new rims

[taz d]

hey everyone. im new here so this is my first post.
i have been looking around and i saw a lot of posts about rims and i have my own questions.
i have an AE92...91 rolla, and i found a sweet deal on rims. They are 17 inch rims. what would be the best tire size for this? thanks for your help.

[92MX83]

If you're going to run 17" rims, be advised that:

1) Your car will accelerate even more slowly, due to increased rotational inertia

2) Your car will ride about 1/2" higher than normal, since the effective rolling diameter of the tire will be an inch greater than the correct diameter. Allow me to elaborate...

The narrowest tire offered in a 17" size is typically the 205/40-17. This is the correct +3 upgrade for a car running a stock 185/65-14 tire (say, for instance, an AE101). Previous Corollas like yours ran a 185/60-14 (GT-S model), or a 175/70-13 (base/SR5/DX/LE models). Since the profile of the tire is 5% lower, you'd need to find a 205/35-17 tire to have the correct rolling diameter... which no one makes, and likely never will, since very few cars come with a 23" diameter tire nowadays. But hey, aside from the slower acceleration, and possible clearance problems by going with a 17" rim, you may experience a marginal increase in fuel economy due to the higher overall gearing which the oversize tire gives the car. Then again, there may be a net decrease in fuel economy since the tire will have higher rolling resistance and inertia, and slightly worse aerodynamics.

The correct upgrade for your car would be a 205/40-16, of which there are a few brands who make this size. The 16" wheel would also be lighter by a few pounds (don't underestimate the benefit of this, as weight hurts most the farther out from the hub it goes), or more than a few pounds if you get the right (read: forged) wheel. Your offset is key here; if your offset is too low, you're going to have a wheel that sticks out and rubs the fenders, to high and they'll rub the strut assembly. I think around a +40 offset is okay (though I am open to correction on this).

Good luck to you!

[REN69]

16s should be the biggest to go on an AE92, 17s are overkill. Also 7inch width is the most you can go with depending on offset. I have 15x7 with 43 offset and they clear both fender and struts very nicely.

True that 205/40-16 and 195/50-15 are the plus size for the 185/60-14, but for ride quality you can also run 205/45-16 and 195/55-15s with minimal effects to your speedo.

[TokyoRacer]

Yeah I have 15x6.5" wheels with a 40 offset and theres literally like 3-5mm between ym strut and tire..the little hairs on my tire rub the dirt off that part of my strut.