Winter steelies?

[fit2bowner]

I'm getting a Sport Fit, and want to get some steel wheels for winter. My question: Would it be better to get steel rims in 15 x 6 as the car has now, or would the 14 x 5.5 size be any safer? I'm purely looking for best performance/safety for the Canadian winter.

I guess the next question would be...what size tire? Am I stuck with the stock sizes or would there be something better for either size rim? I'm beginning to get a handle on tire numbers, but the speed ratings still really throw me. Specifically, I'm thinking at the moment of the Pirelli winter carving tires or Hankook winter radial W404. But I have no idea if they are appropriate.

Thanks for any help.

[kps]

Narrower is better in principle because narrow tires are better at cutting through rather than riding over snow, but 10 or 20mm is probably negligible compared to the difference between snow tires and all-seasons.

I think P175/65R14 (the LX stock size) is the narrowest suitable tire that manufacturers actually make. (If there are 13" rims that will fit over the brakes then P155/80R13 would be ideal.) In 15" either P195/55R15 (NA Sport stock) or P185/55R15 (Sport stock in the rest of the world, but probably hard to get here) would do.

If you are looking at tires in some other size, there is a good calculator at http://www.carbibles.com/tyre_bible.html about 3/5 of the way down. There's also a section on speed ratings near the top.

[fit2bowner]

Thanks, kps...you're a wealth of information!

[wyy183]

I'll be using some Civic or Prelude steelies that I have in my garage. They are 14", and I'll be running 175/70-14's on them with Hakkapeliitta's.

Taller sidewall will give a bit more ground clearance.

[fit2bowner]

Thanks, wyy183. Using the "rolling radius" calculator on that site kps mentioned, the 175/70/R14s look like they're very similar to the car's original 195/55/R15s. I think I might try to find that size on 14" rims.

So glad there are so many things to think about while waiting for the beast to arrive! *sigh*

[ehschw76]

I have a set of 14" Honda Base Fit Steeles that I have been considering selling...Just not sure how to go about shipping them if I do sell them. Interested? They have never been used and have the OEM Dunlop tires on them.

[jeandeau]

If you are traveling clear roads, and hardpack snow with icy spots, choose a soft winter compound tire with fine sipes such as the Blizzak. The Mounties (highway police) all use tires of this design. If you are traveling unplowed roads or a long driveway into your acerage, soft snow demands an open agressive tread pattern which will also be noisy. For highway, choose a size close to original. For loose snow, choose the tallest narrowest tire that fits. On ice, I still choose studs. A slightly higher profile also helps road clearance as mention earlier. 185/70 14 Blizzaks on a set of Geo storm Wheels are my choice. Consider 175/75 14s on stock rims for loose snow. Saturn S rims are 14x5 that fit OK and are plentiful at the salvage yard