Tire sizes?? 205/55/15 or 195/55/15???

Integra Type-R Discussion - Discuss general ITR information, technical information (including requests for technical/mechanical help/assistance), modifications, tuning, etc.
Locked
q7suited
New ITRCA Member
Posts: 26
Joined: September 26th, 2005, 3:58 am
Location: san diego, ca

Tire sizes?? 205/55/15 or 195/55/15???

Post by q7suited »

which tire size is better for our itr's, stock 195/55/15, or 205/55/15??
Bbasso
Post Whore!!
Posts: 6571
Joined: September 25th, 2002, 1:21 am
Location: South Carolina !
Contact:

Re: Tire sizes?? 205/55/15 or 195/55/15???

Post by Bbasso »

q7suited wrote:which tire size is better for our itr's, stock 195/55/15, or 205/55/15??
Personally I use 205/ 50-15 on my car.

I see nothing wrong with either, but I chose to
use the 205 for the amount of tires availible.

195/55-15 is a fine size tire and the RE010 is a wonderful tire but It's a little to much $ for me.
swed
punkaddic
New ITRCA Member
Posts: 58
Joined: November 10th, 2003, 9:36 pm
Location: BC, Canada

Post by punkaddic »

205-50-15 is the best size for our itrs
Chris F
ITRCA Member
Posts: 108
Joined: June 13th, 2004, 9:00 pm
Location: Lake County, IL
Contact:

Post by Chris F »

punkaddic wrote:205-50-15 is the best size for our itrs
Yeah, for street tires it's often the right way to go.

Some complain that the Azenis 205/50R15 is too wide for the 6" wheel. Most tires fit just fine. Check the manufacturer's recommendations.

The OEM RE010's are pretty awesome in the stock 195/55R15 though!
CC Fries IV
Sold ITR 98-1085
1993 Prelude VTEC
ebelp
New ITRCA Member
Posts: 22
Joined: June 28th, 2004, 1:24 pm
Location: NY

Post by ebelp »

Odd. I've always heard the stock 195/55/15 size is the best "all around" size for our cars.
Chris F
ITRCA Member
Posts: 108
Joined: June 13th, 2004, 9:00 pm
Location: Lake County, IL
Contact:

Post by Chris F »

ebelp wrote:Odd. I've always heard the stock 195/55/15 size is the best "all around" size for our cars.
j00 been listening to keN SaX again! :)

For a lot of things, street tires, summer tires, 195/55R15 is a good idea.

For track tires, no one goes more narrow than 205/50R15 (No one that I know of). Competitive sotck AutoXers use 225 width tires on 15x6 stock size rims.

I use 205/50R15 track tires usually... I haven't had a set of 15" street tires on my R in about 7 years.

-Chris
CC Fries IV
Sold ITR 98-1085
1993 Prelude VTEC
ebelp
New ITRCA Member
Posts: 22
Joined: June 28th, 2004, 1:24 pm
Location: NY

Post by ebelp »

Actually yeah, I believe I did hear that from Mr. nsxtasy himself. :P
nsxtasy
ITRCA Member
Posts: 137
Joined: September 25th, 2002, 4:34 pm

Post by nsxtasy »

Hear, here!

Facts:

1. 195/55-15 is the stock size tire for the ITR.

2. The Bridgestone Potenza RE010 in 195/55-15 was designed specifically for the ITR, to maximize its handling.

3. The outer diameter of 205/50-15 is 1.6 percent smaller than stock, which will introduce that percentage error in the speedometer and odometer.

4. The outer diameter of 205/55-15 is 1.9 percent larger than stock, which will introduce that percentage error in the gauges.

5. Many good tires are available in 195/55-15, including the RE010, as well as the Yokohama AVS ES100, Kumho Ecsta SPT, and Toyo T-1R. The Tire Rack lists 29 different tires in that size. No track tires are available in that size.

6. The price of tires in 195/55-15 is usually, but not always, less than 205/50-15 ($61 vs $75 for the Yoko at the Tire Rack, $67 vs $63 for the Kumho at TR, $83 vs $88 for the Toyo at onlinetires.com).

7. I use 195/55-15 RE010 (Mar-Dec) and 195/55-15 winter tires (Dec-Mar) on the street, and 205/50-15 RA-1 on the track.

8. I do not work for a tire manufacturer or retailer and have no vested interest in what tires you buy or where you buy them.

Opinions:

a. There is no advantage whatsoever in having taller sidewalls (unless you're worried about ride comfort, in which case you shouldn't be driving an ITR). So 205/50-15 is a better size than 205/55-15. Heck, I've never even heard of anyone getting 205/55 on an ITR.

b. The difference in performance between 195/55-15 and 205/50-15 is insignificant.

c. The difference in performance between one brand/model of tire and another is almost always far, far greater than between two sizes that are 10 mm apart. A better performing tire that is slightly narrower will perform better than a worse performing tire that is slightly wider. So if you care about performance, you should concentrate on buying better tires, rather than wider tires.

d. Because of this, you should decide on what tire you want first, based on dry grip, wet performance, treadlife, cost, and all the other usual criteria. If it comes in 195/55-15, I would get that size, every time; if it doesn't come in 195/55-15, then I would get 205/50-15.

e. There are too many considerations in buying tires to say that any particular tire or size is the "best" in every way and every situation.
walker111
Post Whore!!
Posts: 6721
Joined: June 9th, 2005, 4:27 pm
Location: I love Dawn!!!

Post by walker111 »

nsxtasy wrote:Hear, here!

Facts:

1. 195/55-15 is the stock size tire for the ITR.

2. The Bridgestone Potenza RE010 in 195/55-15 was designed specifically for the ITR, to maximize its handling.

3. The outer diameter of 205/50-15 is 1.6 percent smaller than stock, which will introduce that percentage error in the speedometer and odometer.

4. The outer diameter of 205/55-15 is 1.9 percent larger than stock, which will introduce that percentage error in the gauges.

5. Many good tires are available in 195/55-15, including the RE010, as well as the Yokohama AVS ES100, Kumho Ecsta SPT, and Toyo T-1R. The Tire Rack lists 29 different tires in that size. No track tires are available in that size.

6. The price of tires in 195/55-15 is usually, but not always, less than 205/50-15 ($61 vs $75 for the Yoko at the Tire Rack, $67 vs $63 for the Kumho at TR, $83 vs $88 for the Toyo at onlinetires.com).

7. I use 195/55-15 RE010 (Mar-Dec) and 195/55-15 winter tires (Dec-Mar) on the street, and 205/50-15 RA-1 on the track.

8. I do not work for a tire manufacturer or retailer and have no vested interest in what tires you buy or where you buy them.

Opinions:

a. There is no advantage whatsoever in having taller sidewalls (unless you're worried about ride comfort, in which case you shouldn't be driving an ITR). So 205/50-15 is a better size than 205/55-15. Heck, I've never even heard of anyone getting 205/55 on an ITR.

b. The difference in performance between 195/55-15 and 205/50-15 is insignificant.

c. The difference in performance between one brand/model of tire and another is almost always far, far greater than between two sizes that are 10 mm apart. A better performing tire that is slightly narrower will perform better than a worse performing tire that is slightly wider. So if you care about performance, you should concentrate on buying better tires, rather than wider tires.

d. Because of this, you should decide on what tire you want first, based on dry grip, wet performance, treadlife, cost, and all the other usual criteria. If it comes in 195/55-15, I would get that size, every time; if it doesn't come in 195/55-15, then I would get 205/50-15.

e. There are too many considerations in buying tires to say that any particular tire or size is the "best" in every way and every situation.
Good stuff!!!

I rock 195's on the street and have 205 azenis for everything else.
Chris N
Site Admin
Posts: 1679
Joined: November 6th, 2002, 7:08 pm
Location: Chicago, Illinois

Re: Tire sizes?? 205/55/15 or 195/55/15???

Post by Chris N »

q7suited wrote:which tire size is better for our itr's, stock 195/55/15, or 205/55/15??
205/55 is TOO big.

205/50/15 is 1.7% small than the stock size, 195/55/15, but its an appropriate size. WAY better (205/50/15 that is) than 195/50/15.
Locked