I'm talkin profile, width, everything...I've heard stay with the 16's, but i would love a lower profile, and have been thinking about 17's. Also, does the width matter at all? If I do go with 17's, will that mess up my wheel to fender height and look stupid???
Thanks.

 

17 and higher are heavy wheels unless u get lightwieght wheels, ur max will look like 4x4 with 17+ so mostly likly you will have to lower it

 

Ok, that answers a lot of questions...I want performance, but also want a good look that a new wheel will bring. Does anyone out there have pics of aftermarket wheels that are 16's????

 

The best performing rim size is 17x8 - 17x8.5in. Especially if you can get a lightweight rim in that size. You will probably need to run 235/45/17 to maintain stock tire diameter.

But a lot of like to run 18s which aren't so bad as long as you're willing to spend enough to afford a really lightweight rim.

More rim, tire and suspension info:
http://drewm.dyndns.org/~drew/maxfaq...MaximaHandling

 

18-20 inch lightweight rims are cash money.. if you jsut want performance. stick with the 16's. dont go low pro, you fender gap will be even more terrible if your not dropepd yet with the 16s. and just get good sticky 16 in tires. on the stock ones 225,55,16 is the right size i think.

17 is good rim size for perforamce and looks. they can be foud fairly cheap, not that much more weight than a 16. looks good with a drop and
45-50 series tires. still enough tire profile to protect from rim bending.

 

my car came stock with 215/55/16 . Im going to upgrade to a 17 but I wanted to go 18. 18 looks best to me, but im only willing to go 17 because i dont want to kill performance. I will more than likely be an old man b4 i can do all this, volks , and ssr's will brake you, your back, your wallet and put you in debt .. but those type rims are the only ones i will consider, check out this post:

http://forums.maxima.org/showthread....20#post2130520

read this one too,will make you think twic about putting big heavy weights on your max, they will look good but in someone elses rearview mirror !

https://maxima.org/shoptalk/sub_read...ns/index.shtml

What I plan to do is this. Its time again for new tires so Im going to try 225/50/16 , im going with Toyo Proxes T1 and according to my information they are lighter than the Kuhmo Supra 712's I have on now.

graph of tire size and weights for a few

Kuhmo Supra 712 S 215/55/16 W 25
$ 75
Kuhmo Supra 712 S 225/50/16 W 25.7 $ 77
Toyo Proxes T-1 S 215/55/16 W 22.3 $ 129
Toyo Proxes T-1 S 225/50/16 W 22.7 $ 133
Toyo Proxes FZ4 S 225/50/16 W 20 $ 85

Note the Toyo FZ4 weighs in at 20 pounds a tire. All I hear is bad reviews but the weight on that tire is seriously lighter than mine at 5 pounds a tire or 20 pounds lighter overall.

Most reviews say the traction stinks, man that stinks ..Im almost willing to try it. Can anyone dispute the bad reputation of the fz4 ? Anyways watch the weight, and start saving your cash for light rims if you are going performance ... it will brake the bank ! After reading the second article by Steve Pake I was out trying to find 15's instead of 17's ha ha ! good luck !

 

So basically, what kind of profile can i get away with? I do like the look of a lower profile, but i don't want to be breaking my rims...is 40 too low?
As for light wheels, who is the best? I don't know blank about tires, so i'm gonna have to bone up and study some...those 20 lb toyos are light as hell, but if they don't have any traction, i'm not down with that at all. And what about the width of the tire? If it's 8.0 will that cause too much drag?

 

Your car will look like crap and be out of spec with a 40 series. If you keep the 16"s, you can't just throw a low profile tire on there. Your only options are a 225/50/16 or a 215/55/16.

Drag? From tires? No. And tires aren't measured in inches, they are measured in milimeters (the first number in a tire size). Wheel widths are measured in inches.

 

On a consumer level, I doubt it would make a gigantic difference. Prove me otherwise and I'll be a believer. Wider = better.

 

Ok, so I go with a 17 inch, 8.0, 45 profile and i'll be good?

 

More than just the "profile" is important. The first number in a tire size actually determines how tall or short your profile will be.

Example: A 245 40 17 will actually have a higher profile than a 215 45 17. Why? The second number in a tire size= a percentage of the first number.

With that said, you are actually correct with needing a 45 series tire. Your best bet for a 17x8" wheel will be a 235 45 17.

Play with this calculator before you actually buy anything.
http://www.miata.net/garage/tirecalc.html

 

ok, this helps, i'm sooooooooooo lost!!!!!!!!!!

 

You might have something there. I ran soft 215/45/16 Azenis my only time at the dragstrip.
Treadwidth on the ground was 8.25". Dyno'd at 184hp/193tq and trapped only 92.7mph with a 5sp.