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Mazda5 Tires & Wheels

mazda5lovermazda5lover Posts: 29
:shades: I am very interested in getting some new wheels for my Mazda5. I was thinking of getting 18inchers w/low profile tires. Of course something nicer than stock. I am a bit worried about how the tire pressure sensor is going to react. Any info on how I should do this? Has anyone upgraded their wheels. What are your experiences? :shades:


  • wusterwuster Posts: 153
    you're gonna have to buy new sensors for the TPMS. I read on a different forum that they're about $65 for each wheel. But I also know the RX-8 18 inches will fix the Mazda5, so if you can find a set of RX-8 wheels with TPMS sensor already mounted, then it's a simple bolt on.

    If not... then it is a bit more complicated.
  • mazda5lovermazda5lover Posts: 29
    Here is a more appropriate way to get my question across.

    1. Can I upgrade my 17"inch wheels to 18" wheels on my Mazda5?

    2. Will I lose any warranties if I upgrade my wheels to a bigger size?

    3. The new wheels I am looking at DO NOT have or accept TPMS sensors, will that become a problem?

    4. Are there any tire size considerations I need to be aware of?

    Any help would be greatly appreciated... :D :shades:
  • Does anyone know if the US-spec Mazda5 Touring model has a tire pressure monitor? The owner's manual shows information about a tire pressure monitor, but the car's specs that are listed on Mazda's website don't show a tire pressure monitor as one of the warning lights.

    Does anyone know for sure?
  • bjerrybjerry Posts: 59

    Does anyone know for sure?

    The tire pressure system comes as part of the GPS Navigation system, I believe.
  • nifty56nifty56 Posts: 279
    Going to 18 inch wheels will give you a harsher ride, you will feel every little bump and crack more than the 17 inch does. Good luck
  • wusterwuster Posts: 153
    1. Yes, you can. Here is link to a Mazda5 with 18" wheels from a RX-8. It was a direct bolt on.

    2. Not sure about that one... maybe you wouldn't if the dealer sold you the 18" wheels or tires

    3. Not a problem as long as you don't care about the TPMS light on the dash staying on... Actually, you may want to check the fuse box and you might be able to turn the light off by pulling a fuse... maybe.
  • whipped95whipped95 Posts: 46
    I own a Mazda5 Touring, and it does have tire pressure monitoring. Which as a matter of fact came on this morning (beeping/low tire pressure light). I bought it last August so I guess they could have changed the specs. You could always go test drive a touring and let some air out and see what happens :), I'm sure the sales guy would get a kick out of that.

    *Forgot to add that we also have the navigation option which may be the option that adds TPMS
  • wusterwuster Posts: 153
    A set of 16" wheels from a Mazda3 will fit too. Check one of the many Mazda3 forums. Getting bigger wheels is usually one of the first mod 3 owners make...
  • adubeladubel Posts: 1
    My wife and I are seriously considering buying a mazda5. Doing our research, we recently read that on wet floor the tires may spin (and the car not move), and now what I read here about the loud sound related to breaks and wet conditions. We are looking for a 'small' car that sits 6+ passangers so we were also considering the RAV 4 with a third row. We have a preference for the mazda5 but reading this I get worried. How serious and common are these issues? Any advise? :confuse:
  • wusterwuster Posts: 153
    No sure what you've read, but traction of all vehicles are affected by wet weather conditions. I personally have not had any problems driving our Mazda5 in the rain for the past year. However, if you get a AWD RAV-4, then you'll get better traction in the rain because of the AWD.

    Also some of the trade-offs have to do with the tires. The Mazda5 have fairly aggressive tires for handling purposes, and I suspect the RAV-4 tires are for mud & snow in keeping with the SUV imagine. So the Mazda will out handle the RAV-4 in dry weather and have a less likelihood of tipping over.

    As for the long sound related to brakes in the wet weather. Again, I personaly have not experiences that in 12 months of ownership.
  • menmy5menmy5 Posts: 12
    We've got 10,000 miles on our '06 5 speed with few regrets. The tires do spin on wet pavement if you try to accelerate quickly from a stop. I'm assuming they won't do well in the snow so I plan to replace the tires for the winter with some good all-season tires or maybe even winter tires. We have had no noises at all and it stops just fine on wet pavement. Of course, it's hard to go wrong with a Toyota but the Mazda is more fun to drive and has more and better cargo area overall.
  • castg1castg1 Posts: 34
    I noticed this too. Maybe you should grill your salesman or try it on a wet road during the road test.

    It takes time to learn to be gentle with the gas pedal.
    I think this is normal with newer, lighter cars. I always see other car's front wheel spin when accelerating from 4 way stops.. on a wet/icy pavement.
  • When your factory tires are worn out try switching to Kumhos they have a better tread I think they use a silica based rubber which lasts longer, is quieter and barely skids at all.
    we had a protege 5 and as soon as the factory crap dunlops wore out I put Kumhos on and it was like driving a different car. our fuel mileage actually increased also.
  • billm6billm6 Posts: 5
    I love my Mazda 5 but I have three bent rims at only 12,000 miles. The mechanic at the dealers told me that the low profile and rims are susceptible to this.

    Has anyone else experienced this? What type of rims and tires can I buy to avoid this in the future?
  • I have had low profile times on my last three cars (Mazda5 now, Acura TSX and Toyota Matrix XRS) and have never had a bent rim. My biggest suggestion would be slow down over speed bumps and potholes. If not possible then buy 16 inch rims and a thicker sidewall tire.
  • i find it hard to believe as aluminium rims usually break and crap before they bend as they are light and more brittle. but not sure if these are really aluminiun as they look kind of like plasticy lol
  • athenasius,

    When I bought my MZ5 (USED) it had two wheels with bent inner lips, which the dealer replaced with another set of MZ6 wheels. So although they may look plasticky or are aluminum or whatever they are made of, they do bend. Just FYI!
  • mdchachimdchachi Posts: 275
    My mechanic told me the same thing. I've got two bent rims now. Hard to avoid with crappy Michigan roads. I'm going to switch to my winter tires (& rims) and then worry about getting the other rims replaced in the spring.
  • Anyone experience an inordinate amount of high-pitched tire noise @ highway speeds? I noticed this after I got my tires rotated and balanced. It is REALLY annoying! What do u think it might be?
  • It could be your tires are "cupped" and depending on how they rotated the tires, they may be going the opposite direction and creating this hitch pitch sound.
  • What does that mean that they might be "cupped"? I knew it had to do something with the tire rotation and balancing I got since it never made that noise before. Please advise. Thanks!
  • Tires normally wear evenly, meaning that the entire tread wears down in an even manner. When your vehicle is out of alignment and/or not balanced correctly and/or have bad shocks the tire tread wears uneven and the design on the tread literally wears in a "cup" or "bowl" (for lack of a better term) like manner, sort of like one or both edges of the tread pattern are higher then the center portion. Sometimes it goes unoticed because the tire remains in the same position and the tire gets accustomed to the rotation on that particular corner. However, if that tire gets moved to a new location, as in a tire rotation, it will make a humming noise, kind of like big off-road tires on a truck, because it is rotating the opposite way (if the tire is NOT directional) or just plainly trying to get accustomed to the new corner that it is in duty of. The noise you hear is the higher portion of the patterns on the tread that will eventually wear down first, however this can take time and the noise can sometimes increase rather then improve.
  • WOW! Thanks for that very descriptive explanation. You sound like an auto technician.

    Anyway, I didn't notice the noise until AFTER the tire rotation and balancing. The shocks and suspension are totally fine - the car's only a year old. But, before the balancing, I noticed a slight tremor over 60 mph, which indicated that one of my wheel weights had fallen, right? Well, after the balancing and rotation, the tremor is completely gone and the car is completely smooth again, BUT I hear that high pitched noise at highway speeds on CERTAIN very SMOOTH roads, especially when raining. And the sound sounds a lot like what you described, only at a higher decibel most likely because the tires are smaller than big off road tires.

    I certainly hope the tire(s) get(s) accustomed to the rotation and that the noise goes away. I've noticed that ever since I returned to NY from NC the noise has somewhat dissipated, but on certain smooth highways, I still hear it, albeit less than when I first noticed it in NC. So, maybe it is going away. In any case, it's an annoying noise and it makes the car seem cheap. My wife was complaining about it and she hated the noise and said it made the car seem like an $8K Kia, or something. I do hope it dissipates.

    Thanks for your explanation, though! Is there anyway to fix it?
  • No problem there nissmazlover, I am not a technician but I have been in the auto dealer parts business for 9 years now and it doesn't help that I am a car nut.

    It sounds like your tires might have already started their "re-accustomed" trial since you mention that it has gotten better. There really is no fix for this, other then just letting the tires wear evenly with time. However, you can prevent this from happening in the future by getting your tires rotated at least every 5K miles (or every oil change if you do your oil changes every 5K miles) and getting an alignment once a year or 15K miles just to keep those wheels and tires nice and straight. Besides, keeping your tires properly inflated, rotated and aligned prolongs the life of your tires and keeps your MPGs at normal and sometimes better levels.

    LOL! out when you mention the "KIA" nameplate in here in a negative way, there are many RONDO lurkers that get offended...LOL!
  • riproyriproy Posts: 57
    Someone on this board said they changed tires on their MZ5 to a 225/50R17. Do tires this size do anything to protect the OEM rims from "curb rash"? I am thinking about different sizes of tire to replace the current Toyos when the time comes.
    Many people have complained about the Toyos but i haven't had any problems with mine other than they seem to be wearing rather quickly (hard to know exactly the mileage on them since we switch to winter tires every fall). Mayhe with new tires i will notice the difference.
  • billm6billm6 Posts: 5
    I put 16 inch rims and 205/60R16 tires on to avoid the "curb rash" a month far so good. These tires are Good Year triple tred Assurance. Apparently they have a thicker side wall and longer tred wear. They feel much more substantial and look great. I can post a picture of them if anyone is interested.

    Regarding road noise. In general, I do not think this car holds out road noise as I could hear both my old and new tires. It is not a big deal to me but I have seen this post in a few forums. It WAS a big deal when my tires and bent rims were making noise...drove me nuts...hence the reason I went with new rims and tires.
  • Yup, that was me, Michelin MXM4 Pilot HX 225/50R17 93V

    Considering that the sidewall is 0.4 inches taller then stock tire, I would assume that it gives a little bit more protection against bending rims, and the fact that it is almost an inch wider as well, I am sure that curb rash is less likely then stock tires.

    See for yourself here.
  • riproyriproy Posts: 57
    I am mostly concerned with the curb rash - haven't come close to bending any rims. yet?
    Thanks for the tire sizing link. Those tires seem a bit oversized though at 1.9 mph speed differential. Any issues with sharp turns and rubbing of tire on the undercarriage or body?
    Like to see any pictures of those who have changed their Toyos out to different sizes..
  • No rubbing at all in any way, they really look nice, not to beefy but a little meatier then stock, which to me is better. It really rides smoother and quiter.
  • 01le01le Posts: 18
    How much of a power loss (acceleration) and mpg drop have you noticed with the extra weight and size of the 225-50-17's?
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