It is 17 miles to the mall how many inches is that on a map

In order to answer that question, we need to know the scale of the map.
Without that information, no answer is possible.

I think you have it in the first part of the question ... the part you decided
not to post.


OK.  Now that you've provided the scale of the map,
answering the question is a piece-o-cake.
Use a proportion:

  (1 inch on the map) / (4 miles on the ground) = ('x' on the map) / (17 miles on the ground)