is designed to take a 235 wide tire and you can safely run a +/- 10mm tire from there. I've personally run both 225/45r17 and 245/40r17 on my 17x8s and the 225s are just slightly stretched and the 245s look a bit meaty but both drive perfectly fine. If you want to save money on a regular street tire, just get a 225. If you want ultimate grip, get a good tire (re71r/rival s) in 245 width.

[finch1750]

Originally Posted by yelsew

Technically, yes the gearing is taller. BUT, in reality, I think you would have a hard time feeling it, and from what I've read here, not many others mind the 225/45 height difference.
Yes the 245/40 should match the overall diameter of the stock 215/45, but the extra width would be up to you whether you want that or not.

Yeah, probably wont feel it but you do notice the speedo read a little slower. It was 3-5ish mph off at freeway speeds when I had 235/45. Granted a 225/45 would be even less of a difference so maybe just 1-2mph off

[jamal]

Originally Posted by Lynxis

8 inch wide wheel is designed to take a 235 wide tire and you can safely run a +/- 10mm tire from there. I've personally run both 225/45r17 and 245/40r17 on my 17x8s and the 225s are just slightly stretched and the 245s look a bit meaty but both drive perfectly fine. If you want to save money on a regular street tire, just get a 225. If you want ultimate grip, get a good tire (re71r/rival s) in 245 width.

It is highly dependant on the specific tire. There are 225s out there that are wider than other 245s; it doesn't really matter what it says on the sidewall, look at the actual width.

Yeah I guess it sounds cooler to say you have 245s on the car, but most high performance tires tend to run on the wider side and personally I think 8" is too narrow for tires that are actually over 9" wide. yeah they'll go on the wheels but it won't be ideal and there will be more sidewall flex.

Also, there are 225/45s with the exact same diameter as 215/45s (stock michelin and hankook rs3/4 for example).

Anyhow, with those firestones I guess it could go either way. The 245/40 is not particularly wide, but would be better on an 8.5" wheel.

[Lynxis]

Originally Posted by jamal

It is highly dependant on the specific tire. There are 225s out there that are wider than other 245s; it doesn't really matter what it says on the sidewall, look at the actual width.

Yeah I guess it sounds cooler to say you have 245s on the car, but most high performance tires tend to run on the wider side and personally I think 8" is too narrow for tires that are actually over 9" wide. yeah they'll go on the wheels but it won't be ideal and there will be more sidewall flex.

Also, there are 225/45s with the exact same diameter as 215/45s (stock michelin and hankook rs3/4 for example).

Obviously, it's not optimal to run a 245 on a 17x8 but the current crop of tires will be fine if it's all you have. Tires with a really stiff sidewall won't have that penalty on turn-in response that tires with a softer sidewall will which is why I specifically recommended RE71r or Rival-S because both are known to have extremely stiff sidewalls.

FYI, I ran 245/40r17 Rivals on my 17x8 +35 wheels which are about as wide as any 245 street tire will run. Turn in response and ultimate grip were both much higher than the OEM wheel and tire package. Here is how they looked on my car:



Pictured below are my 225/45r17 winters on the same type of wheels. I have 2 sets of the same type. Being winters, I think they run a bit thin compared to most summer EP tires:



That said, I have a set of 225/45r17 RS3s sitting in my shed that will go on in the spring and I can take another picture of them once they're on.

[brandonblt2]

Just stick with 225's I have the same exact wheels and run 225
here is a pic of mine.