red calipers cant very well paint a rotor and have it last lol

 

How does the car handle better with those tires?..how can you tell?

 

Well, the car seems to stick to the road better. There is less travel, and seems less squirly. It feels better to me, and my hubby who drove it for the first time today since we put the new wheels on says he thinks so too.

 

You can achieve about the same increase in handling by switching out the stock tires for some wider, more performance oriented tires. I don't have a whole lot to spend on my car, so that is what I plan on doing. I figure some 235/55/16s (I think that is the right aspect ratio, might be 235/50/16) would do the trick. I know they'll fit on the stock 7" rim.

 

I think that size will throw your speedo off though.....

 

235/55/16s are only .1% off from the stock 215/60/16s.

 

235/55/16 is only .1% off 215/60/16, but the stock tire size is 215/65/16 which is a 3% difference from the 235's mentioned.

EDIT: the best sizes to go with in 16" are 235/60/16 or 255/55/16 if you want to maintain the speedo reading.

 

Yeah, my bad. I forgot what the stock tire size on the car was, so when I did the comparison I got the wrong replacement size. I meant to say that I am going to with the 235/60/16s wen I get the money. I would like 255s, but I am weary about putting them on the stock rim since it is only 7".

 

I wouldn't put 255's on the stock rim either.

 

I trade in the stock ones to Disount tire, and they gave me $400 allowance for them.

 

maybe instead of buying new tires for your stock 16's you could consider spending just a little more for some slightly-used 17" take-off wheels/tires from a 2005 GT?

I got some 17" GT Bullit wheels with 235/55/17's on them. I realize OEM 17's are not impressive to wheel fans but I'll be very happy when these beautiful babies are on my car.

my deal:
$700 - 17" GT Bullit take-off wheels/tires including shipping
$300 - hopefull selling price of 16" OEM set
$400 - total investment if I can sell my 16's for $300

 

The reason I am not going with 17" rims is because their added moment of inertia would result in decreased rotational acceleration of the wheels, and thus decreased linear acceleration of my car. If you want to see the little write up I did on this, check the thread a little ways down about the weight of the stock V6 rims.

 

hi again J,

I just took a peek at the other thread concerning wheel size and performance - TMI!!!

just kidding but I don't get that scientific with anything and I figured it wouldn't make much difference going from 16's to 17's. I figured even though the new rims are 1" larger in diameter the overall size difference would be minimal since the sidewalls are smaller on the 17s (I think?).

i'm prolly wrong though..

 

hi again J,

I just took a peek at the other thread concerning wheel size and performance - TMI!!!

just kidding but I don't get that scientific with anything and I figured it wouldn't make much difference going from 16's to 17's. I figured even though the new rims are 1" larger in diameter the overall size difference would be minimal since the sidewalls are smaller on the 17s (I think?).

i'm prolly wrong though..
[/b][/quote]

received new wheels from UPS today

i compared my v6 wheels side-by-side and the difference in height was just barely noticable. they GT wheels were certainly wider though so I guess that could also cause the D.R.A. you're concerned about. i dunno.. :scratch:

but the new wheels look great! I'll be posting pics soon which will look susipiciously like Grimlock's pic! hate to seem all copy-cat but I added the same wheels on the same color car and I have decided I don't like the rocker-panel graphics so I'll be peeling stickers this weekend.

 

Toronado, you're going to be well pleased with the Bullitts on your car. Also, as you can tell, I am a fan of the rocker panel stripe removal. I also will say my car certainly does not seem slower going to the 17"s. I understand the science being mentioned, but there's not enough difference in the 16"s and 17"s to affect acceleration at any noticeable level.

 

The V6 with GT rims looks good!!! are those taller tires than what the GT has? the side wall looks thicker.

 

On my car the new tires are about the same overall dimensions as the old wheel/tire combo, but the tires are much more beefy.

For some reason the picture I have of the two side by side doesn't want to upload here, but if you click on this you'll see the difference between the two.

http://www.2005stang.com/gallery/albums/us...socks%20003.jpg

 

Grimlock was it easy to peel off your rocker-panel stripes? Just heat it with a hair dryer or something?

 

GT rims & tires on my V6.

 

Looks good!