I have a black 2001 SE. I plan on getting eibach springs and have been looking at rims for a while now. I would love 19s but I cant afford them and definitly cant afford to deal with a broken rim due to Boston's many potholes. I like these rims a lot called mondera spyders. They are chrome 18x7.5 and the price is reasonable. I wish they were wider and I dont want them to look too thin for the max. Can anyone tell me which of these three sizes fits my max?

5-114.3/5-120.7 20mm HB 74
5-114.3/5-112 40mm HB 72.6
5-114.3/5-100 40mm HB 72.6

What does HB mean? I found this info on the net somewhere. Anyway will these rims fit a 235/40/18 tire? And will they look hidden like the stock 17s cuz theyre only 7.5'' wide? Also has anyone ever heard of Mondera? Are they reliable?

18'' Mondera Spyder

Thanks for your help in advance. Tell me what you think and sorry for making everyone read so much. BTW Someone on cardomain has these rims on a mazda 6...peep 'em!

Mazda 6 on 18'' Mondera Spyders

 

I have 18 x 7.5s and they look okay....I wish they were 8" wide, but I like my wheels. Click on my homepage for pics.

As far as which size will fit....any of them. They have a 2-way lug pattern on each, but our size seems to be on all of them (5 x 114.3). The only thing that you would need to worry about is the offset....20 or 40. I think you would want 40, but not positive.......

 

40 mm is the offset... that is the offset you want... 20 mm is too low. The other number is probably the hub size. You may need hubcentric rings to make these wheels fit.

 

For resale purposes, I would get the third ones because the 5x100 is more common than the 5x112......I think.

 

I'm happy with my 18x8 and 40 offset.
In my opinion I'm not too crazy about that style wheel.
Looking at the mazda before and after, if the stock wheels were 18s and chrome they would look 100 times better, they just go with the car. get a different style.
Peace and good luck

 

 

Two things...

1) I would try to get something in an 8" width. I have 18x7.5" wheels and I too wish they were a little wider so the 235/40/18 tires didn't have as much of a bulge in the sidewall. Or, try 225/40/18 tires and those should look a little better.

2) Get a set of wheels you love. Why pay $1500 for something that is ok when you could spend $1800+ for wheels you love. Save a little more and dont rush into a wheel purchase. You will be glad in the long run.

Eric.

 

Thanks for the advice. I think I need something wider and different. It seems every time I find a rim and tire set up that I like I end up changing my mind and disliking what I thought I was going to buy. I dont think I will ever find rims that I love. I hope I do because it seems like I change my mind ever two weeks and at that rate I'll never have rims

 

Finding a great set of wheels is difficuly. First, you need to determine exactly what you are looking for so that you do not waste your time considering 'maybe' options. I knew that I wanted 18 X 8's, 5 spoke, and a lip. I searched on the online sites forever, but I found the wheels that I wanted for sale in the classifieds here on the .org. It may take a while to find exactly what you are looking for. Be patient grasshoppa

 

Looking at ur pics with ur 18s, is that all stock springs/struts?

 

Yes, suprisingly those are stock springs/struts. I guess those 245s doing me justice together with the box in the trunk.

As to picking the wheels I want, I had the same dilemma. I wanted different ones with the lip, and they were sold out, and I was waiting and waiting, and one day just decided to go with the ones I got now. I knew I wanted chrome and no lip would make them look big, so I just got them. And the only thing I wish they had are the center caps, cause I see some rust on the lugs.
Other than that, no-one has the same rims, they're similar to stock, and look sick.
Good luck
Peace

 

I got 18's by 7.5 and I love them. If you guys are able to see much of a diffrence between 7.5's and 8's thats pretty good bc not many ppl can tell the diffrence between the two.

 

I think Antera rims are bad***. Why are they so much more expensive than almost everthing else? Do they stand up to potholes any better then the next rim? or are ultra-light? For chrome 18s they charge $600+ and for silver they are $500+. They arent 2 or 3 piece or anything either. I cant afford that

 

just my opinion here, but those wheels look way too small for the max.. a car this size needs at least 18x8 or 19x8 even.. In fact, I'd say 18s are even too small.. maybe with a really big drop, but unless you want to have that slammed look, I'd go with 19x8..

I like the chrome, but I have to agree with someone else who said it just isn't for that car.. esp. the maxima..

hit up tirerack.com - they have a program which lets you check out different rims on your maxima... it'll give you a really good idea of what style you will want...

... then hit up wheelmax.com and get a set..

Later,
Kevin

 

 

No chrome? Why waste your money on anything else

 

I just got a '03 SE, and I'm just getting started on the mods myself. But I worked in the automotive aftermarket industry for years (Purchasing Mgr. for Toyota Racing Development), and I can give you a few pointers on your dilemma. First of all, you're probably better off "not" going any bigger than 18" on the wheels because when you do, you'll be greatly compromising handling and ride quality. There are a lot of guys that throw on 19's and even 20's on these cars, but that's all aesthetics, and practicality gets thrown out the window. For real world handling, you need some height on the tires so that they'll give when the treads grab onto the imperfections of the road. The "HB" is most likely referring to the finish - probably something like Hyper Black. As for your offset, you need something between 35mm - 40mm, no compromise. This offset will allow your tires to fill up your wheel wells really nicely. The width of your rims at 7.5" isn't really a problem. It'll accomodate upto 245's. It's just upto you whether or not you like the bulged look. Your choice of Eibach Springs is a good one. It'll drop the car about 1.5" in the fr and 1" in the rr. But it should actually drop a bit more as it settles. I've seen a 5th gen. set up on 18's, dropped w/Eibachs, and it looked very clean.

One last word of advice, . . . those rims probably won't get very wide acceptance on a '01 SE. Then, again, everyone has their preference. Good luck with your ride.

 

How will one inch or two inch difference in wheel size make that much of a difference in ride comfort? I mean how much shock can the tire wall absorb really? I think much of that is absorbed through the suspension system, no? If the suspension can react quick enough to road conditions then the car wont bump up and down at all. It will just be the wheel moving up and down going through potholes or whatever, and the body of the car remains leveled....no? In this whole process, where does the tire wall thickness come into play??

 

My suspension is stock, all I did was switch from 17s to 245/40/18s and the ride is a lot different and harsher.
Tire's and thicknes of it play a huge role.

 

I have some 2-piece 19" Antera 183s with tires for sale. They come with 245/35-19 Nitto 555 Extremes. Used for only 2 months.
http://images.cardomain.com/installs...8_182_full.jpg
http://images.cardomain.com/installs...8_158_full.jpg
Ill let them go for $2,300 + shipping. Basically it comes down to 575 a wheel & tire.


Here is some info on Anteras.

Antera is recognized as a leader in the design and engineering of aftermarket wheels. Antera has a history of industry firsts, including the first radius lip wheels, the first thin-spoke 3 spoke wheel, the only company to offer center mounted air valve stems, and the only company to offer multi-piece wheels that have assembly bolts only at the spoke ends. These technical, style and manufacturing innovations are evidence of Antera's position at the leading edge of the wheel industry. All Antera wheels are TUV approved, and the company is ISO 9001 certified. Antera wheels are extensively tested and inspected at the factory.

 

I think you're missing my point about the whole wheel size thing. As you said, the suspension system does play a huge role in providing ride comfort, however, you also khow that whenever you increase the wheel size, you have to decrease the tire wall thickness, right (in order to maintain the calibration of the intruments)? Well, that decrease in tire wall thickness translates into less air, under higher psi. in the tires, thus the decline in ride comfort.
The only places such thin tires would be advantages would be on slick race tracks(like in Europe) where your tires would not have to absorb any real world imperfections on the roads you normally drive. On such tracks those tires would actually be better for handling since the lower profile of the tires would allow them to give less than taller ones.