how wide a rim can I use my 195/45/15's on

[Gforcefd]

How wide of a 15" rim can I use my 195/45's on?

[Whittey]

These are 195/50's on a 6.5" rim.



-=Whittey=-

[Safety Guy]

Some tire sites will have tire manufacturer specs listing rim width recommendations.

For a 195 width I'd want at least a 5.5" rim, but I'd prefer a 6". In general, the better the tire and rim match up (with the tire being slightly wider than the rim) the better.

For example, I'm leary of the 175/60-13 on a stock Aspire rim, which is only 4.5" wide. However, lots of folks have done it with no apparent ill effects. I'm wondering if handling would suffer though. My minimum for a 175 would be a five inch wide rim.

I'm planning on getting some new Hercules H rated 165/70-13s to be put on my Aspire alloys (13 X 4.5") when I mount them on my '93GL after the suspension swap. It's not only the stock Aspire size tire (going on a Festiva), but I feel it will give better handling than a more common, cheaper, 175/70-13 would.

I could be wrong. But I'd rather be safe!

Karl

[Safety Guy]

Oh BTW, Whittey's tires seem perfectly matched to his 6.5" rims. As you can see from the pic, they don't stick out much if at all.

I'm not sure if a 6" or 6.5" rim would be best for a 195 section.

My guess is that using a too fat tire on a too thin rim would also lower the air capacity of the tire, possibly lessening the load rating and its ability to handle heat, as well as screwing up whatever sidewall flexion it's supposed to have. Again, I'm no expert. Just going on what I recall from reading some articles here and there.

Also, if two rim widths are about perfect for a tire section you have, keep in mind the thinner wheel should weigh a bit less, lowering your unsprung weight. Personally, I'd go with a 195 tire and 6" wheel width combo. Sometimes 15 X 6" rims aren't offered, though, so you have to go with their smallest, which is often 15 X 6.5".

Karl