Will bigger rims slow me down?

[Jarod]

Guys, i was thinking about putting either 16" or 17" rims on my 94 rs dohc, but will it slow the car considerably? Tell me what size you have and if you noticed a difference. Thanks.<P>Jarod

[mzdspd]

the rim size doesn't matter its the total diameter of the tire which will make the car slower or faster

[DVH]

17 slowed me down, remeber , u only have a rs, you'll notice a lot going up hills, thats where i noticed it the most!<BR>but hey, tell me really.........is ur car really that fast now???? its only a rs, i know that my car is mostly show and not much go, so i don't care<BR>no matter what u do (intake, exhaust, wires,etc) i understand that my car will never be fast, unless custom turbo setup or BPT swap, which is what im planning, so i didn't care if it slowed me down!<BR>anyways, later and good luck<BR>PS: they look damn good!

[tinkertank]

Theoretically: The total diameter of the wheel and tire combined will allow greater distance travelled per revolution. If you can notice the day to day difference, I would be surprised. It will make your spedo / odo inaccurate though. It is possible that the greater torque required to spin the wheels might hindre your performance slightly, but I doubt it would be substantial.

[OsoSlo z28]

the rotational mass is what is going to slow you down. get a lighter wheel(OZ racing superleggera, volk racing grahm lights, etc)

[mx3man83]

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by mzdspd:<BR><STRONG>the rim size doesn't matter its the total diameter of the tire which will make the car slower or faster</STRONG><HR></BLOCKQUOTE><P>The rim size does matter. The bigger rims you have, the slower your going to go, at least when you take off.

[Freq2002]

Oh my lord,... Why do they keep breeding?<P>The rim size doesn't mean squat! the outer diameter of the TIRE does. If a stock 14" rim with factory rubber is the same height as a 17" with low-profile rubber, the speed will be exactly the same. Now in relation to rotating weight, it is possible to get light weight wheels so that when you're done, they weigh the same or less than the stock wheel & tire.<P>Now we get to the difference between faster & quicker,...<BR>Faster is a highter top speed. Taller tire will be faster as it covers more distance per revolution. BUT, you sacrifice tourqe to turn it, hence it wont be as quick & those steep hills will seem a lot harder.<BR>Quicker is faster acceleration, getting more power to the road. A shorter tire will do this. Less power is required to turn the wheel, so it can be made to accelerate the car more rapidly but at the cost of your top speed.<BR>Keep in mind that if you mess with your tire diameters, you're spedometer will be inaccurate. Taller tires will be moving you faster than normal, opposite for shorter tires,...<P>If you're having troubles with hills, quit dating fat chicks.

[EBUCKS]

mx3man83, your 92 SOHC most likely came with stock 14 inch rims with 185/65/14 tires. When you changed your wheels to "17 inch chrome elite bozak rims with 205/40/17 tires", you didn't only increase you rim diametre, but you also decreased your tire side wall height. Do the math and your tire diametres should be the same. Your tires are what your car runs on, not the rim. <BR>Nice explanation Freq2002. But leave them fat chicks alone. More cushion for the pushin'. [img]shrug.gif"%20border="0[/img] <P>one<p>[ September 22, 2002: Message edited by: EBUCKS ]

[ltjrunner]

like the others said. hit up some low profile tires. keeps the same speed etc, it looks great. 17's are excellent on the car, 16's too. anything better than those dinky 14's.

[codene]

yeah it diameter but rim weight pays a big part. thats why you see the civics with 18s in the back and stock hubbies up front

[cjthor]

No matter what you guys might thing... If you run 17's it WILL slow you down. There is more rotating mass towards the outer edges of the wheel which in turn slows you down..no matter what.

[Freq2002]

Codene, unless they're weird, most times you see the Hon-duh guys with the stock rims up front is at the drags so they dont tear up that gawd awfull expensive rubber you have to get for larger rims(that or they didn't have enuf $$ to buy the other wheels yet, lol). I sure as hell wouldn't race with tires that cost that much. Alot cheaper to run 14's with good race rubber, then swap em out with your nice stuff at the end of the race.<P>CJ, I smell what you're cookin, but cant agree. The distance of the mass from the point of rotation will affect the tourqe needed to move it, basic formuale on figuring the effective work produced by a lever. But when dealing with a tire/wheel combo, it's not likely to make that much of a difference. A light weight 17" race rim will still require less tourque to turn than a set of stock steel rims & rubber. I highly doubt it would make much differnce.<P>Ebucks, Hey, I like em thick too, but if ur spendin more time pushin tha cushion,... <p>[ September 27, 2002: Message edited by: Freq2002 ]

[cjthor]

nuff said..I tried. Go ahead and buy some 17's and try yourself.

[mx3man83]

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by EBUCKS:<BR><STRONG>mx3man83, your 92 SOHC most likely came with stock 14 inch rims with 185/65/14 tires. When you changed your wheels to "17 inch chrome elite bozak rims with 205/40/17 tires", you didn't only increase you rim diametre, but you also decreased your tire side wall height. Do the math and your tire diametres should be the same. Your tires are what your car runs on, not the rim. <BR>Nice explanation Freq2002. But leave them fat chicks alone. More cushion for the pushin'. [img]shrug.gif"%20border="0[/img] <P>one<P>[ September 22, 2002: Message edited by: EBUCKS ]</STRONG><HR></BLOCKQUOTE><P>you are an idiot. How is it so hard to understand this concept? Let me try to explain this to dense heads...Rims are much heavier than tires...the more diameter you have on your rims, the more weight your engine has to push....A little something called rotational mass..Take physics or something you dumb a--.

[cjthor]

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by mx3man83:<BR><STRONG><P>you are an idiot. How is it so hard to understand this concept? Let me try to explain this to dense heads...Rims are much heavier than tires...the more diameter you have on your rims, the more weight your engine has to push....A little something called rotational mass..Take physics or something you dumb a--.</STRONG><HR></BLOCKQUOTE><BR> LOL Be nice...some people take longer to understand than us.