Wife needs new tires so I'm looking to swap out the crappy wheel cover rims along with the tires.

We want the most comfortable ride we can get. Should we stay with the 16" or switch to 17"?

Local tire guy said moving up to 17s would give us a larger choice of tires.

Either way what would be the best tire size to go to as well?

 

215/45/17 would be one, however, you should watch out with things such as ABS, speedometer, odometer, try to get a wheel size that's within -/+ 3%.

 

Is it better to stay with 16" wheels or go to 17" wheels?

 

You can get up to 18'', but you have to keep the diameter of the wheel/tire to the standard OEM 195/60/16.

 

the height of the tire is the biggest thing. but im pretty sure you cant go over 18" and stay in the stock parameters

 

As far as the most comfortable, smoothest ride would 16 or 17 be better? Or does it really matter?

Right now I've found Hankook Ventus V2 Concept H437 in 205/55/R16 with Drag DR-34 Black 16" wheels installed for 985.

 

i went to 17" wheels on 205/50/17 kumho's from stock and it got a lot smoother. I figured the stock dunlops were very hard tires. i really think either way youll get a nice ride so its about the look for you now. once you try 18" and up youll get into the lower profile tires and itll affect your ride more noticeably.

 

the 50-55 series tires on stock 16" wheels will absorb bumps better than any 40-45 series tire on 17's.

 

2155516 or 2255016 are both good choices if you want to stay with 16's.

 

what's important to you/your wife? performance? ride comfort? lowest price? 215/55/16 would be closest to stock ratio (.39%) with a decent availability of tires in that size. however i have found 205/55 to have more selection and also the benefit of being less expensive, at a ratio not too far off from stock, -1.33%. Also the 205/55's tend to be lighter in weight, aiding in overall performance.

I currently run stock tires on drag dr-31 but will be going to 205/55 when the tires are worn.

if you want a little bit of a compromise in ride quality AND don't mind paying more for tires each time, you can go to 17's. but the price, comfort, and bang for buck performance from 16's pretty much sealed the deal for me. good luck, let us know which you decide on!

 

215/55/16 on mine. Closest size to stock without messing speedometer up.

 

Stay with the 16 s nothing wrong with that size. I put new Cooper CS4 215 / 55 / 16 on me wiffs car and she loves them and I might say I do also. Smooth and quiet, very impressed, great tire so far . Runs down the road at 80 mph easy. Like I said smooth, quiet great tire. Only about .5 mph off the speedo if that much. Its a little wider than the stock tire but fits nicely on the rim and in the fender well.

 

can someone post pics with 215/55r16 tires?