225/50 works, as does 235/50. you don't want the diameter differential to be greater than 3%. anything less than 215/55 would look odd.

i went with 225/50 Kumho Ecsta ASX on my stock 17's and they work great.

everybody is trying to tell you the same thing here. listen. for someone with ~1900 posts this should be common knowledge.

 

^^ I am listening. I just want to make sure I don't run anything that is drastically different than stock (one site said I am risking break failure if I do). One tire tech said running 235 on a 7inch wide wheel would cause some bulge. I don't buy tires too often so I'm just trying to get it right. Plus, most of the discussion about tire and wheel size is about after market wheels, not stock 17s. Thanks for the help guys.

 

This is a interesting thread as I am also thinking of getting a new set of tires...

Here is what I have

OEM 17s - used 215/55R17 (factory setting) for first 65k miles
next change was Yokohama YK520 225/55R17 from discount tire (520AA 95V), have about 6 months of driving before it goes bald. When I went from 215/55 to 225/55, it looked much better. The dude who installed them said the 225's fitted better than the 215's in the OEM 17s.

Was at the local dealer and he said DO NOT GO more than 10 above rated.. meaning 215 to 225 is OK. I was thinking of 235 and reading here does look like it is going to be OK.

So my next set will be either 225/50 or 235/50 (more inclined towards 225/50). Reading good reviews on Kumho Ecsta ASX and most probably will go for it but they make 225/55 only or 235/45 .. need to do more research.

Just my 2c.

 

Your local dealer doesn't know what he's talking about. "more than 10 above" is overly simplistic, and just plain wrong. If you thought the 225/55 looked better than stock, a 225/50 will look worse than stock because it's about 1.7% smaller in diameter. I've got 225/55-17's on my winter setup, and if I was still running those 17" wheels in the summer, I'd get 235/50-17's. They match the stock diameter (26.3") and give you more tread on the road.

I wouldn't run the 235/45's at all. They're almost 4% smaller than stock, which will affect the VDC and cause it to kick on more often. Basically, you can only run 1 of 4 sizes and still be close enough to stock diameter.

215/55-17 (stock, too skinny IMO)
225/50-17 (1.7% smaller than stock)
225/55-17 (1.6% larger than stock)
235/50-17 (stock diameter, size I'd recommend)

I realize those ASX's are inexpensive, but there are better tires out there for about the same money. Check out www.tirerack.com to at least see what's out there and read some reviews.

 

i have a set of stock size tires. they are practically brand new. i have a thread in the norcal for sale section. look it up. im letting them go for pretty damn cheap too