Worried about low profile 18" rims on 2018 mazda3 touring - rough ride/weird size?

robfilms

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2016 Mazda CX-5 Sport
I am worried about the low profile 18" rims on 2018 mazda3 touring adding to a slightly rough ride/weird size

i'm looking at picking up a 2018 leftover mazda3 touring hatch.

i drove a friends for a brief time and was impressed enough to head to a local dealership (nyc metro) and see what i can find.

but i am worried about the low profile 215/45R18 wheels.

i have read some terrible reviews about the dunlops 5000 oem tires, especially in rain and snow.

plus the 215/45R18 is a goofy size.

and i thought the tire noise was evident and contributed to a slightly rougher ride.

i think i rather have 17" wheel with a higher profile tire for a slightly softer rise and a more available size tire.

maybe even use 16" alloys.

i welcome any and all thoughts from those with more experience than me.

thumbs up.

rob
 
I changed the Dunlops for Nokian zLine A/S this year and the ride is completely different. Smooth, no noise, great handling. On stock 215/45-18s.
 
I changed the Dunlops for Nokian zLine A/S this year and the ride is completely different. Smooth, no noise, great handling. On stock 215/45-18*s.

thanks for the sharing.

how many miles did you put on the oem dunlop 5ks?

and how did they perform in the winter?

wet?

any specifics are appreciated.

thumbs up.

rob
 
I did two summers with them, so around 32000km.

We have a mandatory winter tire law here in Quebec, so I run Nokian Hakka R2 in the winter on 16 inch rims.

The Dunlops were okay as a tire, did all things right, but these zLine A/S are just so much more quiet, confortable, and grippy.
 
According to Consumer Reports, the quietest and best handling all-season tires are Pirelli P-zero:
https://www.tirerack.com/tires/Tire...8&rearWidth=255/&rearRatio=40&rearDiameter=17
I can attest to their incredible performance advantage over the OEM tires. Tread life is about 55,000 miles.
But yes, the ride will not be as cushy as higher profile tires on smaller wheels. There's no getting away from that.
By the way, I chose 225/45/18 instead of the OEM 215/45/18 because there is a larger selection of tires in the 225 width.
 
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Hey not sure if you've already picked new tires as this post was months ago, but if you're worried about ride quality you could always go to a 205/50R18 or a 215/50R18, those tires are only 1.8% and 3% larger overall diameter respectively and should both for very easily without any rubbing. The size change should give a little more ride quality without having to ditch the nice GT wheels.
 
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