Upgrading from 18s to 22s 2017 CX-9

@megaman123 you could get them powder coated. I got a couple quotes to powder coat my wheels and they were all between 400 and 450 USD. Not ideal, but it would be the most durable surface.
 
Been thinking about 22s again. I like this look:

948389-10-2018-cx-9-mazda-sport-stock-stock-asanti-abl-21-gunmetal.jpg



And I can get these wheels for $307 CAD, no tax and free shipping. They are Fast, which has a relationship with Mazda. They are made in Montreal.

Problem is that they only come in satin bronze and gloss black. I actually emailed them to ask if they'll ever be producing them in the ever popular gunmetal or titanium. If not, I was thinking of DIY spray painting them. Then if I didn't like the shade after one season I could change to something else. Also down below is a titanium shade I like.

Now, when the mechanic changes the wheels to put on my winters, which will be the OEM 18s with winters on, they could chip the paint around the lugnuts and I'd have to touch up every year. Also because of normal wear and tear of course.

Looks good! I really want to lower my car now lol..

Personally I'd go with the satin bronze if those are your only colour options for those wheels. Then, as @youri mentioned, try Superwrap for a cheap, temporary solution until you decide on a permanent colour. Once you decide, you'd remove the Superwrap and then have them powdercoated as @MGMGT16 suggested, or professionally painted (or DIY spray painted).
 
Would love to have it powder coated but that sounds too rich for my blood at the moment. I was thinking of just the $15 to $20 cans of spray paint, primer and clearcoat.

The way my mind is working right now is that it was always the plan to upgrade to 20s if I ended up with a lower trim model, so I set a aside a certain amount of funds in my head. Then I saw I could go 22 for not that much more, unless I found used 20s for a fraction of new. But good looking used 20s, OEM or aftermarket (with the right bolt pattern and bore) are very hard to come by, and I live in the most populous region of the country. I did post a wanted ad on kijiji and a guy said he's parting with his used OEM wheels only for $1,150 in October. Someone may very well take him up on that quickly, if they are in good condition. So considering that there are new 22s for just a little more and maybe a couple hundred bucks more for new tires at that size I figure why not.

Dropping over $2,400 CAD on wheels and tires and then the bore ring and lock nut and install on top, costs are adding up. So DIY spray paint I think I'll go with. I just hope I don't screw it up.

I saw another 18" in a parking lot yesterday on white and man, they looked puny. For some reason it looked different than in my colour. So that was another thing that was pushing me to go up in size even more than OEM.

Anyway, here's an example of used 20s with the right bolt pattern that I would seriously have considered after doing a photoshop to see how they look. They were in pretty good condition but the centre bore was too small. He was only asking $450 for the set. They were from a Taurus SHO. I like machined face wheels with a black or gunmetal secondary colour. Saw that on a new Santa Fe the other day that's the same colour as my ride and liked the look.

s-l640.jpg
 
Last edited:
Looks good! I really want to lower my car now lol..

Personally I'd go with the satin bronze if those are your only colour options for those wheels. Then, as @youri mentioned, try Superwrap for a cheap, temporary solution until you decide on a permanent colour. Once you decide, you'd remove the Superwrap and then have them powdercoated as @MGMGT16 suggested, or professionally painted (or DIY spray painted).

I've been hesitant to even consider that because of parking lot curbs. My wife will be driving it more and even though I always remind her, leave space when pulling into a curb spot and park well back in the parking lot anyway, but you never know.

We also have a family cottage that we go to a dozen times a year. No dirt roads but there are some smallish pot holes. And the driveway to the cottage is on an incline and is a sand/rock mix. And lots of the asphalt roads have loose pebbles.
 
That’s funny, because the only CX-9 used OEM wheels i find online are 20’s, i want a set of 18 OEM to replace my winter steel wheel but can’t find them locally.

The other issue with used wheel is finding one with the right offset, and it is very hard to figure out the load rating (especially on OEM wheels). The CX-9 is a heavy vehicle, and i would like the added confidence of knowing the wheel can take it. (For example, i don’t feel comfortable, putting an RX-8 wheel on the CX-9 without knowing the load rating, even though they are a perfect match for everything else)

Also, personal preference here, but on the CX-9, especially with 22s, i prefer fuller wheels (multiple spoke) over 5 spoke or very thin spoke set up because the brake components on the CX-9 are not that big and looks very small in the 22 inch wide opening. Calipers are also unpainted so not that great to look at as they age and start showing surface rust.
 
Last edited:
Also, personal preference here, but on the CX-9, especially with 22s, i prefer fuller wheels (multiple spoke) over 5 spoke or very thin spoke set up because the brake components on the CX-9 are not that big and looks very small in the 22 inch wide opening. Calipers are also unpainted so not that great to look at as they age and start showing surface rust.

Agreed, this is why I went with the wheel style I have on my CX-9.
 
Yeah I like the fuller look as well. I was thinking about these in 20s but looked at pics of them on other Mazdas and thought it’s not a full enough look for me.

M012-M012-Matte-Gunmetal-B_612d267b-4d9f-4b3f-9463-c8713260ed45.jpg


unnamed.png
 
Last edited:
So Fast got back to me and conifrmed that I'm out of luck regarding any other colours:

Unfortunately, we do not do special colours and those are the only available options for the foreseeable future. It is always possible to get the wheels powder coated post purchase to get exact colour you desire.
 
Looking at the tire profiles that people chose for their 22s on this vehicle and other SUVs I've been reading about, basically everyone has either 35 or 40. Is there a reason no one really chooses 45? The OEM is 255/50/20.

I've been thinking about 45 so as to not make it too stiff, even if it takes away a bit in the looks department.

And did anyone consider the wheel gap when deciding on 35 vs 40? I personally don't think some gap is a problem on an SUV. It's not a racing car. In theory, a 45 profile fills in the gap more than the 35, correct? But the 35 profile looks sharper and leaves more gap, which I think is fine on an SUV, as long as it's not a huge gap like on a base trim pickup.

I think maybe I'll go for 40. We drive on pretty decent roads typically so I don't think bumpiness will be too much of an issue.
 
The main reason people stick with 35 or 40 when choosing 22s is because they want to stay as close to the OEM wheel's overall diameter as possible. Going to a bigger or smaller wheel in overall diameter would affect the accuracy of the speedometer, and it would also change the ride height of the car, which may also affect other functions of the car like the auto highbeams, radar cruise, automatic emergency braking, etc.
 
I took a pic from a dealership ad and then used the wheels/tires from a couple other pics and put these together to give myself an idea of what the two wheels I am interested in would look like on my ride. There are no side view pics of just these rims as like almost all rim pics, they only show them on an angle.

Both of these are around the $300 mark for 22s and these are the only ones that I think are compatible style wise and in that price range. One pic the rims are too dark and the other it's too light. I would want to spray paint titanium or gunmetal so you just kind of have to imagine that. And these aren't the exact same rims, but they are basically the same thing.

Edit: Just adjusted the colour levels on the first one and added that new version in, but still not an accurate representation of what I would paint it.

Anyone else like the first one over the second one?

115569550.jpg


multi.png


multi 2.png


5.png


f263-vybz-_satin-bronze_.jpg


475-22965GM38.png


948389-9-2018-cx-9-mazda-sport-stock-stock-asanti-abl-21-gunmetal.jpg


DXX9063.jpg
 
Last edited:
Regarding the pics above.. I honestly feel like they would all look good on your car. (y)

Thanks man. Makes sense.

Anyone here themselves or read about others who say the ride on those size tires is rough?

I have read that others who have gone to 22s with 35 or 40 profile tires say the ride difference is definitely noticeable, and I would agree with that. But I wouldn't say that it's "rough".

Keep in mind though, this is coming from someone who took a perfectly fine, stock AWD Lexus IS250, shown below..

images.jpeg


And then lowered it and put 19s with 35 profile tires on, just for the looks.

11949553695_5e3253064c_o.jpg


That setup was rough, partially because of the tire size, but mostly because of the lowered suspension, which had to be more stiff in order to avoid bottoming out on dips and road imperfections.

My CX-9 has 22s but isn't lowered (yet :devilish:), and I personally feel that it has made going over road seams/train tracks a bit more jarring, but the OEM suspension still soaks up the bumps and everything really well. Maybe my wife would be the better judge. She has no interest in cars and drives a 2006 Honda Civic, and when I swapped to 22s she said she didn't notice any difference in the way it drives.
 
Good job! For the five spoke wheels, you have to picture it with the disc brake at least half the size of what it is on your draft image ( and the rear may even be 2/3 smaller.) Not shaming your work, just saying that this is how they will look like. (You can see how small the disk brake are on your first picture which is more accurate since you took these wheels of that white CX-9 photo.) So for me it is too much of an empty hole behind the wheel for my taste.

I think the first option would look good in gunmetal grey.
 
Thanks. Ya, it would look bad ass if I had the brakes to match it with a painted caliper perhaps but I'd like to think it won't bother me too much. But might as well go with the multi so they aren't as noticeable.
 
I see there is a classified sub forum but before I go on there and post I thought it might be worthwhile asking here. Do you think there would be a market for my 18" wheels from my 2017? Tires also have good tread. I have a tread guage too so I can get exact figures when ready. Condition is not perfect but pretty damn good.

I am in the Toronto area so there's plenty enough people around with CX-9s but I'm just wondering if anyone would actually want these. Perhaps just for winters?

Original plan was to keep these for my winters and then upgrade to 20 or 22 but I'm thinking I might get 20s for winters in a couple of months and get 22 in the spring.
 
I don’t know if there is a market really, but I would take the 18” for winter if the price is right. I need to replace my steel wheel. You can PM me if you want to discuss.
 
Last edited:
Who here lives in a cold climate and keeps the same wheels on year round but gets their all season and winter tires taken off and mounted again on the same wheels instead of having separate wheels for winter?

Especially to the guys with 22s. I can understand if you want to protect them from the harshness of winter driving, but your car looks so cool for 7-8 months of the year, it might feel like a drag to take them off and put on some blander and smaller wheels for the winter.

I know it costs more to do this since specialized equipment is needed. And I guess there's always a chance of when they break the bead of the tire twice a year, they'll take off some of the paint at the same time.
 
Back