Input wanted, 17 or 18?

[Kouki]

Ok, I'm about to order my wheels and tires, but I'm having a hard time deciding what size to get. I'm looking at either a 17x9 +17 or a 18x9 +15 all around. I'm riding on coilovers so I can adjust ride height to compensate for the difference in overall size of the tires. Also with either of those wheel sizes I'm going to get 235/40 for tires. I'm just wondering if you think the 18s are going to be too big and look funny on my s13. The front fenders are 20mm over, and the rears are stock, but rolled and I'm running 2.8 camber up front and 3.2 in the rear. I know most of you are going to say personal preference, but I'm looking for some other input. Thanks.

[SoSideways]

17s up front you'll be able to go lower and have more clearnace.

18s up front = man status, you can never look back as being a small, powerless boy, and have to do whatever it takes to clear everything.

[Jefferson]

I personally would get the 17's. I like the way they fit, don't rub at the track, and tires are cheaper. If it was to just be pimping around town I would get the 18's, street/track I'd go 17's. This is my personal opinion so take it as you will

[pileofherpes]

I think putting 18's on an s13 is more of a "status" issue than it is a functional one.

18 inch wheels are just too big for the s13 imo.

[180sxsun]

^^ what he said, also depends on what kind or wheels your getting, 18's are awesome if your looking to be ballin' but 17's are more practical and looks way sick when you have nice off-sets

[chmercer]

18s all around

225/45/17 is bigger than 225/40/18

anyone who says it doesn't fit is a retard who doesn't understand tire height

[SoSideways]

225/45/17 is bigger than 225/40/18


And 215/40/17 < 225/40/18 :bigok:

[articdragon192]

But thjat's too small no?

[turboboost12004]

i would go with 18s

[SoSideways]

But thjat's too small no?

I'll let you know after I put my wheels on...

I got 215/40/17 mounted on 9j wheels for the front, and I plan on not having any fender gap, so..... :ugh:

[revat619]

personally i think 17 front and 18 rear on s13 looks good. But then again, it depends on what your purpose for the car is...

just some daily pimpin, i'd say 18s all around. If you're gonna track it at all, 17/18.

[GreekRPS13]

17's for sure

[cencal180]

what are you usin the car for? i personialy like both sizes. like everyones sayin..if you wanna pimp it go with the 18 and track go for 17. btw...what rims are you lookin at?

[trsilvias13]

17's are good track wheels and pretty pimp on a s13. If it the s14 then I would ask the question. I would go 17's

[chmercer]

And 215/40/17 < 225/40/18 :bigok:

yeah but people say "18s dont fit up front" all the time, and yet people run 225/45/17s in front constantly. makes no sense.

[Phlip]

18s all around

225/45/17 is bigger than 225/40/18

anyone who says it doesn't fit is a retard who doesn't understand tire height
By my math, the 18" wheels are larger.

-HOWEVER-

The difference is only a half inch in wheel/tire height... I don't usually agree with Charlie, and I have ZERO plans of 17 OR 18 inch wheels on my car, and it is purely a preference-driven decision, I like what I like, some people like what they like.
Some people like to stuff the largest and most expensive wheels and tires that will humanly fit under their cars. The fact, at the end of the day, is that the person who has the least unsprung weight, most torque and longest lasting tires will be the winner of this little "whatever" we're all competing in.

[Flybert]

225/45/17 doesn't fit up front, at least on s13. That's why people say that. It's all about 234/40/17 up front. I'd only rock 18's up front if I was tubbed.

[Dr.Baby]

i refuse to run an 18 on the front of an S chassis for the sole reason you get the worst feedback from the steering wheel ever, the turn it isnt sharp anymore and i hate the way it transfers. i dont care what size tire it is, what width wheel blah blah blah. 17/18 for any S chassis is where its at.

[drew935]

If I was to do it for, then 18's. I'm sure if you put 18's on your 13, people won't think that you're a baller. Unless they drive a civic on 15/16's. And stop thinking that it's too expensive. Because that time I checked, our cars aren't that cheap to mod. So save your $ or stop complaining. :coolugh:

Btw, it's your car so do your thang with it. :bigok:

Ok now's drive and be merry :2f2f:

Other than that, just make it fit...

[mr_240sx]

you aint nothing unless your tucking 20's!

[chmercer]

By my math, the 18" wheels are larger.

-HOWEVER-

The difference is only a half inch in wheel/tire height... I don't usually agree with Charlie, and I have ZERO plans of 17 OR 18 inch wheels on my car, and it is purely a preference-driven decision, I like what I like, some people like what they like.
Some people like to stuff the largest and most expensive wheels and tires that will humanly fit under their cars. The fact, at the end of the day, is that the person who has the least unsprung weight, most torque and longest lasting tires will be the winner of this little "whatever" we're all competing in.

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

radius says the same, diameter says .1 inch difference, *shrug*, its arbitrary since all brands of tires are different sizes

i can understand if you like the feel of 17s better, or want lighter wheels, or somthing like that, but when people say "it dosent fit" i think that shit is dumb. 245/35/18 is smaller than 205/55/16, isnt that what comes on them stock?

[backroadtouge]

or be super cool and jsut get 17's for the front. 18's in back.

[LukeDogg316]

I'm running 225/45/17 all around on an s13 with rolled fenders and coilovers, I have no rubbing problems at all.

[redgold]

i have 17 x 9 front and 18 x 9.5 rear on my s13 with the WORKS Emotion CR Kai Bronze and look badass...

[SoSideways]

I'm running 225/45/17 all around on an s13 with rolled fenders and coilovers, I have no rubbing problems at all.

When you're super slammed and you are in the middle of a corner, your tire will more than likely rub on the fender well.

Corner fast/hard enough and your car will be bouncing off of the tire that's rubbing on the wheel well.

[McRussellPants]

I run 17s on the front because I like the way it looks, I like the super rear grip feel of 17/18 and I don't know anyone who can keep 18s on the front of S13 from plowing into everything.

[KA24DESOneThree]

My input is 17s front and rear. 9s all around if you're not making much power.

[Vail]

17's.......jmo.

[initialrt]

go with 17's bebe

[Eric240sx1990]

id say go buy some lambo wheels off of a wrecked murchialago(sp?) they are 19x16 lol....

naw.. 17's are nice!!

[TurK]

either will look great with the right choice of the wheels...especially if you have wider fenders you wont have any trouble fitting either or, goodluck.

[KiDyNomiTe]

18s up front 19s in the back.

[!Zar!]

Either way, if you want your rims to fit nicely, you'll need to relocate your wiring harness from under the fender to somewhere else; most commonly placed in the engine bay.

Then bang the hell out of your fender wells.

[CA18_S13]

17's all round. front 17's should be skinny and 17's in the back like 9 with a fat lip so it looks crunchy.

[Yuri]

Skinny? Why? I don't know why you'd want to run skinny fronts for anything but a drag aesthetic.

I'm really happy with with 18x9's in front. Running a 225/35-18, they have excellent turn-in with no rubbing. Most of the problems I see with 18's come from running too tall a tire, and not enough hammer-time.
Even though I like 18's I'd recommend 17's to most people just for the bigger (and cheaper) tire selection.

[yokotas13]

hey yuri, do you heat up the metal with like a blowtorch befor eyou bang the fenderwells up or just bang away?

[Yuri]

I just bang away. A big hammer with rubber on one end works wonders.
What I usually do when I get an S13 is the following:

Remove front fenders and liners

detach fasteners holding wiring harness to inner fender.

strip accordian style plastic off of wiring harness.

rewrap harness in electrical tape to keep wires together.

move harness up above the flange on the side of the top structural member
that goes above the wheel opening (This is the member that the top of the fender bolts to.)

Hold harness in place with thick zipties.

use visegrips to start bending the seams in the direction you want them to lay.

Once the seams are started, flatten them with a hammer.

Pound in areas that need more clearance, specifically that box shape at the front of one of the wheel wells, and an area outboard of the seam at the rear of the wheel wells. These areas will depend on your caster setup.

Check your clearance with the wheel on, suspension under compression at full lock. Once you are satisfied, paint the wheel wells to protect against rust. and reinstall the fender.

This is how I do it. I've heard of some people actually cutting out the seam flange and re-welding the seam.

[yokotas13]

well im having a problem stil at the very top adn the very front with somse considerable banging. Im tot he point i want to tub my front fenders.

[chmercer]

um if you are rubbing on the top tubbing your fenders isnt going to fix that, only smaller tires or raise your car or get harder springs. to get rid of the upper frame rail thing youd have to like tube frame your front end.

the front tubs you can totally demolish with a hammer. you know how like the tub is there, and then a few inches up there is like a circle hole cut into the sheet metal, ive hammered the tub up to where its kindof mashed into the circle hole if that makes sense. just keep wailing on it with a hammer. then wail some more. turn your wheels back and forth to check, hammer some more. etc.

[rossfashow]

id say go buy some lambo wheels off of a wrecked murchialago(sp?) they are 19x16 lol....

naw.. 17's are nice!!
are you serious? they are 19x16? thats is one heck of a wheel lol

[Yuri]

If I recall from measuring a Murcielago, the rears are 19x12 +18.
Wrong bolt pattern from our cars too. The fronts are something like 19x8 +48. How weak is that.

[chmercer]

vipers and murcielagos are 13j

certainly not 16, that would require like stretched as fuck 355 tire