20" OEM Wheel Width?
- Thread starter r0nd3L
- Start date
DashingMax
Member
- :
- 2006 MazdaSpeed6
The OEM's are only 7.5" wide. A 265 wide tire will not fit. You need atleast a 8.5" wide wheel for a 265 wide tire.
Thanks a lot.
But dang, they're so narrow. 7.5" on a 20" seems ridiculous... Looks like I'll have to sell those snow tires...
Do you guys notice that OEM tires seem so squishy unless it's the suspension. When changing lanes really quick you can feel the rear lagging behind quite a lot. Granted, on my own car I'm running 18" with low profile summer tires, but the Mazda acts exactly how my car does on 15" REALLY soft Blizzak winter tires, maybe worse...
DashingMax
Member
- :
- 2006 MazdaSpeed6
Any vehicle that weighs 4500 lbs with that long of a wheelbase is going to feel slightly laggy. Try driving a different similarly sized & weight vehicle such as Acadia/Outlook/Veracruz/Pilot/Highlander...etc. Then you'll better appreciate the zoom-zoom nature of the Mazda CX-9.
Well, our old Venture minivan didn't have the lagginess. I really believe it is the tires' fault. I guess the only way to find out is to test the car on different tires.
But no doubt that the car is fun to drive for its size.
I like throwing it into the corners almost as much as my small VW.
DashingMax
Member
- :
- 2006 MazdaSpeed6
C'mon... check out actual road test numbers. Look for Slalom speed, Lateral acceleration, skidpad, road-holding, etc.
Tires or not, the CX-9 performance numbers are in the Sports Sedan category.
DashingMax
Member
- :
- 2006 MazdaSpeed6
I agree...same here. But after driving my Speed6 through corners (drive2) and then taking the CX-9 through the same corner, you can tell that you're driving a large heavy vehicle. But that is perfectly acceptable because they're completely different categories of vehicles.
But when someone starts comparing an old minivan (that they stopped manufacturing) to a CX-9, I wonder...
I agree...same here. But after driving my Speed6 through corners (drive2) and then taking the CX-9 through the same corner, you can tell that you're driving a large heavy vehicle. But that is perfectly acceptable because they're completely different categories of vehicles.
But when someone starts comparing an old minivan (that they stopped manufacturing) to a CX-9, I wonder...
God, can't you understand what I'm saying? I never said it didn't handle well, which it does. I'm saying that there is lagginess of the rear due to crappy tires.
When we switched to soft winter tires on my mom's old FX35 (which handled insanely well), we had same laginess problem. On my VW, I notice same thing even with such short wheelbase. Therefore, I can conclude that it's the tires that are causing this effect.
I'm sure that this doesn't affect handling at all, but I just hate the feeling of it which makes you think that the car is less stable that it actually is.
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