Wheel sizes?

brucewallman

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I have a 2020 Civic hatchback touring that came with 18" low profile rims. I find these too much trouble when it comes to curbs. According to Tire Rack, I can replace these with 16" rims with 50mm offset. This is what I intend to do when I need to replace the 18" tires (which are not lasting long). Is there any physical reason that this will not work? I know that it may affect performance slightly, but I will never notice the difference.
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Nessism

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It's not the diameter that causes the problem, it's the relationship of the tire to the wheel width.
For example, your car has 18x8 wheels with 235 tires. If you had 18x7 inch wheels, the tire would overhang the rim and help protect the rim from curb strikes.

Personally, some 17" x 7.5 wide wheels with 225 tires, and you should be better off compared to 16's. The Tire Rack guys should be able to offer assistance.
 
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rwk226

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Going down to 16s should not be a problem in terms of dimensions, as the LX models come with 16" steelies from the factory, running 215/55r16 all seasons, and as long as you are running stock suspension I believe you will be fine. Depending on what kind of tires you wind up going with, you may even see better MPG as lighter wheels = less power required to rotate, and if you get MPG-oriented tires (think low rolling resistance tires like Michelin Energy Saver or Continental TrueContact Tour), that should net even more.

Note, I am not sure if there is a big enough difference in the suspension layout from the Sport Touring to the LX to necessitate any quirks or issues, but maybe somebody else with more experience can chime in?
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