205 50 R16 - Will they fit?

[Slavic]

The tire size thread doesn't list them. only 195 50 R16 which are 2% larger. I found these wheels on sale on craigslist:http://miami.craigslist.org/car/41156785.html for $275 with new falkens. I'm in a great need of a set of wheels and would like to get these after work today if they'll fit. The car is not lowered.

Thanks.

[Busted_Blue]

well...if it is 205/50/16 i wouldn't suggest it.. 205/45/16 is the best speed matching tire size.

The stock diameter of our wheel is roughyl 23.2inches. This new tire will bring you up to 24.1inches! I'm not sure on the consquence on the extra inch. 205/45 is the best.

[Slavic]

If they won't rub on a non lowered car and won't hurt my engine (I heard that can happen on some SUVs) I'll get them cause they are cheap. I don't care about messed up mileage meter and speedo.

[AZmike]

You'll loose a little acceleration since the outer diameter is a little bigger and affects your gearing. While not the ideal size, they should work fine.

[Slavic]

Thanks AZmike. I picked them up Friday. Owner's brother in law spilled something on one of the wheels and messed up the paint so the owner lowered the price to $245 and gave me another $20 back cause one of the tires had some damage. I kind of liked that especially cause I didn't even ask for better price. I could care less about the paint. At least this way they won't stick out too much from the rest of the sun faded cracked up paint. I liked the lower price though.

The tires are Falken 502s. I read up on them and users unanimously declared this discontinued model superior to it's replacement, the 512 model which goes for $80+ in this size compared to $70+ in 205 45 R16. Uneven ware on the sides compared to center of the tire was reported so I will make sure I inflate them close to the max to avoid that. These are supposed to be fairly sticky so I hope they don't wear out too soon in the Miami heat seeing how some users reported premature ware. I'm expecting good wet as well as dry traction and breaking performance which is what I was shooting for. The tires that came with the car, Fate-o advance AR-35 or some such, sold through Tire Kingdom I belive, would break loose way too easily in the slightest mist so I'll be delighted to see them go.

One hangup, though, is that my lug nuts don't fit on these wheels. I am assuming I need to buy tuner lug nuts and wanted to get some input before I do. I found these Spline Drive Tuner Style (.793" wide) 12x1.50mm Thread Lug Nuts with Key
for $22.99 ($31.49 shipped) and wanted to know if they are the right size and if this is a good price. I couldn't find the specs in the manual. They are probably there, I just couldn't find them. According to my measurements they will fit, but it was dark, the meter I had is kind of worn so I wanted to make sure. About the 12mm X 1.5mm part that is. I measured the hole in the wheel at between 26/32" (0.8125") and 27/32" (0.84375") so that should be fine.

[accordlxi2.0]

those are nice!

[AZmike]

It sounds like those lugs will be fine as long as your diameter measurements were good. The thread pitch is definitely correct.

[Slavic]

Thanks again. I did manage to dig up a page that listed 82-89 accords as being 12X1.5mm, but your confirmation takes all doubts away.

I decided to go with another style lug nuts, though, the ones where you insert a star shaped key into the lug nut instead of the hex or spline style socket that goes onto the lug nuts. That way I don't have to worry wether they'll be narrow and/or long enough for me to be able to put a socket/key onto them to get enough grip without damaging the wheel. I'll try to get them locally tomorrow if they are cheap enough so as to avoid waiting out the shipping period if I get them on line.

[Mattphi]

good lookin rims

[Chaosracer]

The tire size thread doesn't list them. only 195 50 R16 which are 2% larger. I found these wheels on sale on craigslist:http://miami.craigslist.org/car/41156785.html for $275 with new falkens. I'm in a great need of a set of wheels and would like to get these after work today if they'll fit. The car is not lowered.

Thanks.

They should fit I am running 17" ADR wheels with 205/40 series tires and I don't have any problems with them rubbing and speedometer is still accurate...

[Slavic]

Chaosracer, 205 40 R17 are actually stock size wheels as you can see in the tire size sticky thread while 205 50 R16 are larger than stock size (205 45 R16 would be stock too).

However, I got them mounted finally. Picked up the star lug nuts I mentioned from Pep Boys for $30 (they are actually made in Miami) as I didn't want to wait out the shipping period for the cheap $16 used ones of the same design on ebay. In retrospect I'm very happy I didn't go with regular or spline drive lug nuts as the ones I got fit very tight.

The wheels don't rub, thanks again for the good and timely advice AZmike.

As far as the gearing change. I think I did 85 MPH @ 6000 RPM in 3rd on the first test drive. FYI I will give a more precise update as far as the the gearing change and it's effect on fuel efficiency acceleration etc. at a later time.

At least two of the wheels are significantly out of round. Hope I can balance them or I'll be getting two more tires.

I like the difference the wider tires make in ride and braking power, though. Since the wheels are almost 1" larger in diameter (according to Busted Blue, I didn't double check), the car is now 1/2 higher than stock which doesn't help especially since the shocks need to be changed, but the wider tires with better grip and breaking power are worth the trade of to me until I upgrade the suspension.

[Busted_Blue]

congrats on the no rubbing. As a caution, I suggest you drive slowly until the tires readjust to your car's wearing type. It's like a sofa groove, you gotta regroove it if it's got a new owner.


as for tires.. 502 are a great set of tires. The only thing is the you cannot get new ones anymore. I tried the 502 and they are indeed good sticky tires. I have 512s on my car right now and I can say I love them to death. I'm getting another set of 512s this week for my car since I love them so much.


Be sure to post pics of your car man!

[Slavic]

I'm going to try and get them balanced tonight and then get an alignment ASAP. (I bought the lifetime alignment for $120 at Firestone)

Yes, 502s are discontinued and are said to be better than 512s, their replacement by everyone who mentioned them online. Sorry, but the only camera I have does 320x240 max I think if that. No need to white out the tag number :P

Here is a pic from autotrader when I bought the car:
http://home.comcast.net/~slavic/87Fitt.jpg

[AZmike]

I think I did 85 MPH @ 6000 RPM in 3rd on the first test drive. FYI I will give a more precise update as far as the the gearing change and it's effect on fuel efficiency acceleration etc. at a later time.

How are you measuring your speed? The speedometer is mechanically driven off of the differential so a larger tire will not change how the engine speed relates to the indicated speed. Timing between several miles of highway markers or a using a GPS are good ways to find your actual speed. By borrowing a GPS I found that my speedometer read 10% higher than the actual ground speed. You may find that your oversized tires are making your speedometer more accurate.

[Slavic]

Wanted to make a little update. I just drove over a bridge (overpass) that is made in sections which made the car rock up and down pretty hard (bad shocks) at high speed in a turn and the tires didn't rub. I now feel very confident driving with these tires.
Balancing them, however, is a nightmare. I don't want to rant, but I'll just say that so far it took two trips and over 9 hours of my time and they still shake. Will try another place soon.

[AZmike]

What machine did they use? I've heard that the newer Hunter 9700 is much better at solving balance problems that won't go away. Since it's newer and requires more labor there is usually an extra fee to have it used. It actually loads the wheel and tire with a roller so out-of-round can also my taken into account.

[danronian]

The car looks much better with those rims. Just add some shiny paint and that car will look great. Good luck with getting those rims balanced. My stock 14" alloys had a huge problem with vibrations also. I had two sets of tires on them and both times they were balanced they got shakey at highway speeds. Now that I have new rims I can't believe the difference balanced wheels makes for higher speeds.

[Slavic]

What machine did they use? I've heard that the newer Hunter 9700 is much better at solving balance problems that won't go away... It actually loads the wheel and tire with a roller so out-of-round can also my taken into account.

Well it wasn't that one, but that's something I will definitely look into, Thanks.

The car looks much better with those rims. Just add some shiny paint and that car will look great.

I agree it gives the car a much bolder look and the wheel design goes well with the car.
That "Just" can take a long time.Body work and paint are planed, but are very low on the list.