flguy

Attached is a pic of my '07 GT with the '12 GT/CS wheels I just put on them.

Strangely, even though the Pirellis that came with them are the standard 19" 245's, the whole package almost looks narrower than my old stock 18" with the 235's. How do I get the wide-track look going for my car? The pic I posted is supposed to show the depth (or lack thereof) of the wheels relative to the body. I just wish they would fill out the wheel wells a little more, nothing extreme.

I don't plan on lowering it, but I have no idea if I need wider rubber, spacers, etc.

Also, if I wanted to have the rims re-painted a lighter silver instead of grey (the center areas, not the bright machined spoke tips), is that something my Ford body shop should be able to do, or is it even possible? I am not interested in plasti-dip.

Thanks for any advice. After 8 years I am finally just starting to do some mods.

laserred38

I believe those wheels have a little bit higher offset than the stock 18" Bullitts, so they tuck a little more, even though they're the same wheel width (8.5"). I'd throw a set of 1" spacers on front and rear, and some 255/45 tires to fill the wheel gap.

Also, I'd hope your local body shop could handle repainting the wheels the way you want. If not, look for local wheel shops - they'll most likely do it for less money than a normal body shop, as that's their specialty.

flguy

I hope this isn't a dumb question, but what's the max rubber I can put on those rims? What is going to be the difference in feel or performance (aside from the look) if I get wider tires? Or would a different brand of tire give me a different look even if it was the same width? Those OEM Pirellis do seem very tucked under like you said. I didn't have the Bullits, I had the 5-spoke windmills. You can sort of seem them in my avatar. They never gave me the impression of being thin, for lack of a better word, which is probably why I waited 8 years to change them!

laserred38

Ah that's right. Either way, both 18" GT wheels of that eta were 8.5" wide, same as the 19" you have now. You could squeeze a 275 on there, but it wouldn't be ideal unless you just cruise in that car. You could do a 275/35 or, what I'd recommend, a 255/45.

The stock P-Zero Nero tires are garbage. They're soft, and not good at particularly anything. Go with a performance tire. Check tire rack for options in those sizes...

flguy

LOL, I am just finding that out now. However, they are VERY quiet, which I love due to owning a convertible. I had just gotten some new BF Goodrich g-Force Sport Comp-2 summer tires for the old 18" rims and they stuck to the road like crazy but were noisy. I'm not sure which trade-off I prefer. I am 100% a cruiser, but live in FL where all-seasons are kind of pointless.

I got the GT/CS rims and tires for $1k even, and they only have 7k miles on them, so I would feel pretty bad throwing out the rubber already. I only put approx. 3k miles per year on my Mustang anyway. It's a toy.

06blackvertstang

You need to check out laserred's old car. It had some fat meats and spacers right?

laserred38

Yes, 1" spacers and 315s

Check out these pics of a CS with 1" spacers and without...it does have a 1" drop, but you get the gist.

laserred38

The BFG SuperSport A/S are a very good in between tire. I ran them on my old '00 V6 in a 275/40/17 size. Very quiet, above average grip, great rain traction. You can even get them at Costco.

06blackvertstang

Dang. I didn't expect that much of a difference. Kind of want them now for my car.

laserred38

Amazon has em for $50/pair

flguy

$50? What's the catch?

By the way, I found this pic belonging to LIME_GT under the "show us your wheels" thread, and his car pretty much has the exact look I'm going for. I'm even considering those Raxiom Coyote lights.

Finally, I just have to gripe about one thing, which is nobody's fault except Ford: this particular angle really demonstrates the horrible body panel alignment and gaps these older mustangs have. Mine is exactly the same. That is honestly the one thing I hate about my car. If anyone knows how I can adjust the trunk lid at least, please let me know. I can't seem to find any adjustment points.

laserred38

(2) 25mm (1") 5x4.5 to 5x4.5 Hubcentric Wheel Spacers for Ford Mustang Edge Ranger Expl...

06blackvertstang

Hello.... That might be my next $100

laserred38

Do it!

laserred38

Exactly, the RTRs are 19x9.5s - with the spacers you'd essentially be running 19x9.5s

PJRManagement

Question...are there any down-sides to using wheel spacers? Longevity? Safety? Performance?

laserred38

As long as you get good ones, there won't be any problems. I've had the same set on both my SN95s for 6+ years and at least 100k HARD miles. 1" and up will be bolt on, meaning you bolt the spacer to the hub like a wheel, and the spacer has new studs that the wheels bolt to. 3/4" and lower will be slip over, and will essentially act as washers - anything between 1/4" and 3/4" will require longer studs on your stock hubs.

Lime_GT

I like your wheel choice, my car is also lowered on Steeda Sport Springs to close the wheel gap.

The bumper gaps on my car were made worse when my 16 year old son backed the car over a curb and into a tree a few days after I bought it. I had to repair all of the plastic brackets that secure the bumper to the car.

flguy

What kind of tires do you have, and did you put spacers also? How much did the springs lower it? Looks great. My son is 6. If I can hang on to this car 10 more years it's his.

laserred38

Look like Michelin PS to me, but I'm on my phone. The RTRs are 19x9.5" with a lower offset than the stock wheels, so they are pushed out to the fenders a little bit. With the spacers on your CA wheels, you essentially be running the same offset as the RTRs, but you'd be giving up 1" of wheel width, so you wouldn't be able to run as wide of a tire. On a 9.5" wide wheel you could run 285s safely, maybe even 295s or 305s (I wouldn't), but with a 8.5" wide wheel the biggest I'd go would be a 275/40/19.