The Age Old Question, What Size?

[ojai2]

Howdy. I just bought a 2013 2 Sport, and discovered aside from not liking the steel wheels it came with, I don't like the fact that they aren't even stock size (they are 14") so I am looking at 15" Konig Feathers. I noticed the only tires Good Win shows for the car on their Mazda 2 page are the Yokohama 195/55/15. Seems most owners go to 205/50, wondering what the recommendation would be for someone who does no racing whatsoever, is not interested in lowering, and just wants the car to drive great, get the best mileage, and of course look balanced and sporty. Since everyone goes up I wasn't even considering stock but would appreciate any and all input. Thanks!

 

[Spinitsidewayz]

Which width for the Konigs? 6, 6.5, 7?

Personally, I would look at pricing in either tire size you considering, as certain sizes are more popular and so those sizes tend to be cheaper.

Wider tire usually = less fuel mileage, and depending on several factors, will feel mushier on the same rim vs something a little skinnier.

 

[genericmoniker]

Just to add my 2 cents, I went with a 195/50/15 as the suppliers in my area seemed to be able to easily and cheaply source that size.

 

[ScorpioGTX1]

I kept the aspect ratio the same with a 195/55/R15 so that the speedometer and odometer wouldn't be affected. TireRack has a good number of options in this size. I got my Sport Comp 2s for ~$90 a piece. Going wider to 205 seemed to increase the cost a fair bit.

 

[DanR]

I went with a Konig Helium in a 6 1/2 width with a 205/50/15. The size works well on the car and there is more availability in the 205/50/15 versus the 195/50/15 which also helps on pricing and selection.

 

[EF9]

195/50/15 seems to be the winner overall on a 15x7 rim from experience. Then again though, application will always dictate the best tire selection for your wheel size

 

[okvol]

I love my NeoGen 205/50/15s. You can get those for a good price from Walmart.com - just don't have them install the tires. It was a major f'ed up job from no hazard coverage because they didn't stock the tire to a broken TPMS sensor that they did fix and continues with a very slow leak.

By the way, I cannot tell if my poor mileage is my driving style or the tires or both...

 

[deadlydave]

They way I see tires is bang for the buck. I daily drive my car. I went with 15x8" wheels which could support tires in 205-245mm range, and bought 205's for it-Dunlop Direzza DZ102's. If I'm paying for wheel/tire upgrades, I want substantial, not incremental improvement. My 15x8, 205-50-15 setup is lighter, with more grip than stock, but my gas mileage is identical to the stock 185 eco tires. Sure, I could have gone wider or stickier, or with 16's (which are the perfect size for this car IMO), but the value wasn't there for my needs. My setup was $820 all mounted and balanced, shipping included, I left the TPMS in the stock wheels for winter.

I digressed a bit there. Almost any tire the same size or wider will be better than stock. My tires aren't even what I'd call a tier-1 performance tire and they already are a bit 'much' on the grip side for the stock suspension.

 

[Traum]

195/50/15 and 205/50/15 will both work equally well, and for my purposes, there are some very fast (ie. sticky) tires available in both categories.

I have yet to upgrade my wheels and tires since my CFO wants me to use up the crappy stock tires first. (headshake But alas, wheels and tires are at the top of my upgrade list, and I have already decided on some 15x7.5 wheels + 205/50/15 tires. For my purposes, the wheel size is rule driven -- STF classing in autox dictates that my wheels can't go beyond 7.5" wide, and nearly all the fast tires are available in the meaty-looking 205/50/15.

 

[utmorpheus]

Don't try RE11a on stock suspension then. You may start trying to make love to the car.

 

[Mazda233]

My car is lightened by about 100 lbs. I am running 15x7 rims with 195 Star Specs. street and track. Good results, handle day to day conditions well and break away and slide very controllably on the track.