ATTN: Winter Tire Info

[DooMer_MP3]

Well, my girlfriend's father and I have been trying to solve the winter steel rim issue today. So far we have come up with this:

1) The 5 bolt pattern is indeed different from the regular protege steelies. This can make things difficult.

2) TireRack.com has a winter wheel package finder for our cars. It comes up with 15" or 16" rims (I assume because of the rear calipers, 14" could be pushing it). They are $32 a piece for the rims. I can get steels for cheaper, and so I called them up to ask what type of rims they are. The person said all he could see was that they were from a 1998 Mazda vehicle of some sort (great).

3) My girlfriend's father has a Ford Ranger that is basically the same thing as the Mazda pickup. He has 5 spoke steels for the winter. So today we are going to try to put one on and see if it fits. If not, we can keep trying to narrow it down to what 98 mazda used 15" 5-spoke steels.

That is where I stand. I see that someone said their Mazda dealer came up with a 14" package for $699 cdn or something. I don't know if I can bare to put 14" on my car . Oh well. TireRack.com also has sets of 4 wheel covers for like $28 + S&H. Some of them are alright, but NONE will do justice to the Racing Harts If anyone has more info as to the 15" 5spoke rim type, it'd be appreciated!

DooMer_MP3

 

[<paulmp3222>]

www.discounttiredirect.com/ has packages for the mp3 14,15, and 16 i think im gonna go with 15's they start at 428 with black steel rims. do you think they will work??? the tire size is 205/55 r15

 

[DooMer_MP3]

Well, you may want 195s on there instead. Thinner is better in winter, especially if you get a lot of snow!

 

[<enry>]

yeah, 205 will get you stuck like a mofo and you car will be all over the place. go for 195.

-enry (too lazy to log in)

 

[<paulmp3222>]

you guys think that 10mm will make that much of a difference?? I don't ride in the snow to often since i live in PA but i would like the 205's since it will probally provide betterhandling. Do you its worth the extra 50$$ for the 205's? Will it really make that much of a difference? I have to hurry free ground shipping intill oct 31!
Paul
#222

 

[Newf]

Well, my dealership just got some rims in. 14,15,16's. We tried the 14's and 15's, they fit fine. I don't know where they got them but they have kind of a universal bolt pattern. Basically, they have a s*** load of holes in them so they can fit any bolt pattern.

I bought some 14's late last winter, they only have about 5000kms on them. Their good tires, studded. And since money is tight ( I just bought the car)I'm using the 14's for now. This car won't move much over the winter so I don't care much at all about the size. But, man she's going to handle a lot different....their 70R14's

On another note. We got a s*** load of snow today. A LOT of black ice covered in light snow. Let me say this, the Dunlops are the WORSE tires I've ever driven in snow. Those of you thinking that you can get through the winter without changing the tires, I strongly suggest re-thinking that.I've driven a lot of sport cars over the years with low profile tires. I was amazed at how bad the dunlops were on snow.

Just my advice. Besides, I'd hate to see anyone hurt...........an MP3 that is! Just kidding. We don't need another Ebay auction do we?

Oh, and I'm still waiting on my bushing to fix that thunking noise in the rear end....damn things are back ordered.

later

 

[keithl]

Hi there, just becareful before putting on 'any' rims on you car... I took this off www.talontire.com...
------
Caution: When purchasing an extra set of wheels for your car, ensure that they're hubcentric. i.e. that the center hole of the wheel fits over the hub of your brake rotor or drum like a glove. Otherwise, all the stress ends up on the wheel studs, resulting in steering wheel vibration or worse, the sheering off of 1 or more wheel studs.

Avoid multi-application wheels that fit a multitude of cars. Buy a wheel that was made to fit your car specifically. All our wheels are guaranteed to be hubcentric.

And while you're at it, use wheels that have the correct offset.
-----

Just cause they are the same bolt pattern, it doesn't mean they are right for your car!

Keith

 

[Newf]

Just an update. I'm still stuck without rims. The guy that said he tried the 14's, well, he never. So only the 15's and 16's fit so far. The ediots ( Rim supplier not my dealer) ordered in 4 bolt 14" rims instead of 5. . Make no wonder they didn't fit. And, the 15's, actually did fit perfectly. And they were only for MAzda's, The info they gave me yesterday was BS.

Thanks for the advice though Keith. I gotta tell ya, I live in a small town, and I am paranoid that some mechanic who doesn't know anything about an MP3 is going to **** this up. But, my dealership went directly to Mazda of Canada, and assured these were indeed ok.
I keep going back and forth between this site and my dealership. Funny, I've got them convinced I know what I'm talking about.......yeah right!

thanks guys

 

[<<TonyMannn>>]

www.discounttiredirect.com ---They have alot of stuff, and it is CHEAP! I got 4 15in five spoke rims, 4 Pirelli snow tires, mounted, balanced, and shipped to my door in a week for like 580$. I ordered on tuesday, and they will be here in 4 days. sweet.

 

[keithl]

Originally posted by Newf:
<STRONG>Just an update. I'm still stuck without rims. The guy that said he tried the 14's, well, he never. So only the 15's and 16's fit so far. The ediots ( Rim supplier not my dealer) ordered in 4 bolt 14" rims instead of 5. . Make no wonder they didn't fit. And, the 15's, actually did fit perfectly. And they were only for MAzda's, The info they gave me yesterday was BS.

Thanks for the advice though Keith. I gotta tell ya, I live in a small town, and I am paranoid that some mechanic who doesn't know anything about an MP3 is going to **** this up. But, my dealership went directly to Mazda of Canada, and assured these were indeed ok.
I keep going back and forth between this site and my dealership. Funny, I've got them convinced I know what I'm talking about.......yeah right!

thanks guys</STRONG>

It's funny, just because the dealer sells the cars, it doesn't mean they know squat! I have funny dealer stories too. Speak to John from Talon Tire, tell him I referred you. They are located in Canada too, so you don't have to worry about paying duties and stuff... They have complete packages for the Mazda MP3/Protege5. (check out the link -> http://www.talontire.com/cgi-bin/packagesearch.cgi?make=mazda ). You can reach him at 514 337-0833, or email info@talontire.com or fill out an inquiry form -> http://www.talontire.com/orderinfo.html
Keep me posted on what happens, I'm curious to know what happensm, Newf.

Cheers,

Keith

 

[PaulMP3]

i got my snow tires yesterday! they came in like 3 days! i ended up geting pireli's 205 55 R15 the were 428 for everything i havent put them on yet. i had to go with the steel black rims im on a budget. i hope they fit

 

[louis]

I installed 4 P185/65R14 on mine and they work just fine...