More testing, plus some pics.
First, I measured the contact patches this morning. I sprayed some water all around the tires then rolled the car away and measured. The rears (same size tire/rim as the OEM wheels) measured roughly 5in x 7in ~ 35 square inches of contact patch. The fronts were a silly huge 8.5in x 10in ~ a full 85 square inches of contact patch. You can imagine how these shapes would vary under acceleration or braking ~ either way it is likely that the fronts always have more tire on the road than the rears do.
Second, some pics that I took just earlier at some warehouses nearby:
Here is the front view. The fronts do not stick out at all beyond the car's body; very flush. I was really happy about this, especially considering how wide the wheels are. The rears sit a little farther out from the car than the old Legend wheels did (very subtle, only a -10 offset difference).
Here is the killer tell-tale picture. I crouched down to get this picture at wheel-view and yes, it's quite obvious the fronts are larger than the rears. I'm under the distinct impression that the lighting in this picture makes the effect even worse, especially the way the picture is cropped ~ but here's the worst possible angle I can get to make the fronts look huge compared to the rears.
A final shot of the car at angle. So far most people I've showed my 'new' wheels to have not noticed that the wheels are different sizes. When I point it out though (ie, "Notice anything funny? No? Well, compare the fronts and rears...") then I get a lot of perplexed looks. Judge for yourselves.
I'm considering changing the middle of the rims back to the Legend ones since the Acura logo is bigger. Not sure if it'll fit though. So enough about the looks, let's talk about the handling =)
I took the car to the local twisties for some undulating fun. As I drive the car more, I feel that my initial impressions might have been overexaggerated (maybe tread squirm from new tires, maybe I'm just adjusting to them, I dunno). The car does in fact still have a tendency to oversteer but I can feel it building up. This is NOT an
omfg the tail is coming all the way around, I'm drifmatic! sort of oversteer. Rather, the car's rear gradually strays from the path that the fronts have drawn ~ an effect that is immediately noticeable considering how far apart the fronts and rears are ~ and any acceleration (even a slight jab at the gas) will bring it back in line. It's actually a lot of fun.
Something I also noticed is that I hardly need to turn the wheel as far as I did before when going around the bends. Only the tightest turns (or stupidest entry speeds) have me turning beyond the 3 o'clock and 9 o'clock positions, and even then the rear will still come along predictably.
There IS a danger though; the car feels like it can be easily upset mid-turn if I'm at the limit. Jags in the road or misplaced mid-turn shifts will be severely punished in this car. However if I do all my braking before the curves, click the right gears, and brake carefully the car is incredibly rewarding to drive and it's a thrill to play with the newfound grip up front.
One last thing I've noticed ~ I feel that only with these new wheels is my suspension 'coming around.' The suspension was clearly designed for a car with non-factory rims (I imagine the car it came off of had Mugen wheels too) and the differences between the suspension settings are MUCH bigger with the new wheels. Soft feels floatier, hard is uncomfortably stiff, etc.
I've decided that if I get a chance to purchase another set of NA1 rear wheels, I'll probably pick them up and use those as my rears (maybe with weaker rubber so I'll still get some of the big-front-grip effect). But as it sits now, I'm loving this setup and look forward to exploring what my Legend can do with it as I learn more.