I got my tires from a heavy commercial outfit. A place that does the big rigs...they don't seem to put the big mark-up like the normal tire stores do.

 

I'm getting Hancooks with 17" aluminium rims from Performance Mazda in Ottawa for $1230 Cdn. They said that Hancooks is a South Korean company and that the exchange rate is superb, resulting in a much cheaper priced tire for the equivalent quality.

Tires look great and are ice rated, what more can we ask for. I'll see how they stack up.

 

Bellef,
Whats the size of the tires? is that a V or H rated tire?

 

I've found a store in Brampton selling 225/50/VR 17 Hankook W300 w/ steel rims for $950 tax incl. free mounting and balancing.... What do you guys think????

The only thing I'm concern is that.. Will the steels rims fit the car....Any input appreciated.

 

steel weel dont fit. period.

 

Gee, you should tell that to the Mazda dealers that are selling 17" steel wheels with winter tires for RX-8s. I know of two Calgary forum members that just had them installed this past Saturday - I guess I should phone them up and tell them to stop driving on the steel wheels and take them off, because Androvsky says they don't fit.

Regards,
Gordon

 

sorry

 

They fit (steel wheels) but you do not get the proper offset, which can cause wear on wheel bearings etc, and could be unsafe.

But whatever, do as you wish. Talon Tire will not sell them without the proper offset, because he cars more about the customer than the $$$$

 

Eh? Tell me more about this please. The 17" steel wheels my Mazda dealership put on my car are Mazda wheels. Would they sell me a product that isn't safe?

Hmmm, if so, it'll be an interesting discussion I'm going to have with them about warranty coverage?

 

Let's see if I can dig the stuff up.... I discussed this with John last year.

 

Here's what I found... Last years group buy thread, posted by John from talon Tire.
15" Steel - Will not fit brakes are too big.

16" Steel - Fits on the hubs but touches brake calipers front and rear. (It touches the outside face of the caliper not the top. ) I was using a stock Mazda rim with a 45mm offset. I may want to try another if I can source another Mazda rim with a different offset.

Proper 16" tire sizing would be 215/60-16 overall diameter = 26.2"

17" Steel - This wheel was supplied by one of my suppliers as I was advised by wing that they had it in stock to try. This wheel did fit the car and cleared perfectly, but was not Hubcentric and had an offset of 38mm. Talon Tire will not consider this wheel as an option as from our past experiences we have found that non-hubcentric wheels do tend to cause vibrations when used on vehicles and can damage suspension components after long term use.

We understand many garages will supply these wheels as a cheap alternative but we will not. Every single car sold from any dealer in the world comes equipted with hubcentric wheels! Why would they if it wasn't?

Steel wheels can't be centered using hub rings.

As for 17" mags my suppliers have confirmed a 17" mag with as offset between 40-50 will fit the car. Anyone interested in pricing should PM me as I would not want to upset the forum moderators.

Proper 17" tire sizing would be 215/55-17 overall diameter would be = 26.3"

You could also run 225/45-18 overall diameter = 26"
In citites(Like Montreal) where they use a lot of salt you would be advised to wash the wheels as often as possible.


Hubcenter Bore should be = 67.1
Bolt Pattern is = 5x114.3

 

Ok,
I went with the 18" tires (HANKOOK ICEBEAR W300 225/40R18 XL 92V ) on the OEM rims.
it cost me 719.04$ +tx = 772.97$ all include with balance and put on my Rx8 at the Centre du pneu et mags performance at Blainville near Montréal.
the guy charge 35$ for a swap from winter tire to summer tire.
That why i dont get news set of rims.
The guy also tell me that the TOYO Garrit are verry good for the RX8. like it was made for it.

For information :When the guy there talk with the Hankook suplier in the phone. The supplier says that theres is no more icebear w300 17" in is Montréal stockroom.

That it for me.
Good luck.

 

Is offset really that big a deal? The wheel John at Talon is recommending this year (FRD 6) has an offset of 35mm.
17"steel wheels? Where can you get them?. I didnt realize they existed, unless this is a very recent thing.
As for hub centric rings, wasn't the consensus they are not needed?
I dont have em and I have no vibration. Just torque the lugs before you lower the car.
Tiretrends even covers this on their web site.
Why can't you use the rings on a steel wheel?