el_aurens

Hi, I purchased a 99SE 5-speed in March, and I'm considering what course of action I should take in choosing another set of wheels/tires. I live in Ontario, Canada and have thought that I should mount winter tires on my current 16" wheels, and then get some 17" wheels for the summer. I'm thinking of getting either the 17" Maxima OEM rims (2000-2002), or aftermarket wheels like the Konig Monsoon or TemperR. I probably would retain the current SE shocks/suspension.

For those of you who have done this, have you noticed a significant increase in ride quality (harshness)? I'm also wondering if there would be a difference because of the differing tire sizes available? I believe that the OEM rims will allow a maximum of 225/50/17 which has a slightly greater diameter than the stock 16" setup, while aftermarket wheels with a 7.5" to 8.0" width will allow a 235/45/17 tire (a true plus one setup). I might favour this option as there appears to be more tires available in this dimension, although the ride could be harsher with the shorter sidewall tires (50 vs 45, I'm making an assumption here).

Thanks for any feedback you can provide.

I30tMikeD

iTrader: (8)

I went swaped out my stock 15" for 17" a few months back. I went with 7.5 width with a 40mm offset. I am running 235/45 R17 Bridgestone Potenza RE950. From my research the 235/45 will have a better fit on 7.5" compared to 8" rim. If you ever want to go wider in thge future than the 235/45 get the 8" rim. Of course the ride quality will suffer a little but the trade off in cornering and grip outways the bumpier ride. Honestly My ride quality is just fine, I can only tell I have low-profile tire on really rough roades. I think the quality of tire makes a big diff. There is not a better rated tire than the Potenza RE950, consult TireRack for ratings. Although it is not a ultra-high performance tire, it is directional w/ aggressive tread and the AQ2 technology. Also I get a 40K tread life warrenty which you wont see on Z rate tires. For practicle everyday driving it is the best of both worlds. I also got road hazard warrenty which is a smart idea with 45 series tires.
As far as going to OE 17", in my opinion is is not worth the money when there is so many other choices with aftermarket wheels. It gives more of a custom look. When I considerd buying 17" wheels off a 2002 infiniti it was going to cost big $$$$$$. Fortunatly my family has worked for Firestone Tires for 30 years and I have a friend at TireRack, I got the whole thing done for less than $1,000.

sil SE

iTrader: (21)

hey- sorry im not answering the question really, but if youre interested i have a set of 2k 17" perhaps waiting for a buying in scarborough ontario.
private message me if you would like-

edit: they say 235 is a maximum. id go with 225 /45 though its a harder size to find.

el_aurens

I30tMikeD, thanks for posting your experience, I found it very informative, and gave me some additional things to consider.
Sil SE, thanks for letting me know about the wheels, I'll contact you for more details.

Any additional feedback is greatly appreciated.