Y'know, looking again I may have been mistaken about the $425/4 bit. ($425 ea?) I should've guessed that Enkies wouldn"t sell that cheap... "just wasn"t thinking. Here"s where I found them (a VERY quick Google search): http://www.buywheelstoday.com/produc...Coating%29.bwt

Oh, and Uber... about the "old man/men" cracks:[sm=smiley35.gif] [sm=smiley17.gif][sm=smiley17.gif][sm=smiley17.gif] [sm=idontcare.gif]

 

its okay. your the oldest guy with a modded up mazda3. your only what double my age and then some. hell your older then my dad and he drives an MDX lol. im waiting for you to sell the mazda3 and then buy a Buick Lesabre or a Mercury Grand Marquis/ Ford Crown Victoria[sm=smiley36.gif][sm=proof.gif][sm=owned.gif]

 

Jaimie,for the Mercury Grand Marquis/ Ford Crown Victoria crack, you get one too: [sm=smiley35.gif] [sm=smiley17.gif][sm=smiley17.gif][sm=smiley17.gif]
You already know I hate cars like that and always have.

And if Dale served 3 tours of duty in Vietnam (birth date in his profile 5/17***,) he must be 5-10yrs older 'n' me. I missed the end of that war by 3 yrs. (1975, Thank God!!)But I was sweatin" about being drafted before they eliminated the draft (1972.) I am definitely not military material and thought I would certainlybe killedin combat.
Like the song says, "Be the first one on your block to have your boy sent home in a box." That would've been me!!!
Congrats for making it through to the other side, Dale!!!

 

uhuh. i can still see it. you just chillin drivin around in a old persons car. hmmm. that would be awesome. 80 year old richard bootin around town in his mazda3. WOOOOOO. lol. nah i cant see it.

 

Regarding the new wheels, I am a 16" to 17" kind of guy. Why? Plenty of engineering research shows that is where the sweet spot is between a short sidewall (which offers steering crispness) and unsprung weight (which messes up handling big time). That and here in New Hamster we get what is commonly known as "Frost Heaves", and so having some sidewall height is a good thing.

My current thought is to buy a new set of Enkeis for the Spring through Fall months, and use the fugly OEM "Y" wheels for winter tire duty. Why? Because I think they look better than a pair of steelies and hubcaps.

 

Hmmm, I must have worded my previous post incorrectly. Sorry, my bad. The dude that did the three tours in Vietnam was my six-foot six-inch muscle bound DI; I did not even hit boot camp until several years after all American involvement in the conflict in southeast Asia was over. As for making it through to the other side, nah, piece of cake. I look at my time in the Corps as being in a kind ofa tough version of summer camp, the only difference was that I never managed to break several ribs in summer camp. [8D]

 

shipo as far as winter wheels there are some good reasons to aim for a smaller steel wheel. First off for winter traction it's generally better to have a narrower tire, and a taller sidewall (like you said). Second the stock wheels are an odd size to buy any tire in and they run more expensive. If you change to a 16" rim you'll have far more choices and much better pricing. I agree it would be nice to have aluminum winter wheels, but if you just need something smaller to put on the winter tires steelies would be much cheaper.

 

My current thinking on the winter tire thing is this:
[ol][*]I will have my new Michelin Pilot Sport A/S tires (205/50 R17) mounted on the factory rims next week. These tires get better than average reviews for being able to deal with winter weather and are a MUCH better all-around tire than the Goodyear RS-A currently on the car.[*]I will attempt to drive through this winter with the new Michelins, and then, based upon my driving impressions I wll make the decision as to whether or not I need winter rubber.[*]If I ultimately decide to buy winter skins, I'm inclined to stay with the already narrow 205 secton width of the factory size, and while I may suffer the consequences, I am thinking that I may be able to get away with the seventeen inch wheels, especially because my favorite winter tires are available in 205/50 R17 (i.e. the Michelin X-Ice Xi2).[*]If I actually liked both the style and size of the factory wheels (which are one inch too narrow for my liking), then I would most certainly drop an inch or two on the rim size for my winter set.[/ol]

 

WellI guess then that you and I are around the same age.
What size wheels did your car come with? 15"s?16"s? 17"s? On an "i" model? Just a year ago they came stock w/15"s steelies, which would be perfect in your situation. Winters on the 15"s, summer"s on the 17"s.
I agree w/Remi though, that in New Hampster you will want the smaller, thinner tires for winter.These cars are not the greatest in extreme weather... unless you plan to dig in for the winter months? I didn"t ALWAYS live in Texas. I"m from the NE myself and only moved here about 15 yrs ago.
I have a set of Kosei"s K1-TS"s on mine.17x7x +50, 13.8lbs ea./225/45-17's. <$200 ea. I like 'em.

 

I guess everything is relative. I "downsized" from 235/45 R17s on my 530i to 225/55 R16s and ended up with a car that could easily catch the 4x4s on the hilly and winding roads around us, errr, that is up to about eight inches or soof rutted snow. Deeper than that and I just stayed home.

I'm thinking that 205 section width tires are more than narrow enough for the Mazda3, especially as it is a FWD car. Then again, I may change my tune when the first snow flies. Stay tuned.