Wider tires on back of 2001 Prelude? (215s) Bad???

I bought this car from a guy last year and am thinking of buying some
new tires as the wear appears to be uneven and now the car pulls to
one side.

I noticed (probably should have noted this earlier, but I was having
too much fun driving it) that there were standard P205/50R16 on the
front, but P215/50/R16 on the back. A tire store guy told me that FWD
cars should be same size matched all the way around.

Question: Is the tire guy right, should I have the same all the way
around? Also, what advantage would 215s give me, just a wider
tire/more road contact? Then should I think about 215/45/R16 to keep
the same relative aspect ratio? I'm leaning towards P205s all the way
around. Any brand/type recommendations while you're at it?

Thanks,

Rob

 

You should have the same size tires all the way around just for the sake of
having things equal and being able to rotate your tires without screwing up
your speedometer.

There is no damage that will occur if having mifmatched tires though.

And more road contact doesn't mean better performance. You still have the
same amount of weight on the tire whether it is a small contact patch or a
large contact patch. The pounds per square inch actually decrease as the
tire patch gets bigger, but the total force on the road is still the same.

 

id prolly disagree partially with this. went from 185/65-14 to
195/60-14's on my 98 hatch, and the thing handles *great*. went from
squealing and wandering on onramps to tracking like its on rails. theyre
different tires, mfr, compound, and profile, but theres also more rubber
on the road too.

but the OEM firestone FR680s sucked really bad regardless.

 

A

 

Hear Hear! my FR680s only lasted 55000kms,
apparently rated for 100000kms. Pretty weak.

And were they ever toast when i pulled em off
too... lol

I also use 195/60R14s on my 98 civic sedan. They
are great! I used 195/65R14s for a bit, they
rubbed for a while, I liked them too, but the
lower profiles work way better.

t

 

I would HIGHLY disagree with that as well. I went from stock
175/70R13's to 205/50R15's (99 SI Wheels) on my 1994 Civic DX, and the
difference was phenomenal!! I could not break the tires loose on dry
pavement under braking conditions unless I threw it hard to one side.
The brakes would fade before I got them to tear loose. The stocks will
break loose FAST, especially with more than one person in the car.

Nate

 

That is mainly because you have a shorter sidewall not that you have a tire
that is 30 millimeters wider than the old one. Also I imagine that the 50
series tires was a stronger tire by design and was a better tire overall
since it was a performance tire unlike the 70 series tires..