Wheel&Tire Question

[casey]

I bought a set of 17x7 ADR rims(40mm offset), I have a 1989 sc mr2, anyone have suggestions on what size of tire would be best suited for this car ?, I'd like to stick with goodyear eagle f1 gs-d3 or michelin pilot sport, I was thinking of 215/40/17 on the front and 225/40/17 on the back
Anyone have any experienced input ?
Thanks all
caseyclermont@hotmail.com

[RePete]

I had 205/40-17s in the front and 215/40-17s in the rear on my '89SC. Offset was 42 but ET40 is a better fit. I'm not sure the 215s are going to fit in the front of your MK1. 205s on 17x7s were just barely clearing the spring perch of the strut tower by millimetres and I was close to rubbing the front fender too. 225s will easily fit in the rear. I had 215/35-18s in the back for half a year with no probs too.

The MK1 is a small, relatively light car so anything fatter than 205s in front may compromise your handling as well as slow your 0-60 times by more than you think.

[casey]

Thank Repete
I'll stick with the goodyear f1 gs-d3 205\40\17 on the front , i'm a little hesitant about puttin 225\40\17 on the back though, won't they look a little over sized in comparison to the front or will they stick out of the fender at all ?
should I get wheel spacers ?
i certainly appreciate your experienced opinion

[RePete]

Originally posted by casey
...i'm a little hesitant about puttin 225\40\17 on the back though, won't they look a little over sized in comparison to the front or will they stick out of the fender at all ?...

I've never stuck that in the rear of my MK1 but I did have 225/40-16s in the rear and they were a perfect fit with my Ronal R20s (ET35). I'm almost positive that 225/40-17s would fit, especially with a 40 offset, those rear wheel wells are bigger than they look. But you can't screw around with the front too much, a 7 inch wheel width is pretty much the max up front unless you do your homework with offsets then you can squeeze in 7.5".

Remember, unlike the MKII, the MK1 came from the factory with all four wheels and tires the same size. You can have fatter ones in the rear as long as your ride is properly aligned but the best is all the same size for that classic MK1 handling. Fatter rear tires may give you more understeer than you're prepared to accept on such a well balanced car.

If you absolutely gotta use spacers, go for it but with an offset like ET40 you don't need them considering the car shipped with ET37. It's always best to find the right wheel offset and forget about add ons like spacers.

Good luck!