The honest answer is any change in alloy will affect handling , its more a question of in what way and by how much .

Sportmax are NOT a classic JDM alloy they are a cheap copy of one ,

they are pretty heavy (as are most 15*8) so will blunt acceleration and affect the ride quality , If you don't fit wide arches you will need to roll the arches and run 195/50 (or 45)

If you want a classic JDM look find another wheel , possibly in 14"

Edit : there are sportmax for sale in the forsale section and SBR (?) will import them for you

 

I run 15x8 with 195/50 tyres and you don't need to roll your arches for this.

 

personally if you want classic japanese style its GOT to be 14" unfortunatly classic jdm wheels cost the earth.....

my ideal set up would be 14x7/7.5 in an offset off around 20 this will fit pefectly in my opinion

 

Will rota grids DRIFT fit, as ive heard theres a problem fitting over the calipers, which i find odd as there 16"

 

Yes you need to grind either the wheel or calliper for 1.8 brakes don't know about 1.6 though . Check with jibberingloon

 

I guess for best "handling" you'd want to stick with a 14 or 15" rim and stay close to the stock offset, plus there's loads of tyre choice in these sizes and tyre prices are also reasonable.
Real JDM alloys are pricey, like KFC says the Sportmax 002's are a cheap copy of a JDM style and tbh the quality of the finish is turd, I got mine powdercoated after a year.
IMO you can't go wrong with a set of Watanabe's or minilite style rims on a 5, they've been done to death, but for a reason... they really suit a 5.

As for the Rota's you mention, I don't see why they wouldn't fit? Unless I'm misssing something.

 

just something i read some were but cant find it now

 

He asked , I answered , hope the language wasn't aimed at me

My Wats where machined to fit the callipers from new , I've since machined another set to fit with no issues , there is allways away of doing it properly

 

I'm all for people asking for, and being given, advice. After all, it's how knowledge is imparted. However, advising someone to simply grind material of either wheel or caliper is shoddy advice. Calipers are designed and cast in such a way that gives them maximum strength whilst preventing stress risers. Grinding material off them not only reduces their strength, and their effectiveness, but also changes the way they handle the forces applied to them with the potential for generating stress risers that lead to failure. Similarly with wheels, having material removed from them after they've been through their manufacturing process will reduce their strength and increase the chance of failure.

There is always ways of doing things properly and, in this instance, spacing the wheels or picking ones that fit is the correct way.

 

Wasn't advice was simply what others have done , wouldn't fit the wheels my self (at all). And he wants to upto him to do the research . Get fed up with people on this forum ignoring good advice to listen to what they want to hear .

The one time I don't write it out to be clear to the lowest common denominator I get picked up and let's be honest there is far worse Fuck witted advice banded about this forum on a daily basis with no common sense present at all

Apologies will include a disclaimer with all posts in future .

 

I don't get why you'd tell them what others have done, knowing it's shit, without stating so.

I do agree with you about people asking for advice and ignoring it when it's not what they want to hear. The cutting bumpstops thread recently was a classic example of that and the sort of fuckwittery that will eventually put a stop to car modification.

 

because was on my phone and couldn't be fucked

 

The biggest wheels Mazda fitted as standard on the NB's were 16 inch on the sport models i have these wheels with 205/45 tyres and have no issues with clearance etc, the tyres are more expensive than the 14/15's though

 

Mk2s have bigger arches so the same combo on a Mk1 might not work.

 

Think you need to be more specific in what you mean by handling? Sticking 15 by 8 with an offset any different to what Mazda designed it for on stock suspension will effect the handling, but benchmarked to what?

I run 15 by 8 with 25 offset with kybs and fm springs, uprated frbs and wim alignment. I love the handling although it does tend to track a little on bad road surface. Whilst that might be good for me you might hate it

 

15" rota slipstreams are a great wheel in my opinion and the lightness really helps in the handling dept.

 

depending on what size you put on 14/15/16/17 there going to handle in diffrent ways due to weight and also tyre size i would say in my opinion i like 15" with 195/15/15 tyres on , but here is where the debate starts .. what tyres to use / what offset to have etc... what is your driving style etc... really what i am trying to say is you probably wont get a straight answer here as i could say i like 15"x8 with toyo or avons on, but the next poster may say i am wrong and that 17x7.5 is better with pirelli's , its all about how you drive and what you will be using the car for e.g. country roads, drift/track days, driving down the motorway to work and back .

sorry if this is not much help but i dont think alot of posts about this topic will be much help as they will be most likely one sided from peoples experience of what they have used in the past , but who's to say they drive like you ?

take a look here tho as you can get a jist of what fits what and how
http://www.clubroadster.net/vb_forum/showthread.php?t=4729