16" snows... or are 17" the smaller rim choice?

I know, not very sexy or exciting. Usually going in the other direction.

I'm wondering if anybody has mounted 16" rims for snows and if they will fit/ clear brakes etc.

I'm going to get my winter tire package this summer (best deals) and want to know what my options are. If not 16, I'll go 17. 16" will have a narrower footprint and therefore better in the snow. Also the packages tend to be cheaper to. Just not as good looking...

Thanks in advance.

CyclistInMa said:

16" will have a narrower footprint and therefore better in the snow.

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I don't really buy that. You would have to go a lot narrower to make any difference, and in really bad snow you simply won't get all the way down to asphalt anyway.

I always rely on Tire Rack for advice and reviews from other customers. They have complete 16" packages listed for the CX-5 so it should work. http://www.tirerack.com/snow/Winter...el=CX-5&autoYear=2014&autoModClar=Touring+AWD

Beefy said:

I don't really buy that. You would have to go a lot narrower to make any difference, and in really bad snow you simply won't get all the way down to asphalt anyway.

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My first reaction was to disagree with you but then Mr Google helped me out. You are in Winnipeg after all! Apparently my thinking is/has been conventional wisdom for some time (me- 39 years on the road. gulp. old-er guy here). There is a bit of a debate now. Without getting sucked into the vortex of the interwebs, I've concluded that the narrow is better in snow (more lbs/square inch) in most cases and wider is better in some as well.

Tirerack here. Conventional wisdom.

http://www.tirerack.com/winter/tech/techpage.jsp?techid=126

Some dissenting opinion here. (Compacted vs uncompacted snow)
http://www.bobistheoilguy.com/forums/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=3037287

My conclusion-
Cheapest wheel/good tire combo works for me and will be fine.

Besides, it's 80F out and I need to get outside. Thanks for the link to the 16" packages...

CyclistInMa said:

My first reaction was to disagree with you but then Mr Google helped me out. You are in Winnipeg after all! Apparently my thinking is/has been conventional wisdom for some time (me- 39 years on the road. gulp. old-er guy here). There is a bit of a debate now. Without getting sucked into the vortex of the interwebs, I've concluded that the narrow is better in snow (more lbs/square inch) in most cases and wider is better in some as well.

Click to expand...

You have to consider the magnitude of the benefits. I am going to say with confidence that going from a 225 standard to a 215 or 205 width is going to make F-all difference regardless of the surface you are driving on; it is less than 10%. If you were talking about going down to something that really makes a significant difference, you need to go pretty damn thin.

The Google tells me that studless rally snow tires are down as thin as 135, and I believe that these would work very nicely for their intended purpose. But what about days when there is no snow and the ice has either evaporated or has been melted by road salt? Something that thin is going to be terrible for traction, and your cornering stability will suffer dramatically. This year we had LOTS of snow in Winnipeg, but our winters generally see more 'dry' cold weather than heavy snow.

So my take is that you shouldn't get obsessed about less than 10% differences when everything is context dependent, so just buy something nice at a stock size. I bought Latitude Xi2 at 225/65/R17 on stock Mazda steel rims and they performed tremendously through winter, and kept performing well on warmer roads until I had a chance to rotate them off in early June.

CyclistInMa said:

I know, not very sexy or exciting. Usually going in the other direction.

I'm wondering if anybody has mounted 16" rims for snows and if they will fit/ clear brakes etc.

Click to expand...

Winter in Ottawa can be a bear, too. I use Latitude Xi2 on 16" rims with the package bought at Kal Tire. I have had winters on separate rims and did my own in-driveway changeovers spring and fall since '77. Kal Tire had the best price locally and will do the changeover free as long as I own the vehicle. That's a bonus for old farts. And the performance is top-notch for my needs.

Brian

http://www.mazdas247.com/forum/showthread.php?123835096-16-quot-aftermarket-rims-suggestions

I put 16's on mine. See the thread above, which includes a picture.

this is my 2015 CX-5 GS AWD with Mazda 5 16" rims and winter tires. The original rims are 17" & 50 in the offset, this Mazda 5 are 52ET, I was checking some Mazda 6 rims and are 60 offset and measuring I think they may touch the calipers @ the front, this ones fit perfectly.

The other advantage with the smaller rim and factory diameter is the bigger sidewall gives a smoother ride over the frost heaves, rippled snow/ice, as well as a bit more protection from the big potholes. I had a Volvo with 185 width/15" rim winter tires and 215/ 16" tires. The 185s would cut right through the slush and slop much better. The biggest concern in most urban/suburban areas is the traction on the slushy mess rather than traction on packed snow.

It seems like every winter I see more and more folks with flats due to impact. The majority of these are big wheels/low profile tires.

With all that being said, I have stock size winters on 17" since I used the factory wheels. They work well but I'll look for a narrower more aggressive pattern on the next go around with tires.