[am3rican]

I'll need new tires in the next 6 months.

I have an 01 Maxima with 17's. 90% of my driving is highway. I need some suggestions on tires. I have Pirelli's on them now. Good All-Season tires. I live in Jersey, where it rains and snows. Can't spend more than $600, $650 tops.

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Tried tirerack.com but dont like the reviews because most people do reviews on tires they just got.

 

[brianw]

You're on the stock 17x7" factory wheels?

Tire choices in 225/50 are a little limited. You MIGHT be able to squeeze 235/50 on there although that's getting a bit too wide for safety on a 7" wide wheel, IMHO.

I've never used them, but Avon Tech M550 A/S might be worth looking at. I don't see my usual recommendations for performance all season tires available in 225/50 (Bridgestone RE950, Pirelli PZero Nero, Dunlop SP5000), so my opinion is worth almost nothing this time around.

 

[tdogg169]

i was faced with the same thing the first time i changed tires. because of tires choices, i when with 235/45 17. after i did it, everone said that was dangerous to put that size tire on 17x7 rim. been 8 months now. no problems. i drive about 60 miles a day. i went with Kumho asx. the tread wear is 420.

 

[brianw]

You CAN do it... I just don't recommend it, and I'm not alone there. You put that wide/low-profile a tire on that narrow of a wheel and you start losing a lot of the nice sharp steering feel that a low-profile stiff-sidewall tire gives you, plus the safety issues.

Fortunately 225/50 tire selection doesn't seem nearly as bad as it was a year or two ago...

 

[Puppetmaster]

I have 235/45/17 Falken ZEIX 512s on my stock 17s... I love em... great wet, snow, dry traction but the soft sidewalls does make sharp turning feel "squishy" and the tires are actually kinda loud on the road....

I've heard good things about Toyo Proxes too....

 

[IanH]

i was faced with the same thing the first time i changed tires. because of tires choices, i when with 235/45 17. after i did it, everone said that was dangerous to put that size tire on 17x7 rim. been 8 months now. no problems. i drive about 60 miles a day. i went with Kumho asx. the tread wear is 420.

The range for rim width is 70% to 100 % of tyre width with 85% nominal.
This recommended range is from when I lived in England and modded my cars over there.
I have not seen a recommended range put in print in the US and I have been here for a long time.

So for a 7 inch Rim the tire width extremes would be 175 to 254 with 210 being centre of range.
So I see no problem with 235 width. Yes its getting close to the 70% limit at 75%
Where did this "dangerous" comment come from ?
good Luck.....

 

[brianw]

From the manufacturer guidelines, actually.

e.g. TireRack data on Bridgestone Potenza S03-PP shows only a 7.5"~9" rim width range.

The lower in profile a tire is, the less sidewall there is to stretch to accomodate different rim widths. On a 45-series tire, the limit seems to be 7.5" according to Bridgestone, Dunlop, Kumho, etc. etc.

 

[IanH]

From the manufacturer guidelines, actually.

e.g. TireRack data on Bridgestone Potenza S03-PP shows only a 7.5"~9" rim width range.

The lower in profile a tire is, the less sidewall there is to stretch to accomodate different rim widths. On a 45-series tire, the limit seems to be 7.5" according to Bridgestone, Dunlop, Kumho, etc. etc.

Very good links. Thanks.
Having read this and the examples given I can see its not wise to go wider, as the tyre may not stretch to the wider width. Going narrower as per the example on a BMW seems less likely to give problems.

 

[Puppetmaster]

From the manufacturer guidelines, actually.

e.g. TireRack data on Bridgestone Potenza S03-PP shows only a 7.5"~9" rim width range.

The lower in profile a tire is, the less sidewall there is to stretch to accomodate different rim widths. On a 45-series tire, the limit seems to be 7.5" according to Bridgestone, Dunlop, Kumho, etc. etc.

Not to disagree with ya, but to provide a balanced case... there are tons of people who are running wider than spec tires and have never had a problem. Its fine for daily driving (given the right tire pressure), but not if you're gonna be auto-xing or road racing.

 

[IanH]

Very good links. Thanks.
Having read this and the examples given I can see its not wise to go wider, as the tyre may not stretch to the wider width. Going narrower as per the example on a BMW seems less likely to give problems.

Not to confuse anyone here but I was talking rim width to tire, so the logic is backwards in the above.

When rim is fixed and you are changing the tire width then wider is safer,
In the example of the Max above, it does not fail the old guide line I was given of 70% rim to tire width. The tyre gets wider, the ratio goes down.
Sorry about my reverse logic. BTW it would not let me edit my post.