Tire questions for a non nsx

[racebuicks]

My wifes car is a 05 mazda3 with 17s on it. And since you guys are more into handling etc (unlike me and my friends) I have these Goodyear RSA tires on the car (came with it) and it rides like a lumberwagon. (Corners like its on a rail...) What Im wondering is there a 205/50-17 that will perform yet not sound like we have bricks for tires (road noise) as it runs down the road?

 

[nsxtasy]

I assume from your location that the car will occasionally be driven in snow and winter cold, as well as in moderate to warm temperatures the rest of the year. In that case, you need another all-season tire (the RSA is an extremely popular all-season, perhaps the best seller in the entire industry).

The very best all-season tires for handling are the ones that the Tire Rack places in its "Ultra High Performance All-Season" category. Within that category, I particularly like the Kumho ASX and the Avon Tech M550 A/S, not only for their excellent performance (for an all-season) but also for their relatively low cost. Both are available in 205/50-17; current prices at the Tire Rack are $103 for the Avon and $95 for the Kumho.

As far as noise, I don't usually pay any attention to it, but I find the Tire Rack's test results to be far more meaningful than their user reviews. They have conducted test results on both of these tires alongside the RSA (here and here) and in both cases, the rating for noise comfort was almost exactly the same as the RSA and better than most of the other tires in the tests.

For what you're looking for, I think either the Kumho ASX or the Avon Tech M550 A/S will meet your stated needs just fine.

 

[JonBoy]

Another great choice (I ran them on a prior Accord in 215/45/17 size) is the Cooper Zeon ZPT. They last fairly well, they're not too loud, and they have pretty good sidewalls and grip quite well for an all-season tire. Might not last as long as the RS-A, though. You should get 40K miles out of them.

They don't have your exact size but I'd step up to 215-45-17s anyways, just for a bit more grip and sidewall stiffness. $70 per tire plus shipping at www.discountedwheelwarehouse.com plus about $60 to ship four of them, I figure.

 

[Acura NsX Pilot]

I recently replaced my Michelin's with Yokohama S Drive's and found this to be a nice performer with better handling then the stock tires and less noise.

There $107 for the 205/50/ZR17

They compare these to the Yoko ES100's but many have said the performance is much better. I also agree and would buy these again.

 

[racebuicks]

It all started with an accident last Oct. We bent a rim and wiped out a tire. Some jack ass lost a spare rim and tire on a curve and we had no where to go but over it. I had to get a rim and tire and realign it. I am not sure but now I think it needs to be aligned better and now a set of front tires replaced. The rears are fine. I cant beleive the alignment was off far enough to kill 2 tires inside of a year. but I guess so. If the car had 16's on it originally and now with the American Racing 17 inchers who far would it throw off the speedo going to a larger tire? Whats the difference in a 45 vs a 50 series?

 

[nsxtasy]

Yokohama S Drive's

The S.drive is a summer tire and is not appropriate for a car that is driven in winter, with the possibility of occasional driving in snow.

If the car had 16's on it originally and now with the American Racing 17 inchers who far would it throw off the speedo going to a larger tire? Whats the difference in a 45 vs a 50 series?

The difference is five. :biggrin:

When a tire is 205/50-17, that means that the wheels are 17 inches in diameter, the tread width is 205 mm, and the sidewall height is .50 * 205 mm = 102.5 mm. The "50" is called the aspect ratio and tells the ratio of the treadwidth to the sidewall height.

In choosing a tire size, in general, the best bet is to choose one whose outer diameter is as close as possible to (preferably with 1 percent of) the stock tire size, which maintains the accuracy of the speedometer and odometer, keeps the tires from rubbing, etc. Think of a tire mounted on a wheel, and it's easy to see that the outer diameter of the tire can be calculated as the wheel diameter plus two times the sidewall height. You can calculate and compare the outer diameter of different tire sizes using a tire calculator like this one. The 16" stock size for the '03 Mazda3 was 205/55-16. 205/50-17 is a good 17" size for the car; it is 0.8 percent larger in diameter than the stock size. You can use that or the 215/45-17 (1.0 percent smaller in diameter than stock); differences in price and performance between the two sizes are negligible.

Again, both the Kumho ASX and the Avon Tech M550 A/S are excellent choices in 205/50-17 as well as in 215/45-17.