As I said the 225/45-17 is the recommended plus-zero size. It is always better to go slightly smaller than slightly larger. The smaller diameter positively affects gearing ratios, making the car quicker. Larger tires hurt gear ratios causing the vehicle to be more sluggish. Additionally, tire manufacturers recommend staying within the +2% to -3% range, therefore -1.9% is actually better than +1.5%. One final note is that there are more tires choices in the 225/45-17 size, than the 225/50-17 size.

 

Will 45's look ok without me lowering the car? I just don't want the tires to look too small for the wheel wells. Plus I hate spending cash and not being satisfied with the end result. That's why I got out of Jeeps

 

you can barely tell the difference, but i would contend that you can feel the difference. and like i said, there is a much larger selection in 225/45-17 than 225/50-17. Just make sure the load rating is at least 92 IIRC (you may want to check me on this)

 

What's 92 IIRC? I did a search but found nothing....

 

sorry, IIRC stands for "If I Recall Correctly". The 92 is a load rating...any respectable tire dealer, real or online, should be able to tell you the load rating of any particular tire.

 

Wow I feel real bright [8D]