Rods-N-Guns

Hi all,
Well I managed to snag a new set of 4 take-off TC wheels in perfect condition off Ebay for $285 plus $81 shipping. From everything else I have seen it seems I got a great deal. The vendor was Airport Toyota in OH and they said that they can get me basically any XD part and the prices he quoted me on the axle back exhaust and rear sway bar were very good (example $151 for the sway bar).
OK, well anyway, these wheels are on their way and I need suggestions for best tire size. As noted on another thread, I do load my car down a bit once a month, so I really want to avoid any rubbing.
The standard tire size is 215/45-17. Should I stick with that size or should I sling lower profile ones on (40s) or perhaps switch the size down to 205s etc. or should I be stepping up a few sizes? I am clueless.
If some of you guys or gals out there have done the switch to TC rims, I would appreciate benefiting from your experience.
Currently my suspension is stock, but I do plan on lowering it with one of the Tanabe sets at some time in the near future as well. Probably the DF210s.

Thanks in advance for your input!

Andyman

I have tC take-offs also, and have stuck with the 215-45-17 size. I mostly did this out of convenience, as I had done the same for our '03 Vibe, and wanted the tires to be interchangeable between the vehicles.

According to this cool calculator, the overall circumference on the 215-45-17 tC tires is 2.4% under that of the stock xD 195-60-16's. Your speedo probably isn't accurate to within 2.4% anyway, and I'd rather have it reading a little high than a little low! Assuming that the speed calculated by a GPS (on a straight flat stretch) is accurate, my xD's speedo with the tC-sized tires is typically 3-5% over the true speed (i.e. speedo says 75 when I'm actually going 72). The reading with my snow tires (205-55-16) is nearly the same (definitely within 1 mph) at the same GPS speed. If you want to stay closer to the same circumference, a 205-50-17 is probably as close as you'll get, at only 0.6% off...

BTW - if you're totally new to alloy wheels (as I was when I got the tC rims for my Vibe), you should be aware they require different lug nuts than the stock steelies. They should be available on eBay if you didn't get them with your rims. For my second set of tC rims, I found someone on Craigslist who was parting out a tC, and he sold me the lug nuts cheap (his wheels were pretty beat up, so I found those on the 'Bay).

HTH,
Andy
(Who got his last set of tC rims for $272.50 shipped! )

AcidDrop

iTrader: (4)

i would get nitto neo-gen tires and you can go with a 225/45/17 tire for that extra stretch unlike the 215/45/17 stock size tires.

DiscountTireDirect

As suggested by AcidDrop the 225.45.17 would be a good size. It is closer to the stock overall diameter and will help cusion the load you put on your car once a month.

Here's what's available: 225/45-17 Scion xD Tires There are 7 pages of tires so if you would like help narrowing the options down let me know where you drive, how you drive, what you want out of your tire (miles, comfort, performance, all season, ect).

Rods-N-Guns

Thank you so much for the suggestions.
I tried working with a tire calculator at 1010tires.com and playing with the numbers, the closest I could get was the 235/45/17 which is only 0.44% larger than the stock 195/60/16 tire.
I will definitely be ordering them thru discount tire direct, but am concerned that tires that wide will rub on full lock.
Has anybody had any experience with these?

DiscountTireDirect

The 235/45-17 would be a great tire for you if you had purchased wider wheels. The 235/45/17 will fit your xD but the 17x7 wheels you have are too narrow for that wide of a tire. The tires side walls will pinch in toward the center and won't carry the load of your vehicle correctly. This causes a number of problems that jeopardizes the integrity of your tire, like increased potential for separations/ blowouts and ultimately causes them to wear out faster. The 225 is actually pushing these limits as well but not to degree of the 235.

Rods-N-Guns

Thank you so much for your help Discountiredirect. You don't know how much I appreciate this.

OK, this makes a lot of sense.
I did not even think about the rim width!!!yeah, I know... dumb mistake.

The 225s state they are designed for rims 7 to 8.5 and then stepping down further to 215/50/17s, they are for 6-7.5 rims, which is right where these rims are.

I would rather not be at any of the extremes, so that being that I load my car so heavy once a month, and I drive quite agressively, would your professional opinion be that I would be better with the 215s instead of the 225s, or would either be OK?

I bow to your much superior knowledge and experience

As far as tire choice/driving etc, (and budget)I was having a good look at your site.

OK, I do lots of miles, about 30K a year, heavy loading for 3 days a month, the rest is no load apart from my fat ___.
I would say that it is a 25% Interstate, 30% major road, but long distance and 45% in-town, light traffic driving, extremely little heavy traffic driving.
As stated, I drive aggressively.
I live in Florida, so I don't see snow and it is only colder about 2 weeks per year, so I definitely want warm weather tires.

I really want my speedo to stay as accurate as possible, within 1% of stock tire, so I am limited to the 215/50/17 or 225/45/17s. I suppose the 215/45/17 would be OK too, but that is now getting up to 2.5% too fast reading.

I also like an aggressive looking tread (stupid, I know)

OK, priority order

1. performance dry
2. long tread life
3. performance wet
4. Looks
5. Noise low
6. Comfort

Looking at your site (great and informative site by the way, great job!) I have a preference for....

Hankook Radial K106
Hankook Ventus HRII H405
Hankook Ventus Sport K104
Kumho Ecsta AST
Kumho Ecsta SPT
Falken Azenis ST115
Falken Ziex ZE-512
Falken Ziex ZE-912

Some are available in both sizes, some only in one of them.

DiscountTireDirect

No need for thanks. We are here to help anyone that needs it. It just so happened I stumbled upon your thread. If anyone else is reading this and wants our help, post a thread and PM us a link. We will be happy to add some facts and our .02 if you ask for it.

Sizing:

215.50.17 is 1/4" taller than stock.
225.45.17 is 1/4" shorter than stock.

My professional opinion would suggest the 215/50-17 on the 7" wide wheels but a lot of guys run 225's so that is up to you. (some brands run narrower than others if you choose to do this and that can help. )

I would also suggest that the tire you choose is extra loaded (this is indicated after the tire size with "XL" extra loaded tires have reinforced side walls that enable them to carry a greater load. This reinforcement stiffens the side wall which makes the tire respond better/ quicker when you accelerate, brake or turn. (added performance) Negative to this is that ride comfort declines slightly.

My number one suggestion for you, would be the Yokohama YK520 in the 215.50.17, next I would suggest the Dunlop SP Sport Signature.

The tires you have listed are good tires but for the amount of miles you put on your car it will save you money in the end to buy a better tire now. The Yk520's have a 60k warranty, if you properly maintain them and don't abuse them (too much) they should last you quite a while.

YK520
Dunlop SP Sport Signature

If these aren't in the cards, the Falken 912 in the 225.45.17 would be your next best bet given your personal wants and needs.