New Winter Boots

A

ARTJ_204

Member
:
2010 CX-9 GT AWD
Hi Everyone,

I am new to this forum and I will be picking up my CX-9 at the end of January and prepping myself for a new set of wheels and snow tires (Blizzak DM-V1 235/65R18). The wheels I am looking at are http://www.msrwheels.com/wheels_detail_specs.cfm?id=450. The load ratings for the tires I am ok with, but for the wheels I am not sure.

The specs for the wheel in the above link list 1400 lbs load, so times 4 that is 5600 lbs. And of course we all know that the CX-9 GT AWD weighs roughly 4500 lbs. so I have 1100 lbs. buffer. However, when I factor in passenger weight such as myself and my family, that buffer becomes none existent.

For reference, I am above average size (6'4" 235 lbs), my dad and brother (both over 6' and both around 255 lbs). My wife is small (only 100 lbs) and my mother (around 160 lbs), plus a 75 lbs German Shepherd. So the passenger weight gets to 1080 lbs.

This situation would be occasional during the winter time. No plans of towing anything and also the occasional transport of 4' x 8' x 3/4" sheets of MDF and 2" x 4" x 8' lumber.

I guess long story short, you think this would be a decent wheel to get or should I look at something with a little more load capacity?

Thanks.
 
I have to believe that these wheel ratings are very conservative and that in normal driving have a safety factor of probably 2 fold. I suppose it might be marginal if you are going to be doing a motorcross event but for typical highway driving it would seem OK. Why not call the company and get their advice?
 
Personally I wouln't mess with load ratings. Tires are the only thing between you and the road. Blowouts happen all the time, who knows how many are caused by people using tires with inadquate load ratings. My CX-9 is riding on tires with 104T for all season and 107T for winter. You also have to figure the amount of punishment tires go through with potholes and other road dangers. I probably sound like some sort of nut, but personally it's always nice to have as much margin between you and disaster as possible. IslandTractors is probably right, there probably is a bit of safety margin rolled into the specs but companies also try to balance cost effectiveness against features- IOW you get what you pay for. The CX-9 is a large, heavy vehicle that's designed to be fun to drive. I'd err toward being too safe and go with a higher load rating. IMO
 
I have the GT AWD and the 20" wheels for summer and bought a set of used 18" CX9 wheels and mounted the Blizzaks on them. Couldn't be happier. I am surprised you can find 235-65-18 sized DM-V1, I got 245-60-18 DM-V1 for the winter set.
 
Antonio DiMarco said:
Personally I wouln't mess with load ratings. Tires are the only thing between you and the road. Blowouts happen all the time, who knows how many are caused by people using tires with inadquate load ratings. My CX-9 is riding on tires with 104T for all season and 107T for winter. You also have to figure the amount of punishment tires go through with potholes and other road dangers. I probably sound like some sort of nut, but personally it's always nice to have as much margin between you and disaster as possible. IslandTractors is probably right, there probably is a bit of safety margin rolled into the specs but companies also try to balance cost effectiveness against features- IOW you get what you pay for. The CX-9 is a large, heavy vehicle that's designed to be fun to drive. I'd err toward being too safe and go with a higher load rating. IMO
Click to expand...

I think he was concerned about the wheel load ratings not the tire load ratings. I've honestly never seen/heard of a wheel failure on a car though I guess it is possible. I cannot imagine that these sorts of aftermarket wheels cannot handle a 4500lb vehicle safely as there aren't many cars/SUVs that use that tire size that would weigh much less than that.
 
supradope, I have a local Tire shop that seems to have those tires in that size. Lucky me I suppose.

IslandTractor, you are correct that I am concerned about the load rating for the wheels. I agree that these wheels can handle the weight of the CX-9, it is just the additional mass the passengers would add to it, even though it would be occasional. I am probably being overly cautious here, but I have never owned such a heavy vehicle before. I thought my A4 Avant was heavy at 3700 lbs.
 
Just to let you all know, I have decided to go with the MSR wheels in the link above. Will be mounted and balanced by Monday, will provide pics when I get them. Also, once I pickup my CX-9, will provide pics with the winter boots on.
 
Picked up the new wheels,
MSR%20Wheel%20with%20Tire.jpg
.

Will provide pics once they are mounted on the vehicle.

Had to go with different tires, they had no Blizzak DM-V1's in stock. Went with Yokohama Geolandar I/T G072 instead, same size 235/65R18.
 
Here are some pics of my CX-9 with the new wheels.
cx-9_left_rear.jpg

cx-9_left_front.jpg


I am afraid I could only take photos of them in the dark. Will have to find time this weekend to get pics of them in daylight.
 
Nice. Very different look from stock. Looks good with the dark car (?black) but I'd probably choose the chrome/silver version for a lighter car.
 
They do look at lot less substantial than the factory wheels, but I agree that the load ratings are likely VERY conservative.
 
Please log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

O
M012 20” Mazda Wheels
Replies
13
Views
6K
youri
Y
yrwei52
    • Like
2016~2023 255/50R20 Tire Comparison Table for Gen-2 CX-9 - Many to Choose From
Replies
10
Views
7K
Pele2048
P
C
265/50R20's on Gen 2
Replies
10
Views
4K
BrettLevy85
B

Latest posts

Back