Hi all sorry if this is a stupid question I just want to be 100% sure in my head before I spend money. I want to change the wheels on my MK3 and have seen a set of Mazda 3 wheels that I like the look of I’ve found an old post that says that 17" Mazda 3 wheels will fit so is it safe for me to assume that the 16" will fit?
Mazda 3 is 6.5Jx16 ET50, PCD 114.3, Offset range 48-52
Mazda MX5 is 6.5Jx16 ET55, PCD 114.3, Offset range 53-57
Are the ET50 and the offset range (I’ve got no idea what these are!) important? And would my current tyres fit?
Thanks Mike
Yes, they’ll fit. It’s worth checking the weight of them before you commit though, as my guess is they’ll be a fair bit heavier which isn’t good for ride or handling.
I think that’s about 2kg per corner more than the standard NC 16” wheel, which you’re likely to notice. People pay a lot of money to reduce wheel weight by a similar amount.
I have a complete set of brand new MX5 mk3 genuine alloy 17” wheels if you are interested? Still in the Mazda boxes.
Call me on 07768958591 to discuss.
Are you planning on using the tyre size that the Mazda3 wheels come with?
Just that they use a different profile for 16" and run a 205/60/16. Which won’t do MX-5 handling any favours and will look a little odd as well.
If it were me, I’d drop to the NC2 16" OEM wheel option, if you want a bit more ride compliance. On my old NC2 I ran 17s spring/summer and the OEM 16s on an all-season tyre for autumn/winter.
Thanks for the replies I’ll fill you in on the whole story or is it a saga??!!
My car came with the 5 spoke alloys which I wasn’t keen on but I used them for a few years during which time I fitted new Toyo tyres. I then got my hands on a set of 17" rims but I’ve decided that I prefer the ride with the 16" rims so I’m now looking to change back to 16".
I bought a set locally for £80 which needed doing up and had them blast cleaned which turned out to be a big mistake. I think the bloke who did it used pebbles from the local beach which he fired from a tank at the rims. After sorting that I was left with some very rough wheels which I took to my sprayer who said he might be able to save them but it was a risk and might not work. Not wanting to just scrap the wheels (which I probably should have done!) I took the chance and told him to try. The end result is a set of wheels which look good from far but are far from good and although they would probably do for a winter set they would annoy me when I look at them.
I have now wasted more money than I want to admit to and am thinking of starting again although funds are now somewhat depleted.
I’ve seen a couple of sets of MX5 alloys for sale but they are either too much money or not in very good condition or both.
My hope was that the Mazda 3 wheels would be ok because I liked the look of them, they are in good condition and a sensible price, £150 for the set.
My thought was to fit my good set of Toyo tyres from the original 16" rims to the Mazda 3 rims.
I don’t tend to drive the car hard and am just happy plodding along. My boy racer days are a distant memory.
Does anyone know the weight of the 5 spoke alloys?
