I got these last week after about a month of looking for what would fit without rubbing, look good and not affect ride comfort too much. Anything too get rid of the steel wheels and ugly caps of the LX version !

I debated between these and the 2 Crave machined Mach 5's which are about the same price. I finally went with a company I know better and that is sold by Honda dealer's themselves although I'll admit the Mach 5's look better.

I essentially wanted a wheel of 16 X 7 with an offset of at least 45. It's possible I will lower the car so I figured the closer I am to the stock offset, the better the chances of avoiding rubbing when I lower it. Cost was important too. I dismissed any ultra light wheel for that reason alone. Most of these cost more than $200 each. The Enkei's are about average when it comes to weight at 18.5 lbs. I like the fact that Enkei says the wheels are silver but they are darker than what other manufacturers call silver. They are somewhere between silver and gunmetal.

I put General G-Max AS-03 (195/55R16) on them for a variety of reasons. I wanted a 3 season tire to be able to extend the time I have them on at the limit of the start of the winter season. A summer tire would have to go off earlier because they suck in snow and we get tons and tons of it here. The best 3 season tire according to tirerack is the Michelin Pilot Sport but it was pricey, ugly and heavy so I opted for a tire with a nice tread, good reviews overall and possibly the lightest in that size at 17.1 lbs each. It's supposed to be decent in light snow as well. The price is also very decent.

So far so good. No rubbing as expected even on mean speed bumps. The comfort level is about the same as the original Firestone F740 15 inch tires. Road noise is a little more pronounced but it doesn't bother me. Road feel and cornering is definitely better. I was expecting the tires to give a stiffer feel but they don't. The compound is softer than expected. They are inflated to 35 pounds now.

Here are a few photos. The second one is just to show the tire tread pattern. The gap between the rubber and wheel fender is too big for my liking but that can be fixed later. The car was washed a week before but was already full of dust !

 

One thing that I find very important when I purchase a tire is that it has to have some form of bead protection. I've had Toyo Proxes and Kumho's in the past that literally saved my wheels from curb rash. The General's were supposed to have this according to info I have seen online. Right now, they offer zero protection of my wheels. If I go a little to close to the side of the road, it's all over. This is something I will have to keep in mind. It's possible that the bead protection is nil because the tire is stretched to its maximum on 7 inch wheels but I doubt it. I looked at the tires before they were even installed at the usual thick rubber surround just wasn't there. I could clearly see it on my Kumho's when I got them several years ago. Strange and disappointing.

One last thing for now: I chose to put on wheel locks on this setup and because the holes on the Enkei's are small, not all wheel locks or spline drive lug nuts will fit. Only lock nuts that are thin in diameter will fit. They are usually called tuner lug nuts or lock nuts. They also have to be of the cone seat/acorn style variety. Ball seats will not work. I learned this from writing to Enkei to make sure I was getting the right installation hardware. On the larger Fit OEM alloys, bigger ball seat style lock nuts that Honda dealers sell will work. They won't work on these wheels.

 

Nice setup. Wise move getting 45 offset. You will have no problem once you drop it.

My GE is on 16x7 with 40 OS. Just occasional rub on the front.

 

I love these. I think I found the rims for my LX

 

I find the wheels look better than in the photos. I'll have to post a picture in better light once the car is cleaned and waxed. Maybe when the car is dropped as well...

They are available in either 45 or 38 offset and black or silver.

I found this picture at customwheelspecialists:

 

Looks so much better lowered. Small gap, perfect. Is that an HKS I see in the back ?

 

Yes it is a very expensive HKS. Shipping etc to Canada is just terrible.

 

I'm waiting for the Tanabe Medalion. I think shipping alone will be close to $100. Unless I can find a dealer in Canada. Parts seem to be so difficult to find around here and the Canadian dollar value isn't helping when getting stuff from the USA.

 

Nice wheels Mike. I am planning to ditch my stockies and go with a lightweight 17x7 and 215 width tires. Gotta have my grip, lol.

What springs/coils are you gonna drop on?

 

How is the sound when driving about, especially on highway at constant speed? I'm looking to get hks for my gk5 because from what I've heard by warching youtube videos the sound is just the way i like it, raspy and metallic. The only doubt is actual highway driving, don't want to get everyone in the car, myself included, stressed out and I'd like to avoid deeper notes if possible.

 

Very nice set of wheels you got there mike, congrats!

 

Swift but they are not out yet. Some people put the ones for the 2014 Fit on and report no problems except the occasional rub on extreme bumps or full turns. I prefer going with the new ones made expressly for the GK5 even if it means a smaller drop and waiting a few weeks. I hate rubbing and will avoid it like the plague but that's just me.

Be aware that the larger the wheels/tire combination, the greater the chance of rubbing if you drop the car especially if the wheel offset makes them stick out of the fender wells.

 

I took this shot a few hours after the car was washed and then 2 step cleaner and sealant. It makes the metallic blue pop up pretty good. I couldn't find a place that was out of the sun with a plain wall in the back and not much in the front so there were reflections everywhere on the car.

 

Damn, that's shiny, sweet! What did you use?

 

Thanks. I've tried many different products through the years and almost all the car detailing products I've been using for the last decade come from Wolfgang. I use the pre wax cleaner and the paint sealant. Easy to put on and buff off and amazingly the car stays clean much longer than anything else I have used.

 

I am also waiting for Swift springs, as the 1.0/0.9 drop is exactly what I'm looking for.

I don't think 17x7's will present much of an issue with a mild drop. But I still need to do some research and decide how much offset would be optimal.

 

Just saw your question. Hwy sound is fine. Hardly hear it. Now passing I am sure the car being passed is annoyed. This past weekend was on 80km limit roads. A few times I would drop my Auto into 3rd and floor it. Easily up to 110-120. It sounds great them -)

 

Thank you for replying! I'd imagine the sound is more raspy and there's not much of deep notes? I'm exclusively looking for something that won't drum my ears from cabin 'pressure' on low end. I've seen some yt videos but it's hard to judge from those.

 

The silver EDR9's look amazing on your car. I'm getting a set for my Modern Steel LX (16x7 +45) will run 205/50 tires. After that I'll see about getting the HFP suspension bits installed. I think I'll be done with mods after that.