Wheel Tire Sizes

[skerry]

I've done a bunch of research on this topic and I was ready to pull the trigger on 15x7 wheels all around with 225/50 tires. I have a 350 with a 3 speed auto, the motor puts out around 340hp.It has the stock suspension.  I just got the car and it came with the stock 14" wheels and some worn out old tires so I don't really have a good grasp on what the car will do. I plan to daily drive this car. 

 

 I was talking to a buddy today that I trust but has limited knowledge of this specific car. He thinks that with the extra power and weight to the front that I should go wider in the rear(15x9,245). From what I've seen, this is almost only done in cars that will be used for some type of racing. I'd love to hear what you guys think.

 

Thanks

Stephen

[RebekahsZ]

I'm no expert, but I love to bench race as much as anybody, so here goes.  When it comes to tires, there is no such thing as too much.  But, there is a threshold that is very limited for tire fitment for the 240z,260z, and 280z because of the strut suspension and the narrow rear fenders.  With stock fenders, the largest tire that you can mount, without having any fender rubbing issues is a 15X7.  Yes, you can fit up to a 9" wheel, but you have to do a fair amount of modification.  But a 15X7, ZERO OFFSET wheel will fit everytime, right out of the box.   No worries, no headaches.  With a V8 in my Z, I can spin ANY tire that you can buy, even a hot drag slick.  So, forget about finding a tire that won't spin.  So, you are looking for a compromise that FITS, and is better than what you have.  The 225/50/15, like the 15X7, fits everytime, right out of the box.  With modifcations to the suspension and body, you can fit a 245 and above, but you've got to do a lot of work.  So, i'm with you:  15X7 and 225/50/15 tires on all 4 corners.  Now, WHICH tire?  If you are going to put a lot of miles on the car, I would get Dunlop Direzza, also known as Star-specs, in a 225/50/15.  If you want a sexier looking tread and can replace the tire more often, I would go with a Nitto N01.  Both of these tires are under $200 each and offer a LOT of traction.  As always, be careful on the street.

[BluDestiny]

With that much power you'll be able to spin any tires you probably plan on getting. I would go with 16x8's 0 offset with 225/50/16's. They have roughly the same choice of tires, and I would go with some sticky tires, Either the star specs that RebekahsZ mentions, Khumo XS, Hankook RS-3's or BFGoodrich rivals. I would also plan on doing something about the suspension because worn out suspension is no fun. 

[skerry]

I really like the Konig Rewinds, they are 16x7 though. I can get those with the starspecs for 890 delivered from discounttiredirect. What do you guys think about that?

 

Thanks for the input

Stephen

[78zstyle]

I really like the Konig Rewinds, they are 16x7 though. I can get those with the starspecs for 890 delivered from discounttiredirect. What do you guys think about that?

 

Thanks for the input

Stephen

 

They have them in 15x7 and look great.

[m1ghtymaxXx]

I'm no expert, but I love to bench race as much as anybody, so here goes.  When it comes to tires, there is no such thing as too much.  But, there is a threshold that is very limited for tire fitment for the 240z,260z, and 280z because of the strut suspension and the narrow rear fenders.  With stock fenders, the largest tire that you can mount, without having any fender rubbing issues is a 15X7.  Yes, you can fit up to a 9" wheel, but you have to do a fair amount of modification.  But a 15X7, ZERO OFFSET wheel will fit everytime, right out of the box.   No worries, no headaches.  With a V8 in my Z, I can spin ANY tire that you can buy, even a hot drag slick.  So, forget about finding a tire that won't spin.  So, you are looking for a compromise that FITS, and is better than what you have.  The 225/50/15, like the 15X7, fits everytime, right out of the box.  With modifcations to the suspension and body, you can fit a 245 and above, but you've got to do a lot of work.  So, i'm with you:  15X7 and 225/50/15 tires on all 4 corners.  Now, WHICH tire?  If you are going to put a lot of miles on the car, I would get Dunlop Direzza, also known as Star-specs, in a 225/50/15.  If you want a sexier looking tread and can replace the tire more often, I would go with a Nitto N01.  Both of these tires are under $200 each and offer a LOT of traction.  As always, be careful on the street.

 

 

I'll disagree. The first wheels I on my 77 with lowering springs were 16x8 0 offset with 205/45s. They fit with room to spare. Unfortunately they were stolen off the car so I replaced them with 15x9 0 offset with 225/50s. Many others on the board run this size without modification, though it could limit your ride height possibilities as your rims will just poke beyond the fenders. The front required 8mm spacers and longer wheel studs, but that's not a very big issue.

 

If you want to maximize width without headaches, I'd recommend an 8" wide rim. 

[T-Bone028]

I don't know about you guys, but I haven't been able to find a 15" tire wider than 225 in the past 2 years...I currently have flares and run a 245...tires will eventually need to be replaced though. Anyone have suggestions?

 

To the OP, even with 245's I spin the tires...and I'm putting down considerably less power. Seems like tire choices don't really open up unless you go to 17's...or use drag raidals from Mickey Thompson if you stay 15-16".

Edited January 23, 2014 by T-Bone028

[m1ghtymaxXx]

I don't know about you guys, but I haven't been able to find a 15" tire wider than 225 in the past 2 years...I currently have flares and run a 245...tires will eventually need to be replaced though. Anyone have suggestions?

 

This is the reality. It's a huge void in the market, I'm not sure why no tire manufacturers have stepped up with wide 15" tires when there's so many wheels on the market that need them. 

[skerry]

I ordered the wheels/tires this morning and Tbone I ran into that exact issue. I ended up settling on the Konig Rewinds 16x 7 with Hankook Ventus V12 225/50. It was the best combo I could come up with in my budget. I may end up having to roll the fenders or I may just go ahead and get the zg flares since I've been eyeing them. Discount tire direct is amazing by the way. Wheels/Tires mounted and balanced with a new set of lugs for $850 shipped.

[Hypertek]

This is the reality. It's a huge void in the market, I'm not sure why no tire manufacturers have stepped up with wide 15" tires when there's so many wheels on the market that need them. 

 

Probably because most cars on the road today are going towards 17 and up.. New cars are like 19s 20s stock now!!

[Xnke]

That's the whole reason I went to the 17x7 wheels I have on the car. I had 15x8's with 225/50/15's, but the tire selection wasn't there.

[seattlejester]

I have 15x7+0's and I rub on my rolled fender with 225/50/15's on big dips on the rear (stock style suspension). I agree, the tire selection is pretty limited. If I wanted to go to a 9 inch with the 15 inch rim, I think the consensus was to run a wider then listed size, like a Toyo 888 and even that would be a stretch. I think I will be stepping up in the near future once I'm through my current sets.

 

I kind of agree with the whole never too much tire statement, as even my modest L28 can break the tires loose in second, but I think there really is a balance. Too much tire, and the engine can feel a bit boggy. If a lightened flywheel makes a difference, just imagine what a thin, light wheel with thinner lighter tires would do for ya. And if you have a lot of power and a lot of tire, I think the halfshafts and stub axles may need to be looked at as the weak point in the assembly.

[RebekahsZ]

Hey Xnke - with 17X7s, did you have to cut the airdam and front fender to clear the tire when turning?  What size tire did you mount on that?

[socorob]

I have a question for y'all. If you had the choice would you prefer to run 255 direzza2/ BFG rivals (the widest I saw in those 2 tires) or the nittos in 285-315s? The rivals are supposedly the grippiest street tire right now and the dunlops second from some tests I've seen in online magazines. Would the narrower tires perform as good, better or less good than the wider less grippy nittos?

[RebekahsZ]

What size wheel, and flares or no flares?

[socorob]

17". I'm still trying to pick a wheel width and tire size. I will get the wheels to go with the tire size I choose. I'm sure I will have to flare it to get a decent size tire even though I really don't want to.

[RebekahsZ]

With a standard flare you will be limited to about 275s, which is about 10" of tread. You will need the extra-wide flares to go to 315s. Go to the Hoosier site and you will find a pretty good size chart. The 255 is no wider than a 245, only taller. I have run 245s and I want more tire. Going to 275s this year. Perhaps 315s next year. I think that is going to be my limit. For the most part,the grippier the tire, the faster it will wear out. All those tires are good, but unless you have a million bucks burning a hole in your pocket, you sure wont want to lite 'em up very often. I really like to "lite 'em up!" I would pick the cheapest from among them.

[socorob]

On my last car, I went from cheap no name tires to direzzas in the same size and the difference in grip was absolutely incredible. Felt like I doubled the width of the tires. At autox it made me go from consistently being 1/3 from the bottom times to being in the middle with no other changes to the car. There is a big difference in tires. Thats why I am trying to figure out if 255 rivals would be the same as 285 nittos. If so I would be able to go with smaller flares and a slightly narrower wheel. In the dunlops and BFG 255 has about 1/2" (10mm)wider tread than 245.

[socorob]

http://www.onehotlap.com/2013/01/bfgoodrich-g-force-rival-plot-thickens.html?m=1

 

I've been yahooing around all morning and this was all I could find on this so far.

[RebekahsZ]

If anybody can answer this question, it would be Greg Ira. I doubt if any of us have deep enough pockets (sponsors) to do a really good job answering or discussing this question. Even Grassroots Motorsports and Car and Driver do a lousy job with the subject. You will just get feedback based on the "butt dyno.". The fast guys in my club run a variety of tires. But, the fastest guys run Hoosier A6 in the largest size they can shove on the car. The fastest guy runs tires much wider than the fitment chart would suggest should fit on his rims by width. You would need to test NEW tires as my tires lose a lot of stick even sitting in my shop over the winter. I deal with this by running one set of tires on the street and another at the track. It's expensive, but it is the only way I have been able to un-frustrate myself. I can usually find used A6s for less than new street tires, I just try to avoids race tires that are more than a year old. I will leave you to your madness.