Treble Hook

Looking into getting rid of hubcaps and steel wheels. I've seen it discussed here on the offsets. Was thinking of getting 17" for rear and 16" for the front. They both come in 5X110 bolt pattern. I have not been able to find anyone here who is running these rims to find out the pros and cons. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks!

donbrew

con is if the circumference of the tires front to rear is different you WILL have ABS and ESC problems.

firemangeorge

Mixing rim sizes on a daily driver is not a good idea. Besides the problems that donbrew noted, there is a related one.
If you go with 16's,17's and do match the circumference front to rear, you'll open up another issue.
The 17's will have a shorter sidewall than the 16's. This will be a "mismatch" as far as ride and handling is concerned between fronts and rears.

Best to stick with the same size rims and just get some tires that are 26.3" or shorter. The 26.3" is about the max before you run into rubbing issues with the lower strut perch.

Treble Hook

Thanks for the advice. Not sure I have ABS on my 2007 LS Panel. I also thought if I left the original size on my front it wouldn't effect ESC because of FWD?

lasater

IF........and that's a big IF you don't have ABS brakes and traction control it will work fine. My '08 panel has had different sized tires front and rear for 125,000 miles with no problems. In my humble opinion the most glaring shortcoming of the HHR is the large rear wheel openings and the tiny stock rubber the cars come with.

lasater

IF........and that's a big IF you don't have ABS brakes and traction control it will work fine. My '08 panel has had different sized tires front and rear for 125,000 miles with no problems. In my humble opinion the most glaring shortcoming of the HHR is the large rear wheel openings and the tiny stock rubber the cars come with.

Oldblue

My 2007 LS doesn't have ABS! Or T/C! Just look for the wires at the hub bearings to make sure.

Treble Hook

Actually neither the2007 LT or LS has traction control and ABS was a $795 option.

Oldblue

Well then, your HHR could have that option, and the different tire circumferences could upset the computers and sensors.

lasater

Well then if you don't have them, you are golden. I'm running the largest rear tire I could fit. Rears are 225/60/17. You have to cut out some sheet metal in the rear wheel well area and modify the plastic wheel well liner but the results are worth the effort.

Do a search on my previous posts and you will see how I did it. With the right springs (I used Eibach) and spacers (I made some from 3/4" aluminum) it fills the rear wheel wells perfectly.

Good luck. This is a mod that really makes a big difference in the way the car looks.