The Ultimate "Will They Fit" Thread - Everything you need to know about wheels, spacers and tires for your MS

[Djohns]

Alright, there's been entirely too many "will these fit" threads. I'm going to attempt to minimize these threads popping up. I know noobs will still over look it, but I'd like to consolidate the "will these fit" questions to one thread, and hopefully help the OP answer their own question by reading this thread. Everyone should feel free to discuss their impressions/experiences with their setups. How did the wheels fit? How well do the tires perform? Did you need to roll your fenders? Are you lowered? Etc. Feel free to post pics of your setup as well. It'll give people ideas of different style & color of wheels on different color rides too. The more feedback we get, the less noobs will need to search.

This should work for the Gen2 guys too. I don't think your wheel fitment is much different than the Gen1. You Genpu fags are more than welcome to make your own wheel thread tho, if you're too gay to intermingle with us.

As accepting as I am of aggressive stretching & the hellaflush scene, this is going to be the functional fitment thread, since MSF is 95+% hardcore function > form based.
I DO NOT want to see any function vs form or hellaflush bashing/arguing or any shitting on people in this thread.
Guys with stretching, aggressive offset/width wheels questions, there's already a thread for you. OFFICIAL AGGRESSIVE OFFSET THREAD. Its got lots of pics, and the guys in there will be more than happy to help you understand what you can "fit" and how much work it'll take. Myself included.

The MS3 is a bit different in what you guys can fit than my MS6, but they're not too far off. I'm hoping to get lots of traffic from both MS3 & MS6 guys to help you with your fitment questions on your respective model. Hell, even your opinions on what looks good and doesn't.

/intro. tl:dr

Stock Wheel Specs
Our bolt pattern is 5x114.3. Hub bore is 67.1mm. Since the Gen2 should fit similar to the Gen1 this applies to you guys too.
** Stock MS6 Wheels: 18x7 | +55mm offset | 23.5lbs
** Stock Gen1 MS3 Wheels: 18x7 | +52.5mm offset | ~24lbs
** Stock Gen2 MS3 Wheels: 18x7.5 | +52mm offset | 24.6lbs
Use these for reference when using the following sites.

Links from the Wheel Gods
Before you ask ANY questions...you've GOT to check these sites out. They are from the wheel gods and were extremely helpful when I was trying to figure out what wheels & tires I wanted to go with. The first one was my favorite because it gives you a primitive overlay of your current setup and potential new setup. It's also the only site that lets you compare aggressive stretches. The other two are great references as well.
WillTheyFit.com
Wheel / Tire Size Comparer
Wheel Offset Calculator

Wheel/Fitment Terminology
Offset - "The offset of a wheel is the distance from its hub mounting surface to the centerline of the wheel." - TireRack.com
Camber - "Camber is the tilting of the wheels from the vertical when viewed from the front of the vehicle." - Wheel Camber Explained
How to Read Tire Sizes
Calculating tire Dimensions

https://www.rimsntires.com/specspro.jsp
Wheels
Generally 8-8.5" wheels are accepted as mildly aggressive and a healthy size wheel for us. Whether you want to run 17s, 18, 19s, or bigger tho is on you. 16s are the smallest you can run with the factory brakes. Right around a +35 offset is accepted as a fairly aggressive yet acceptable offset for these cars. Should sit you close to flush with the fenders without going overboard. Remember the lower the offset the further from your strut/closer to your fender the wheel will be. Higher offset draws the wheel inside the well closer to the strut. You're going to need to break out a tape measure/ruler to see how much offset & width you're willing to run.

Just for the record...zero and negative offsets are ridiculous. Even for the Aggressive Thread.

Here's an awesome thread that's loaded with links on the effects of wheel sizes. You may enjoy some of these. They may even help you decide whether or not the wheels you're looking at are the best for you. Effects of Wheel Size/Weight on Vehicle Performance

Tires
The most common tire size run on MSF is probably 225/40 or 235/40 for aftermarket wheels. Some have run as wide as 255/40 with wheels wide enough for them. For stock wheels, 225s are ok. 235s are a bit wide for the 7" wide stockers but it has been done. There's plenty of wheel width/tire width charts online for you to see if a tire size is ok for your wheel. Fender rolling will likely be necessary for anything wider than 225/40. Especially if your car is lowered at all. But remember as @driver311 points out, once you start adding power, 225s and 235s just aren't going to get you any traction. At least for you MS3 guys.

As for brands, that's a personal preference. Feel free to discuss your experiences with what you've run. How did they grip, corner? Perform in wet conditions? How long did they last? Did they rub? Etc.

Spacers
Some people simply want more of a flush look without having to buy a whole new set of wheels. Or they have a set of wheels in mind that they like, but they'll sit too close to the strut to run safely. Spacers are the answer for that. Lots of people - domestics, imports, trucks, even offroaders have taken advantage of spacers.

For our cars, you want to get hubcentric spacers. This simply means the spacer centers itself on the hub rather than by the studs. Our hub bore is 67.1mm. There's 2 types of spacers to consider now. Both can be seen in the following pic.


The thinner ones on the bottom are basic spacers - no studs in them. They can be purchased in virtually any width. You typically don't need to install extended studs for anything 5mm or less. Some say up to 8mm is fine, but imho that's pushing it. You want your lugnut to be firmly secure on your stud, and with an 8mm spacer, you may not get enough threading. For anything larger than 5mm (10-15m are common, up to 25mm or thicker) you will need to install extended studs.

The ones on the top have studs built in them. These are typically 15mm or wider. This allows you to run a wide spacer without needing to install extended studs. You bolt this spacer on your hub, then trim your factory studs down with an angle grinder or some cut off tool. The studs can't stick out any further than the spacer or your wheel will not sit properly.

Post up your pics with wheels and specs listed, lowered or not, if you rub and if you rolled fenders or not.
Here is information pertaining to wider wheels and the amount of "poke" they will have compared to a stock setup
Gen 1
18x8 et50 (14.7mm more poke than stock)
18x8.5 et45 (26.1mm more poke than stock)
18x9 et40 (37.4mm more poke than stock)
18x9.5 et33 (50.8mm more poke than stock)


17x8 et50 (14.7mm more poke than stock)
17x8.5 et45 (26.1mm more poke than stock)
17x9 et40 (37.4mm more poke than stock)
17x9.5 et33 (50.8mm more poke than stock)


Speed6
18x8 et50 (14.7mm more poke than stock)
18x8.5 et45 (26.1mm more poke than stock)
18x9 et40 (37.4mm more poke than stock)
18x9.5 et33 (50.8mm more poke than stock)

17x8 et50 (14.7mm more poke than stock)
17x8.5 et45 (26.1mm more poke than stock)
17x9 et40 (37.4mm more poke than stock)
17x9.5 et33 (50.8mm more poke than stock)


Edit: If you find any information you'd like added to the OP, or find any misinformation or grammatical errors be sure to "mention" me with said information.