Hi there!
I need some help choosing the right wheel specs for my car. I have a 2012 Renault Clio 3 RS200 as seen in the attached photo.
This is my first car and I’ve never done any modifications as of yet. I’ve done some digging, but I need some more reassurance.
I’m currently running 225/45r17 tires on the oem wheels. I’m firstly planning to lower it with H&R springs (20mm front / 25mm rear), I’ve also dug through a few forums and facebook posts about fitment for this specific car and lots of people seem to run the oem wheels with 20mm spacers all around(same tire specs) and lowered with minimal issues.
However, I want to change to a bigger size wheel, they are currently 17x7.5j ET68(with 225/45r17 tires) wheels. I want to change to 18x8.5j ±ET55, here’s my reasoning:
Obviously first of all, they will look better with the 18’s.
Secondly, 215/40r18 tires are quite expensive where I live and very uncommon, hence why I want to go to 8.5j because a 225 tire would sit better on the rim and the sidewall won’t poke out as much allowing for potentially better fitment since the actual wheel barrel will stick out more than an 8j wheel but the tire will stay in the exact same spot if I’m not mistaken.
Lastly, I have been looking for MONTHS for a set of wheels that match the offset and silly bolt pattern of the clio, so I’ve come to the conclusion that I’d rather get some Alibaba “inspired by” wheels that are forged and most likely would be lighter than the oem cast aluminum wheels anyway for way less than an actual brand, however still more than a locally sourced wheel(Which I still can’t get anyways, because no one locally sells correct offset 5x108 wheels).
Considering all this, rubbing shouldn’t be an issue, however the 225/40r18 tire with the 8.5j wheel will be taller by around 4mm overall and I have only seen one example of a person running this tire (he had 18x8 Speedline Turini’s; ET60; See attached photo), and none had 8.5j wheels or had the correct offset I’m looking for.
If I really have to I don’t mind going for an 18x8j ET45 wheel with a 215/40r18 tire, since Ktec sells a set of Sparco Pro Corsa’s with those specs specifically for a Clio 3 RS, and I’m assuming they will fit with no rubbing as its being sold by a reputable brand, I would just have to save up for a couple of months more lol.
Any real world experience or advice would be greatly appreciated :)