This should be an easy question but I dont want Les Schwab to laugh at me, so I'll ask on the internet...

Les Schwab is offering me a really good deal on some wheels/rims (17" black chrome lip) but they are a half inch wider than the stock ones I have right now... With .5 in wider tires can I still have the option of lowering my car by just 1.5 in front and 1.3 in back? CorruptMotor guy says he'll sell me some eibachs for like 220 shipped and I wouldnt mind wider tires... any negatives on wider tires?

 

Please... yes or no...

 

what are they 7.5's? im not sure what stock is so i might be wrong but with 17's im sure you wouldnt rub. unless you have like 8.0's or something, or maybe i just dont know what im talking about.

 

Stock are 7" width and the ones I am wanting are 7.5... I just want to drop my car just an inch and half but dont want my tires to rub

 

I wouldn't worry about it, assuming the new wheels are the correct offset.

 

As for driving in snow/ice... are wider tires better?

 

no

 

How come, I would think more tread on the ground= more traction... this is just as confusing as HP dropping with bigger rims even though the total size of tire spinning doesnt change!

 

that's not confusing. the overall diameter is the same but metal weighs more than rubber. more wheel = more rotating mass. more rotating mass = takes more power to turn it.

think about how snowshoes work. they are really big, distributing your weight over a large area and allowing you to stay on top of the now without sinking in. is that what you want your car to do in the snow? or do you want it to sink through the snow and hit the pavement?

that said, .5" shouldn't make THAT much of a difference for you. But why would you run your GOOD wheels in the winter anyway.

edit: read this: http://www.audiworld.com/features/project_tt4.shtml

 

Thanks that makes sense... can you make sense of the wider rims/ less power thing?