glt, the reason they look so.... s**t.... is because, first of all, the profile on those 17's is wrong. a 205x17 tyre on that honda should have at VERY LEAST a 50 or perhaps a 55 profile, a) to stop it from affecting the speedo and b) so it looks better, keeping the total diameter of the wheel the same as stock. I can't imagine it would be all too expensive for tyres in a 215x45x17 - I pick them up for $180 a corner here in Australia, which is about US$120. If you buy 17's buy 215 tyres

 

if you go with 17s these are the acceptable sizes to go with.
205/50-17
215/45-17
225/45-17

I'd recommend the 225/45/17, the tires are wider and you'll have more stability on corners. wider is better. I've been running 215/45/17s for a few years and they perform very well.

 

you guys speak the truth and I completely agree. I said in in my first reply that with 17s, if your original rims were 15s with the stock 195/65s, you should go to at least 205/50s to match what the stock wheels are. Most people go to "bigger" rims because they want to close the gap between the tire and the wheel-well. But some...myself included, do not/did not consider that most low profile tires will reduce the overall size even if you go bigger on the rims unless you chose the tire wisely. You guys are giving him great advise on the tire size. I can not talk for sedans but for the coupe stocks that were about 25 inches wide...even if you go to 215/45s that is 24.6 which would be almost .5 inches smaller. 50s would be great and I agree that would probably look awesome. I went through the same thing and made the wrong choice, not on the rims but on the tire size. Our friend is buying from ebay so I want to make sure he considered all options and had plenty of information about how to chose a wheel and tire combo. I know if I had asked here before buying 17s and 205/40s I would have saved myself a heartache and disapointment. Not to mention the cost of buying 18s and selling my 17s as "used". That is why places like this are so good for people like us. Again a 215/45 tire would be about 24.6 inches and a /40 would be about 23.9. He should be able to go measure his tires, compare to what his desired "outcome" is and think about what to do. If he wants to close that gap and that is less than what he already has...then he is obviously not doing the right thing. Sedans are different so I AM TALKING on my coupe experience and Australia probably gets cars with different specs. btw- 215/45s are hard to find in my kneck of the woods. I can get brand X with a 15000 miles waranty (CRAP) for the price you speak of but name brands need to be ordered and sure cost A LOT more than 120 down here in good old Miami Florida.
Akkord- These guys are giving you great advise and I am making sure you measure your wheel-wells good and plan what you want your final product to look like. Honestly, 17s on a sedan should be nice since they have smaller wheel-wells than coupes as long as you get the right tire. MEASURE MEASURE MEASURE and you will make the right decision. Also think about how far to drop the car. If you go 2 inches and do not get a camber kit you will wear out tires very fast specially if you get cheap tires. That is a lot of money even if at 120 dollars a pop that will add up. So measure how much of a gap you have now and what 17s with the right tires will look like and then how much space you will have after. You may not even need a 2 inch drop if the gap is not that big. But do your homework now and be happy after.
happy hunting and again, the wheels you are getting look great.
skabone69- Great Ride!!! How far did you drop your car? You did have aftermarket shocks and springs and it looks lowered so I am assuming. With 225s do you get any buldging on the sides? How long have you had the tires? 225s are (according to my wheel outlet guys and even the places like firestone are only recomended for 18s). They tolds me that if you run them on 17 you will eventually deform the tires side or get a "bulge". But you learn something every day specially when people are not trying to sell you semething!! Thanks guys

 

regarding the bulge, though, I see it on almost all 17's with 225's, rarely on 18's. it depends on how wide the wheel is - if the wheel is 8" wide then 225's are fine, but yeah, you're right, most 17's are 17x7 or 17x7.5

I'm lucky in aus i guess because adjusting total diameter is illegal, so i guess that makes 215x45r17 a more common tyre size

 

Mike.
another reason why to visit Australia!!! Cheap tires! Hope everything is great down under. We mostly have the "crocodile hunter" as the only australia representative down here on TV but I must say I know friends who went over there to study for a semester and they had to force them out. Great country and best of wishes to you.
PS-Here in south Florida, we have a lot of guys running Ford Impala cars with 22 inch chrome wheels.....maybe we need a law limiting increasing the diameter of wheels too much here as well! :-)

 

hahaha awesome! i would seriously love to see some lowriders in person :P we get mainly ricers or muscle cars

 

here are some of the common sights here in Florida and please know that I am not knocking anyone...just don't undertand it...but to each their own...if you like it...ride it! I have seen at least one impala a week with 22 or bigger rims. And I was wrong it is not a ford but a chevy. Now doesn't that make our discussion of 16s or 17s and even 18s kind of sound silly does it not? I think these are 26s. I got them of cardomain.com but are not uncommon here.
Akkord-- please let us know when you get your wheels and please post some pics of them when you get them mounted. I want to see how they look before you lower the car.

Thanks

 

if you want to see how other tire sizes match up versus your stock size, you can go here: http://www.miata.net/garage/tirecalc.html
it'll calculate the overall diameters for you and tell you how it would affect your speedometer.

glt, you said a lot of stuff in that last post. one thing is slightly off, though...bigger rims are more for looks and handling and not to lessen the wheel well gap. if anything, bigger rims will highlight the wheel gap. the only way to lessen wheel gap is with lowering.

if any of you are looking for 215/45 tires, or any size, tires.com and tirerack.com have good name brand ones for decent prices. i got 215/45/17 pirellis from discount tire (tires.com) for $116 each that are highly regarded and rated #1 for ultra high performance all season on tirerack.com's user survey. if you need help with choosing a tire, tirerack.com has good reviews and user surveys broken down into performance types. glt, good luck with your rim and tire search. nice wheel choice, akkord.

 

great tool. That should be enough for him to pick the right size wheel...
"glt, you said a lot of stuff in that last post. one thing is slightly off, though...bigger rims are more for looks and handling and not to lessen the wheel well gap. if anything, bigger rims will highlight the wheel gap. the only way to lessen wheel gap is with lowering."
EXACTLY. But the "sporty" look IS achieved by closing the gap by getting the car lower to the ground and bigger wheels that are enough to cover the side gaps too. Wheel gaps are not only up and down but to the sides of the wheels as well. A combination of bigger rims, right tire and a reasonable drop will get that look and still keep the ride confortable enough to make the car drivable every day. You don't see many people lowering their cars and keeping the stock 15s with /65s on do you? It just does not look right. Also putting too big a profile on big rims takes away from the sporty look or at least the look most go for with low profiles now days. They would just look like a bigger version of the stocks and will actually raise the car if you go too big on the tire profile. That is why most stay with /40s or /45s. Bigger rims like 19s and up even stay in the /35 range. So for looks you will have to go to bigger rims which look more agressive and the correct tires as most have pointed out here. Those rims have to be big enough to compensate for the loss of sidewall on the sporty tires so they fill the gaps mostly on the sides at least as good as the stocks and so you don't have to slam the car 3 inches to get the tire close to the edge of the wheel-well on top. More reasonable drops of around 1.5 inches will also keep you away from needing a camber kit to save the tires. Depending on the car and personal taste you have to find the balance in wheel size, tire and drop keeping in mind that with smaller wheels you will need bigger profile tires which is not what you may want and maybe a bigger drop, too big a wheel with low profiles will fill the sides but most likely enhance the top gap like you said and if you drop it too much it can result in rubbing the tires on the chasis, etc.
Best thing to do is know what you are going for, compare to others to see what they did and what you like in places like www.cardomain.com and you will make the right choice. That is what all my babbling was getting too :-).
ps- sorry, I do talk a lot! :-)

 

Keep in mind that with the larger rims and 40 or 45 series tires that you'llmost likely want to lower your car. There looks like there is alot of wheel gap with larger rims on a 6th gen. Depending on your taste...Eibach Pro-Kits or Sportlines. With any lowering job you'll need new shocks.