what size tire on a 7" wide wheel

[IWannaBMW]

I've got some 16x7's for my e30, but i'm not sure what size tire to run.

I want 225 for maximum traction, but i'm afraid they'll be too fat.

What about 215? i think 205 will fit the best but i'm not sure.

thanks

p.s what profile should i run? 45 or 50?

[Stevedotmil]

I went from a 205/50R16 on a 16x6 +45 to a 225/40R17 on a 17x7 with a +38 and I was fine so you should be able to use the 225 on your 7 inch rim. I had Nitto 555's which were really sticky and had the lip protection on them.

[IWannaBMW]

I just don't want them to look too wide for the wheel

[Stevedotmil]

Here's what they looked like. Pay no attention to the dirt on the car.

http://inlinethumb21.webshots.com/46420/2574131300054947868S600x600Q85.jpg
http://inlinethumb32.webshots.com/5407/2264477360054947868S600x600Q85.jpg

[Critter7r]

Stevedot...

Double check your stats. If that's really a 225/40, then i think that looks like at least a 7.5-inch, or more likely an 8-inch wide wheel.

keep in mind that a 225 tire is nearly 9 inches wide (225 / 25.4 = 8.8), so putting it on a 7-inch wide wheel usually doesn't result in tires that look like the pics in Stevedot's post. (Sometimes different mfrs tires will mount up a little differently, but I'm pretty sure Stevedot's rim is 8 inches wide.)

OP: if you're deadset on going with a 225, you'll go with a 225/45 16. But a 205/50 16 will look great on a wheel with proper offset. I'll get a pic later of my old E30 and post it.

[IWannaBMW]

Well the offset is weird, it says 70 on it? idk why. But it'll need at least 5mm spacers up front but i think i'll run 10 mm all around

[Critter7r]

The offset doesn't really have anything to do with how wide of a tire you can put on the rim, though.

70mm seems excessive. 60mm is probably also too much. i'd think with that kind of offset, the rim will hit the strut.

Have you test fitted the wheels yet?

[IWannaBMW]

I have and they're about 5mm away from the strut if that

[Z3racer701]

225/50-16 is the oe size on the Z3's 16x7 rims, so it should be fine. It's a little known secret, but not all 225 tires are 225 wide. You need to refer to the manufactures spec sheet for the actual width of any particular tire.

[Critter7r]

I have and they're about 5mm away from the strut if that


If that's before you put the 10mm spacers on, then i suspect you'll be fine. If they're only 5mm away with 10mm spacers, you at least need fatter spacers or ideally, different wheels.

[IWannaBMW]

I forgot to mention, that's without spacers

[Critter7r]

The E30 photo is 205/50 16s on a 7-inch wide wheel.

The E46 is a 225 on a 8.5-inch wheel

Sorry I don't have more of a close-up for the E30, but the wheels were the same width as the tires.

[IWannaBMW]

Yea i think i'm gonna go with either a 215 or 205, hopefully it'll hold up to the massive power of the m50 :rofl

[Stevedotmil]

The stats are correct. Like you said. Each manufacturer is a little different. That's what I had and that's what they looked like.