If you have run both of these setups, which one do you prefer? For reference, I have a 2002 WRX Wagon with Whiteline Lowering Springs. I drive my car VERY HARD, as in I've been through 2+ sets of RE92s in 14,000 miles. I am looking at the Yokohama ES100s and the Kumho 712s and I am trying to decide if I want to go with a lower aspect ratio. As far as I know, the trade-off is that the speedo is off 2.5% and you get (marginally, as I mostly drive city miles) worse gas mileage and the benefit is a stiffer sidewall and a wider contact patch. What I want to know is "Is it worth it, or should I leave good enough alone?"

Thanks in advance for your input.

 

IIRC i believe the speedo difference works out to be 1.5% at 60mph which is exactly squat so go with your instincts. I'm running 205/50/ZR16s and that's coming off of 195/55/HR16. The grip rating alone has transformed the feeling of the car but i haven't noticed any real difference cuz of size.

*shrug*

 

Now there's an idea. Will it look like I have road bicycle tires though? The only reason I ask is that the 16s already look small on the WRX and I'm just wondering what it would look like with that small of a sidewall.

 

I can't think of a reason to not go as wide as you can.

I'm gonna roll my fenders and see if I can fit 245's on my 8" wide wheels. (Although I don't know if I can make it w/o rubbing the strut on a 46mm offset).

jason

 

um...215/45's would have jsut a LITTLE smaller sidewall than the 205/50