Depend on what you looking for.
I use 16 with 205/55R16 RE01R.
If you go above 16, you might loose flexibility of the tire (17 will require low aspect ratio, like 45's to clear wheel well space).
55's will give you more flexibility between performance and forgivenees in bumpy roads. 45's will not forgive you when it gets past the limit... (even with the wire reinforce used in the RE01R's).

 

Dude, after seeing those pictures, you need to LOWER your car FIRST!!! Any after-market wheels won't look right until you've lowered your ride, you'll just look like you're driving a truck around...

 

hey, don't be mean, this wasn't me! (Joke!)
I saw the pics now. I did the same, had the wheels before the suspension... was really lame...

like i said, depend on what you looking for. suspension will give you more for the money, but it will make the ride harsher.
mine had 4 fingers to the fender, now have 2 - way better handling and looks (secondary reason, though).

 

follows before and fter
http://i190.photobucket.com/albums/z...rlowering3.jpg
http://i190.photobucket.com/albums/z.../newfilho3.jpg

 

Make the ride harsher??? What kind of suspension do you have? My suspension made my car much more comfortable to drive and handles better... lol.

 

15's look great, and so do 16's.. i think 16's are perfect for a civic. I like your idea of the whole contrast conception.. CF hood & CF trunk? or just black trunk?.. Id go CF and CF then go with red rims with a lip or something like that.. i think that would look sick

 

I got 17's with 215/50's and lowered 1.75" with H&R springs.I like how they fill up the wheel gap

[IMG]local://upfiles/7655/8D9D7B7FA6B64D61B1BAFA74B6E918B5.jpg[/IMG]

*ride is a little stiffer, rub when turn all the way*

 

I have a strange feeling that your overall diameter is much larger than it should be. Normally, 17-inch wheels require 40-series tires to maintain the same overall diameter as OEM.

 

i never have to turn my wheels all the way so i dont worry about it bc that means they dont rub at all

 

Mylittlecivic - I believe what conceptualpolymer is trying to say is that if you start with 185/65/14 (which I *think* is your OEM size), and then go to a 215/50/17, you get this result:

Diameter Difference: 7.86%
Speedometer Difference: 8.532% too slow

Which would mean that if you are driving 60MPh, your speedometer would show 55.2MPh. Normally when you go to a larger tire you go to a lower (i.e 40 series) tire with less sidewall so that the overall diameter remains (approximately) the same.

Reference: http://www.1010tires.com/TireSizeCalculator.asp