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About 9 months ago I switched out my stock 16" EX alloys for a set of 2005 TL wheels.  I love the look of the TL wheels, and I like the look of the lower profile tire.  I've had no complaints with the larger wheels...but I have an experience I would like to share.

A few days ago I took off the TL wheels and put my stock 16"s back on in preparation for my drive to Ohio for Christmas.  I was amazed at how differently the car drove....in a good way.

1. As expected ride comfort improved going from a 35 profile tire to a 60.
2. The car tracts a much "truer" or straighter line on the freeway.
3. Wheel weight decreased by 9lbs (49lbs TL / 40lbs OEM).
4. Feels like the car gained 10hp...acceleration has improved.
5. Highway MPG increased from 31 to 34mpg (same highway, cruise set to 75mph).
6. Car feels more balanced overall.

If I didn't like the look of the TL wheels so much I would sell them.  I hear people often say "dude wider tires grip so much better".  While this may be true....I don't think grip is much of an issue for the everyday driver.  If you track your car that is one thing- but how often do find yourself cornering at high speeds? And if you routinely find yourself cornering hard at 60+ mph on public roads, well...you are a fuck head.  I understand that high-power cars need big, wide tires to put down power....but lets not kid ourselves...none of us are driving a V12 Lambo.

I have to say the exact opposite. Every time I put my stock wheels back on for the winter my car handles like shit...

I have better experience with my current wheel setup as opposed to my steelies. My gas mileage didn't change, it tracks better, and also handles better due to less flex in the sidewalls. Wet weather on the other hand sucks balls because I'm still running OEM Michelins on them. That'll change soon though.

^ Perhaps I am just crazy....but I'm interested to hear if anyone else has had similar feelings.

Maybe you are crazy Greg. You did mass PM the entire forum.

Just a thought. Greg is running a 235 with an Acura wheel. Z and Mike, you guys are both running 225 Honda's, right? Maybe that 10mm difference in width is enough to make that difference.

Yes but, i've run wider tires on my car also, and with similar results. I can see where you may feel a decrease in acceleration but, it should be minimal. The most important thing is the feeling of the driver, and confidence that your car is handling properly. I didn't intend to take a shot at you or make you feel crazy Greg soemtimes i'm a cranky old guy in the morning.

Bill, technically I'm running Acura wheels if you want to look at it that way as my wheels happen to be the same ones run on the 02-03 Acura TL Type S but I digress. That 10mm difference is not much to make that much of a differencedifference. 10mm is shit to be frank. Honestly though, yes acceleration would decrease if the overall weight of the wheel and tire combo weighs more than the OE setup and mileage would decrease slightly as a result but the extra rolling resistance also contributes. I wouldn't mind a slight decrease in acceleration and fuel mileage for the increased traction benefit.

And Greg, calling you crazy was just to fuck with you and of course I had to throw in the mass pm reminder. lol

Since we're throwing around our opinions...here's mine:

Do you take your car to the track? I know I don't. Hell, my commute to work is 90% straight! If I had more curves to deal with on a back road then yeah traction would be a little better there. I'd much rather have more acceleration and mpgs than more traction. I never have pushed my car to the edge of where my tires are slipping or screaming. If I wanted better traction I'd throw on a grippier set of tires.  :shh:

x2

I've thought about getting TL or TL-S wheels, but then again, my car is a DD. Acceleration and mpg's are pretty important, and cornering at high speeds doesn't seem necessary. Sure, I went to a wider tire, and it's improved the car's handling a lot, but other than that, I don't see the need to getting an even wider wheel/tire set.

Not to mention the fact that getting a new set of wheels and tires will be expensive as shit.

I don't take my car to the track. I just have some nice twisty back roads to play on and the increased traction is nice should I ever have to make an emergency maneuver (sp?). No need to hide from the ban missle. It'll find you just like Chuck Norris.

When I had my accident I think wider tires probably would have allowed me to keep my car away from the guard rail. Increased traction is a good thing trust me.

I'm sure it would have helped. I don't remember if you had said it then but were you running the OE Michelins then Mike?

No sir. I was on cooper tires. But, they are now gone also I upgraded even my winter tires. That accident caused me to make alot of changes.

You bad mouthing coopers Mike? My dad is a engineer there, Im gonna come find you. jk we dont even own any. I have been wanting some tl 5 spokes since I lowered my car. This may make me rethink what I do. I saw some Honda wheels on an accord the other day that looked pretty good, Im going to assume the are 225's. It a wider heavier wheel/tire combo harder on the power steering pump? I could see some extra stress on it.

I never said it was the fault of the tires. My issues were caused by many small issues compounding to create a large one. I was forced to make a snap judgment evasive maneuver, and better equipment may have changed things.

I actually feel the same way as Greg however I was running 18" wheels and just went back to the 16" EX stocks. Turning feels easier and my acceleration is a lil better, as for mpg I dont know yet cuz I just took em off on Saturday.

And Z the OEM michelin's are horrible in inclement weather so yeah you cant go off of that.

I was just messing with ya.

On topic: Will I notice a significant difference in traction if I go from a 205 to a 235 with a good tire? Right now my traction sucks in the rain.

No worries guys...I intended for some banter with this topic.


Not necessarily.  I think its actually easier to hydroplane on a wider tire due to the larger contact patch.  I think a good set of 205 tires would make a world of difference.  I drove through some heavy rain Saturday going to Hattiesburg, MS....no problems on my 205's.

I was talking more about from a stop. Occasionally when I go to accelerate my tires will spin. I feel like an asshat when I do it. Another thing is my grandparents driveway is very steep and when it rains they always lose grip.

Believe me, I know how bad the OEM Michelins are. Remember when I had said I sent my car sliding sideways a couple months ago? In dry weather is the only time these tires are good. My comparison is based on that.

im going from 205 to 225 soon, I am sure I will not enjoy the slower feel, lower mpg

but I will love the looks, it is my DD, but I can live with it I am sure

heck I even noticed the heavy feeling when I had to do a brake job and installed TL-s bars the same moment

who knows, if it bugs me maybe in the future I will buy some light weight 16 or 17" wheels with the same width...

My car didn't feel any slower when I went to 225. Gas mileage dropped maybe 1-2mpg, but that's about it. I'd probably assume that the pulleys have a part in making my car not feel slow anymore too, lol.

Don't get me wrong, I was completely happy with the 17x8 rims when they were on my car....your mind tends to get used to things over periods of time.  I think the slight decrease in power is more of an issue for I4's than guys with V6's....they have more room to lose a few Hp than I4's do.  Like I said, I love the looks of the TL rims....the lower profile tire looks nice.

sorry  jeff

meant to say not only going to 225 from 205 but adding a few lbs on each wheel too

You really shouldn't notice too much of a difference Asim. Better traction is the major thing you will notice but that also depends on how much thrashing you do around turns.

Ah, well then that definitely makes sense. 36lbs around the car is a quite large increase for TLs. My EX wheels don't feel that heavy (with tires).

Inertia sucks, doesn't it?

I sort of think of wheels like engine pulleys....the lighter they are the easier it is for the engine to spin them. And yeah, +9lbs per corner is rather hefty.

i've gotta weigh my oems to be sure what the damage will be

my new wheels will be 50lb combined

i have 06-07 16's so they aren't exaclty the same as yours but im hoping its not a 9lb per wheel difference

You're running a 35 series tire on a 17" wheel?  No wonder the ride comfort feels crappy.  Most people run that on 19" wheels.  17" wheels should run a 45-50 series tire depending on the width of the tire.

Yeah, good call Milan. With the 235's he should've been using a45 series tire on the TL's he has. Maybe it was a typo on Greg's part.

That was a typo...I'm running 235/45/17 tires.

In that case I'm a little surprised.  Last winter when I went from my 18s to the EX 16s I didn't notice any discernible difference in comfort whatsoever.