ms3 wheels

[palms]

i have the stock 18" ms3 wheels on my ms3. personally i think the 18's are too big for the car. I want some 17's. i was looking at the normal mazda3 wheels but those are 6.5 wide correct? i dont want to lose the performance of the wider wheel but the ride is way harsh with the low profile tires i have.

any recomendations? or would anyone like to trade rims

 

[Jackis]

Hi!
This spring I moved to 17 rims, 8 inches wide, with proper tires. I can definitely say I like it. Road bumps are felt much smoother now, and wider tires helps much in traction. Overall wheel weight was also reduced by 15-20%. The only problem - I'm getting my doors dirty very quick, but it can be easily handled by splashguards.
If you go with a setup like that, you should calculate wheel offset very properly to not to bend fender with tire. Or you can roll your fenders.
Our stock will specifications are R18*7J*ET56. So if you go with 8 inches wide, you have to decrease your offset by (8-7)/2*25.4 (half of diff between widenesses converted to mm), so you get your 44-45 offset for 8-inch wheels. You can get more, but your wheels-suspension geometry will change and all your suspension set-up would become over-stressed. You shouldn't notice it, but levers and bearings would definitely feel it.
There are also some posts with photos of 17 tires on MS3 overhere.
Hope that helps!

 

[MS3inDC]

... but it can be easily handled by splashguards.

maybe for you... splashguards = fail IMO

 

[Jackis]

Well, I don't use them because I haven't found anything reliable yet. I just said they should help in stopping mud

 

[Nliiitend1]

Hi!
This spring I moved to 17 rims, 8 inches wide, with proper tires. I can definitely say I like it. Road bumps are felt much smoother now, and wider tires helps much in traction. Overall wheel weight was also reduced by 15-20%. The only problem - I'm getting my doors dirty very quick, but it can be easily handled by splashguards.
If you go with a setup like that, you should calculate wheel offset very properly to not to bend fender with tire. Or you can roll your fenders.
Our stock will specifications are R18*7J*ET56. So if you go with 8 inches wide, you have to decrease your offset by (8-7)/2*25.4 (half of diff between widenesses converted to mm), so you get your 44-45 offset for 8-inch wheels. You can get more, but your wheels-suspension geometry will change and all your suspension set-up would become over-stressed. You shouldn't notice it, but levers and bearings would definitely feel it.
There are also some posts with photos of 17 tires on MS3 overhere.
Hope that helps!

Stock Gen 1 MS3 wheels are R18*7J*ET52.5, not ET56.

 

[coololddude]

It's just not right to go to 17's. 19's would be O.K.

 

[shaneS]

It's just not right to go to 17's. 19's would be O.K.

ew. Anything past 18 is gross. 19s look lile s***.

Stryck is the only one who can pull it off

 

[Jackis]

Stock Gen 1 MS3 wheels are R18*7J*ET52.5, not ET56.

Thanks! I'm always forgetting right offset I remember it is around 55 mm.
So, if one goes 8 inches wide, ET40 offset is a way to go!

 

[Nliiitend1]

Thanks! I'm always forgetting right offset I remember it is around 55 mm.
So, if one goes 8 inches wide, ET40 offset is a way to go!

No, it's not.

et40 on an 8" wide wheel could easily create some fender lip clearance issues.

It sounds like you might have things backwards... (dunno)

To keep the outer fender lip clearance the same as stock (which I don't think anyone really wants to do - most people want their wheels to fill things out more than the stock setup...) you'd have to run a ~et65 wheel which, aside from being almost impossible to find, would easily put your rim and tire into the strut housing (and possibly inner fenderwell).

I'm running an 8" wide et50 wheel right now, and it's pushing the limits of fender clearance right now (without rolling the fenders).

 

[Jackis]

Well, when doing my math I was only crucial about saving rim mass center at the same vertical, not to fit wheels outer line on the same level. I mean that. Like if I add an inch to the wheel, I add half-inch outside and half-inch inside. Somehow like that

 

[LaraS]

No, it's not.

et40 on an 8" wide wheel could easily create some fender lip clearance issues.

It sounds like you might have things backwards... (dunno)

To keep the outer fender lip clearance the same as stock (which I don't think anyone really wants to do - most people want their wheels to fill things out more than the stock setup...) you'd have to run a ~et65 wheel which, aside from being almost impossible to find, would easily put your rim and tire into the strut housing (and possibly inner fenderwell).

I'm running an 8" wide et50 wheel right now, and it's pushing the limits of fender clearance right now (without rolling the fenders).

Agreed. I have 18x8 ET40+ on my car and had some rubbing issues even at stock height. It was nothing that rolling the fenders couldn't fix... but still.

 

[Jon MS3]

THIS WILL HELP
http://www.1010tires.com/wheeloffsetcalculator.asp

 

[CHICO2003]

Certain factors (height, overall look, etc.) play into determining the ideal size wheel for a particular car. 20's look fine on a hummer but would like like s*** on an MS3 IMO, Mazda got it right with 18s. In fact, the wheels (on my silver MS3) are probably what makes the car. For the life of me, I can't see why you'd want to downgrade the size but hey... whatever. Just be sure to see pictures ahead of time (and even one in person if you can) to prevent buyer's remorse. Making it a smoother ride isn't a very good reason if you ask me. lol If you wanted a smooth ride... get a damn buick or something. I came from an MSP and, even with the F & RSBs I've added, I still think the ride is too soft. Like my women always say (in my dreams) the harder the better.

 

[spdjnke]

I'm confused (dunno) why would you say 18" is to big for the car? if it's the ride your concerned about maybe you should have considered the NA3? or getting aftermarket struts like KONI that will help alot.

i have the stock 18" ms3 wheels on my ms3. personally i think the 18's are too big for the car. I want some 17's. i was looking at the normal mazda3 wheels but those are 6.5 wide correct? i dont want to lose the performance of the wider wheel but the ride is way harsh with the low profile tires i have.

any recomendations? or would anyone like to trade rims

 

[Kain]

I'm confused (dunno) why would you say 18" is to big for the car? if it's the ride your concerned about maybe you should have considered the NA3? or getting aftermarket struts like KONI that will help alot.

In my last car, I stepped down an inch in diameter, and am contemplating 17"s for this car, too. Road feel is fine, I just prefer the look of a beefy sidewall to rubberbands.

 

[manselainen]

Hi,

I installed 20mm (pro wheel, 40 mm pro axle) spacers to my -07 3 MPS (=European Mazdaspeed3) to make the all-stock look somewhat different.
So stock suspension, wheels and tires, fenders are not rolled. Looks got a lot better but slight rubbing occurs especially from back in bigger bumps. I assume 15mm spacers might be ok, should have a try.

Sorry no pics but math follows...

I started wondering whether this could be calculated and figured out a simple formula to calculate change in tire position. It may be too simple though...

I suggest rim width to be irrelevant in this calculation as tire sits in the middle. I know this contradicts to some web pages where you can give rim width but they calculate rim edges position, not tire's...

So, the place of tire outer edge (which normally rubs first) from wheel fastening point (sorry for terms...) is:

outer edge=tire width/2 - ET + spacer

Example 1: stock tire&rim, no spacer:
outer edge=215/2 - 52,5 + 0 = 55 mm (baseline)

Example 2: stock tire&rim, 20 mm spacer:
outer edge=215/2 - 52,5 + 20 = 75 mm (20 mm outer compared to baseline, of course)

Example 3: stock tire, ET40 rim, no spacer
outer edge=215/2 - 40 + 0 = 67,5 mm (12,5 mm outer compared to baseline = difference in ET)

Example 4: 225 wide tire, stock rim, no spacer:
outer edge=225/2 - 52,5 + 0 = 60 mm (5 mm outer compared to baseline due to 10 mm wider tire)

This estimate might be valid (in considering rubbing) if we assume that outer diameter of tire remains about same as stock. I had a look to some experiences in this forum (tire width, rim ET, stock suspension, fenders not rolled, rubs, does not rub...) and it might be somewhere close. I mean max. 15 mm outer than stock might still be ok.

What do you think, is the calculation this simple (probably not)?

 

[Nliiitend1]

^^Looks to me like you're making waaaaaaay more complicated than it needs to be... (dunno)

 

[dwc]

Some good info in this thread. Needs more pics, though!

Jackis, what's the offset of your 17x8 wheels?

(Yep, first post. Yay me!)

 

[Jackis]

Hi, dwc!
About the pics - haha, still waiting my car wass to take some It is raining whole week here, even at the weekend.
The wheels I got are ET45 offset. As I explained above, with this offset i tried to have equal deltas inside and outside. I have no banding when steering hardly, so I think it was FTW

 

[CHICO2003]

^^Looks to me like you're making waaaaaaay more complicated than it needs to be... (dunno)

Couldn't agree more. HFS!!!