DuoWing Posted March 21, 2012 Share Posted March 21, 2012 (edited) Hey everybody I was hoping for some advice on this. I keep finding posts and going back and forth and couldn't find exactly the answer I'm looking for. I decided to go with 16x8 +4mm RB-R's for my 280Z which has the Toyota 4-piston calipers along with the Tokico Illumina Spring/Strut set. I keep looking and I can't seem to find the right answer if these will fit or not. I've seen people say go with the +4mm then others say go with the +10mm offset. It looks like the RB-R's should clear the calipers, and then I need to go with a tire size, but again that seems to be another issue that no one can seem to agree on what fits. Go with 225/50, but those won't fit. Go with a 215/50 or 215/45. Everyone seems to have something different on their Z and then someone says it may not fit while another person does fit. What I really want to know is if the +4 would be alright with my suspension/brake setup or if I should see if I could have my order changed to the +10mm offset? I know I've seen that people say the spring perch is lower on the 280Z than the 240Z so offset would be better on these cars. I currently have the Swastikas on my Z with not fitment issues. Also forgot to mention I have the MSA Urethane 240Z style airdam on my car. I know people mention clearance issues with stock valence, but again I don't know if it's just on the 240Z or all S30s. Maybe I've just missed the thread I need? Thanks for info guys. Edited March 21, 2012 by DuoWing Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
luseboy Posted March 21, 2012 Share Posted March 21, 2012 The +4 will be pushed out more than the +10, which will be more "sunk" into the fenders. You may need to roll/clearance your inner fenders a little bit, but otherwise these should fit well. As for tire size... the "right" width for an 8" wide rim is 225. The aspect ratio is up to you, but a 45 would be a tad short IMO. The +4 offset will clear the brakes and suspension easier than the +10 would. I would think you'd be fine with the +4's, but you could get the +10 just in case and buy some 5mm spacers, getting you to +5. I don't have any experience with these wheels in particular so the rest of the equation is up to you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
luseboy Posted March 21, 2012 Share Posted March 21, 2012 (edited) Whoops sorry, just caught my double post Edited March 21, 2012 by luseboy 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DuoWing Posted March 21, 2012 Author Share Posted March 21, 2012 Thanks for the info. I'm trying to learn as I'm a n00b to wheels/tires. I think the problem is everyone is running a different suspension/brake setup along with everyone running different size tires and the fact that the 240-280Z have slightly different setups as well. I'm not too worried about them being sunken into the fenders so much so that should be good. I'll stick with the +4s then. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnc Posted March 21, 2012 Share Posted March 21, 2012 I think the problem is everyone is running a different suspension/brake setup along with everyone running different size tires and the fact that the 240-280Z have slightly different setups as well. That's not a problem. It just means a lot of different combinations fit the S30 and there is no one solution. That's a good thing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
luseboy Posted March 21, 2012 Share Posted March 21, 2012 Ya I think +4's would be fine. Before I decided to go with ZG flares, I was gonna get some 0 offset rims and clearance the inner fender. Really wouldn't be too bad to do, just a sledge hammer and some patience. You just have to watch for wiring as the rear harness runs through the passenger side where you'd be smashing it in, and the antenna wiring runs on the driver's side. I'd say run some 225/50/16 tires, whichever ones you want. It shouldn't be too hard to find those, at least not as hard as it is for finding 15" tires. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leon Posted March 21, 2012 Share Posted March 21, 2012 IMO, the biggest reasons for the discrepancies on what "fits" and what doesn't is that it depends on what front valence is used and what exact tire you're using. The Xenon air dam allows for more tire up front compared to the stock valence. Also, there is a fairly considerable variation in size when comparing what seems to be the same tire between multiple manufacturers. Some will be wider, some will be taller, and some will be the opposite or a combo of those. Having said that, I thought I saw a thread before detailing exactly what works and what doesn't with the 16X8 Rotas. FWIW, I had 225/60-14 on a zero-offset 14X6 wheel and now have 225/50-16 on a 16X7 wheel with zero offset (maybe a tiny positive offset, not 100% sure). I've had no rubbing issues on either one, fenders are not rolled. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DuoWing Posted March 21, 2012 Author Share Posted March 21, 2012 Thanks again for the info. I didn't realize that tires could be made so differently even though they're the same size. Guess it's just like buying clothing. Also I wasn't really saying that so many combinations fitting the Z was a bad thing more so it just makes it really hard to figure out what fits and doesn't when people tell you it fits or it doesn't and you have no clue as to what suspension setup they're using if it's a 240/260Z or a 260/280Z. Front valence, etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DuoWing Posted March 21, 2012 Author Share Posted March 21, 2012 Apparently the 4mm offset is on special order and will require 2-4months if they can get them. I ended up going with the 10mm offset. I dont know if these will clear without a spacer, otherwise I'll grab some 5mm spacers as mentioned and go that route. I assume if the 10mm offset fits I'd have to go with a smaller tire like 205 or 215 to avoid rubbing. I don't know how much of a difference there is performance/grip/handling wise between the 205, 215, and 225 widths. As I said I'm trying to learn Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
luseboy Posted March 22, 2012 Share Posted March 22, 2012 The 10mm offset is a less aggressive offset than the 4mm. It will be closer to the strut and have more room between it and the fender. One point of offset is one mm, so if you got 6mm spacers on your +10 offset rims, you'd effectively have a +4 offset. The width of the tire is also the width of the tread in mm. 205 will be a little stretched on an 8" rim, 215 will be about flush and 225 will be balooned a tiny bit. Some say a little bit of stretch has the best performance, I personally believe a little bit of a bigger tire has the best performance. I'd think you'd be happiest with the performance of a 225 or 215. If you like the stretched tire fad then you might want a 205 though tire shops might charge you more to install it. There's a lot of info on wheel and tire specs and what they mean. A simple google search will tell you lots! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RebekahsZ Posted March 22, 2012 Share Posted March 22, 2012 Unfortunately, at some point you just have to "go for it," and order some wheels. All this offset vs backspacing gets rather trivial when you find out that every wheel maker and tire maker measures things differently. There are just too many variables to totally answer your question without risk. When your rims arrive, just get one tire mounted on one wheel, so you aren't stuck with all of them. Try that one wheel/tire on all 4 hubs and if it clears everything, mount the set. If it doesn't fit, send the other 3 back and you lose on the one. I have coil-overs and have the 16X8 RBR +4 that you are considering mounted with 225/50/16 Kumos Ecstas. Brakes are stock 240z. The tires have lots of room in the front, but did not clear the fender in the back. I pushed in the top of the strut with DP camber plates (giving me more negative camber than I really want) and thought I had plenty of clearance. On my first test drive, I nailed the gas and squated the rear suspension and rubbed a little on the driver side rear wheel. Took an angle grinder to the inner lip of the fender (just took a few mm off) and I'm not rubbing anymore. Still have more neg camber than I want ultimately. If you lower your car, all the clearances become more critical. If you keep the ride height up, you can let the tires hang out of the fenders and just about any width wheel will fit. But, if you nail the throttle too hard or hit too big of a bump, your tire will hit. Your 15X6 swashtica is a good wheel-mount 225/50/15s and you'll have as much traction as anybody out there with no problems at all. It is a great performance package and looks classic. Bigger wheels are a lot of sugar for a dime and are often just a big PITA with no measurable performance gains. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RebekahsZ Posted March 22, 2012 Share Posted March 22, 2012 I would stay away from "stretched" tires. When running a stretched set up, you are trusting the bead and it's seal to the rim to basically keep you off the pavement. So what happens when you have a flat or hit a pot hole-destroy your wheel? That turns a $5 problem into a $200 problem. Run the size tire that the rim manufacturer recommends, or the size rim that the tire maker recommends. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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