i am looking to chanfge my 17" rims and tires for a smaller and more comfortable set up for the street. Thinking about 15 or 16" panasport type of retro look.

How big of a shoulder can I run with 15 and 16s? I am looking for comfort on Denver streets and fill the stock suspension gap a little.

Please share pics of your applications.

Thanks

 

Use a rim about this size

15x6 to 15x7

16x7

tires

205/55-15 or 195/60-15

205/50-16 or 205/55-16

Search for threads with any of those names of wheels- there are many past tread and pictures

 

You might like Rota RBs. I had a set of 16x7 with 205/55-16 tires until I damaged them in an accident. I replaced them with Rota Slipstreams which are lighter than the RBs and easier to clean.

The RBs have the classic look, but are a pain to clean. You would want to run low-dust brake pads like Carbotech 1521 Bobcats with them.

The 205/55-16 tires are about 0.4" larger than the factory supplied 205/45-17 tires, giving you about 1.4" of extra sidewall height to absorb bumps. 205/50-16 are about 0.4" smaller in O.D. than the 17" tires, but very close to the factory 15" tires. So, 205/50-16 give you only about 0.6" more sidewall than the 17" tires. The 205/50-16 may be a little lighter than the 205/55-16, and give you lower effective gearing for acceleration, but take more revs to cruise at a given speed.

 

I am looking to switch my 17s to 15s also as the roads in NJ are horrible. I have bent numerous 17 rims and cracked one. I love the look of the old Panasport style rims, but haven't had luck finding 15s. Did you ever end up finding anything that fit the bill? If so, can you pass along the info? Thanks!

 

I think you'll be fine with 16" rims. I ran them on my MCS when I lived in the NYC boroughs.

 

I chose Rota RBs and powdercoated them white for a bit of the retro look. I don't have the tire size at my fingertips.

 

Forgot to mention -- 16".

 

I purchased a set of 16" x 7" Panasport wheels for my 2003 MINI Cooper S/JCW and love the look. I initially mounted a set of previously owned run-flats. Almost from the beginning I seemed to have a issue with keeping air pressure in one of the tires. The shop could not find a leak. I went ahead and opted to get all new, non-run-flat tires. I still had a slow leak. I blamed it on the valve stem and replaced that, it still had a leak.

I lived with this for the past few years as I only drive the care once and a while and only put about 5,000 miles on the car per year. Recently I was obliged to make the MINI my daily driver so I HAD to figure out what was the cause of the leak. I purchased an inflatable children's pool and submerged the wheel. As it turns out, the leak is in the casting. There is a small pin hole behind one of the spokes. IT is enough to loose a pound or so per day.

I have tried to contact the dealer I bought the rims from but they appear to be out of business. I have contacted Panasport but as the rims are made in Japan, the Torrance, California office needs to check with the factory to see if they still make the model I have.

I realize that a number of years have passed since I bought the rims but that does not change the fact that it is a manufacturing defect. I am also not anticipating that I will get anything for free. I am however hopefull that Panasport will get back to me with news that I can get a replacement and that they will cut me a decent deal on it due to the manfuacturing flaw.

In the meantime, does anyone know of any way short of green goop in the tire for sealing such a leak? Assuming I can find the inlet hole(s) on the inside of the rim, is there anything i can coat or cover the metal with that might seal, resist interior tire heat, and solve this problem?

Kelly

 

Any metal shop should be able to quickly drop a little weld over the hole and seal it up permanently.

Are you sure it's a pin hole and not a crack that is developing? A crack would need to be repaired.