Maximum Rim/Tire size on Stock GT front/Back
 

Hi,

I'm planning/considering purchasing a Whipple HO Kit, and I think it would be a good idea for me to upgrade the Rim/Tires on my car as the stock 17" Bullitts won't cut it.

I've looked high and low and I'm just confused with offset / rim size.

I love the staggered look, but I'd rather not go with that, as I want to be able to rotate the tires front to back.

What I'm looking for are Bullitt Style rims... I would like to stick with 18" - from what I've found 18x9 is the max size which can be rotated front to back.

I don't want the rubber to be passed the fenders, a little bit is fine, but nothing crazy like 3/4"

I came across these +34mm offset:
http://www.americanmuscle.com/verde-...heel-18x9.html

I've read some say the quality isn't that great others have said they are a bit heavy. But with that spec rim what size rubber could safely be mounted and rotated front to back.

If I did decide to mount 18x10 on the back (+45mm offset):
http://www.americanmuscle.com/anthra...8x9-18x10.html

What rubber could I expect to mount they recommend 275, but that seems a little small to me..?

Thanks,

Ben

Do a search on the tire size you are looking for. There are a lot of old threads about this. That's where I found all of my informatio.

Personally I went with 18x9 (255/45/18) on the front and 18x10 (285/40/18) on the rear. Those sizes kept the exact same diameter as the stock wheels so it didn't increase wheel well gap or change the speedo read out.

I went with the Saleen 5-star replicas and love the look.

Yeah I read through a lot of the old threads, and that's why I'm so confused now :)

I think the widest set up I have seen on front is 275's and the rears 315's. As to the maximum, up front I'd bet 275 is pushing the limits, my 255's can turn all the way without rubbing, but just barely, the rear I don't know. I think the 285's look perfect but they seem a tad wide, guess thats mainly dependant on what rim offset you run.

I run 18X9.5" rims on all corners, but run 255-45 front and 285-40 rear. The 9.5" wide rims seem a tad wide fore the 255's though, I may replace the fronts with 8.5-9X 18 just so the tires look better on the rim.

Good luck and plan carefully. When I bought my rims and tires paying $300+ for a tire was no big deal, but now with company cutbacks, gas prices and housing costs, replacing the rear tires is going to hurt a bit...:doh:

I'm running 18x9 up front and 18x10 rear. I don't care about rotating. I'd rather have the look. I'm running 255/45/18 up front and 295/45/18 rear. I'm lowered with the Pro Kit. I can't imagine putting much more than this on, but to me, it looks amazing.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2006/...3d539999_b.jpg
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2202/...9a8af869_b.jpg

Ok I have to agree that looks amazing :metal::metal: I guess what I was looking for in my post is the max size that could be rotated safely, but I gotta say that does look... very very nice :) I might have to change my mind... with the amount of driving I do... rotating really isn't that much of a concern :)

Now the question I had is... How do I know what offset to pick to have the rims even with the fenders? What are the offsets on yours? The ones I posted links to above are +34mm & +45mm offset.

EDIT: I think I found your rims on their site including a picture of your car :)
http://www.americanmuscle.com/bl20frwh1.html

There may be one other thing you want to consider if going with the whipple H.O. kit...brakes. Maybe somebody can correct me if I'm wrong, but I thought I remember reading that most, if not all, bullitts will not clear big brake kits. Just a thought.

Good point, I don't plan to do that right now, but I'll probably do that in the future... Yet something else to chuck into the discission...:banghead

Thanks though very good point.:)

I didn't get my wheels from AM, but they came from the same manufacturer. +30 front and +40 rear. The offset you're looking at won't be much different. It's only a few mm's.

Like Nynvolt, I have 255's on the 18x9.5 rims in the front and they work fine, but I couldn't see a much larger tire fitting real well. So if you're looking for the max size, that can be rotated front to back, then I'm going to say 255's are going to be it.

*I'm bone stock rie height*

Ok cool! 255's upfront are enough. I was just confused with the entire offset thing, and determining if the rubber would be passed the Fender. I guess I should've named the topic title a little better as I was really more confused with the offset then anything else.

10's out back look amazing... That'll be something I have to decide!

The stock tire is 235 vs 255 (From as far as I can tell that's only .75" difference). But I thought the stock rim was only 7" or is it larger? Or is it because the stock tires stick out past the Wheel face? Does one really notice the difference with an additonal .75" of thread?

with 255s out front the tires should sit nice and flush with the fender. I hate how on the stock setup they are kinda recessed.

Looks amazing!!! :metal:

Adding a question to this thread rather than starting one anew...

I've seen 9.5" and 10.5" as the widest advertised front and rear 18" wheels for the S197. Are these the widest you can mount? Will an 11" fit on the back? Wider? What offset or backspace on the widest wheel? I'm looking at wheels that can be ordered with custom backspacing and offsets and really would like to know the answer to these questions. Again, I agree with the OP, nothing hanging out past the fender.

TIA

Martin

Here is a little table I found useful:
http://home.comcast.net/~martinconle...cetooffset.bmp

I am running 275x18's Nitto 555's on Steeda Pentars 18 x 9.5 rims. My vert is stock ride height. I have no rubbing issues with this setup and can rotate the wheels. If fact I am putting them back on the car today. According to Steeda this is the largest wheel and tire combo you can go with and still rotate the wheels safely. My Pentars are 45 mm backspaced.
Scott

I personally wouldn't go any bigger on the back than DarkFireGT. I think alot of this has to do with the offset but @ +44 in the rear I feel my car is maxed out at 285/40-18

Ok I don't know if it's me or not, but the fronts look like a smaller sidewall; you sure yours aren't 255/40/18 ? Or is it just the perspective of the photograph ?

I'm running 18x9 (255/45/18 Nitto 555) on the front and 18x10 (285/40/18 Nitto 555) on the rear. Could I go to a 305/35/18 on the back with 10" rims? Nitto says yes on their website, I'm just wondering if the sidewalls would bulge out, or if it wouldn't make a difference. Does anyone have any pictures? If I decide to do this, I'll have my backs for sale, less than 4,000 miles, no burnouts, etc.http://i184.photobucket.com/albums/x...ofEPSN0136.jpg

again diggin up an old thread.. but I have a tire/wheel combo question.

Someone from work gave me nearly new 245-45-17
What I have on my car are 235-55-17 on stock bullet rims.
Will the new tires fit in the 8" wide rim without looking funny?? Or should I upgrade to 9" wide wheels??

Yeah I know that the overall diameter is gonna be a tad smaller and throw off the speedo 3mph,,, but thats not really a concern.