Will these fit?

[SilverFire]

It's time to get some tires for the summer, and I've been wondering how 215/45R16s will fit in the back. I'm looking at either Potenza RE-01s or Azenis 615s. I'd rather the Azenis, but they don't come in a 205 section and 16" rim that will fit.

I'm not too worried about the fronts, I'm only going with 205s up there and there are lots of people who've done that...

[RePete]

That should work unless you're already tight with what you have. I've mounted 225/40-16s, 215/40-17s and 225/35-18s in the back of my old SC, no problem on all of them (even the 18s). Be prepared for a little more front to rear rake though.

[hmong337]

Originally Posted by SilverFire

It's time to get some tires for the summer, and I've been wondering how 215/45R16s will fit in the back. I'm looking at either Potenza RE-01s or Azenis 615s. I'd rather the Azenis, but they don't come in a 205 section and 16" rim that will fit.

I'm not too worried about the fronts, I'm only going with 205s up there and there are lots of people who've done that...

what are you rim sizes? offsets? listing those will give you a lot more help.

[SilverFire]

Originally Posted by hmong337

what are you rim sizes? offsets? listing those will give you a lot more help.

Oops, I guess that WOULD help...

I'm looking at one of Enkei RS5, CDR9, or RS6. The first two are a 40 offset, and the third is a 38. For the Azenis, I'm thinking to go with 205/50R15s up front(15x6.5 rim), and 215/45R16 in the back(16x7 rim). According to the miata.net tire calculator, the circumference will be closer than my winter tires which were no problem. of course, they're only 195s... It was just the width I was worried about. Not so much as to whether they would rub, 'cause that can be fixed with spacers if necessary. I was mostly wondering whether they'd stick out the sides.

Looks like my memory was bad... Bridgestone doesn't make RE-01Rs for a 15" rim. Even the 16s are awfully big

The other tire was still a Potenza, but the RE750. More a street tire than a competition tire. Still pretty good. I had RE950s (which the RE750s replaced) on my RX-7 and they held pretty good. It seems to be about twice the cost, but almost 3 times the life. Now I just have to decide whether I'd rather save money or have more grip.