Definitive wheel fitment guide for S30 Z cars ......creating a database?

[roger280zx]

If you have these items: jack, jack stands, several blocks, and a tape measure, you can roll the ball yourself.

[Michael]

Having reached a point in my multi-decade build where finally I'm turning to suspension, brakes and tires, it would indeed be welcome to have a vetted, quantified listing of wheel/tire combinations that have been successfully tried.  This isn't from laziness or lack of imagination (though I can't profess freedom from either), but in a situation where mistakes are costly and irreversible, it would be eminently useful to lean upon the experience of others.  One way to do this is to buy somebody's used wheel/tire combination from the classifieds here, and actually that's my preferred approach.  But in recent months/years, for some reason there have been fewer ads for S30-suitable wheels for sale here.

[RebekahsZ]

Find a mentor that seems to have a build that you would like to mimic and PM him. Almost every time I have tried to help someone with wheel fitment they have just ignored all my advice.

[veritech-z]

Something to remember: advertised wheel width is typically 1" narrower than physical width since it measures the bead seat and not the outside width of the wheel. So a 17 X 8 wheel is actually going to be 9" wide if you bust out the tape measure and do outside to outside.

Edited August 14, 2015 by veritech-z

[str8pipez]

I'm considering buying one of these for my build. I'd be willing to rent it if anyone was interested. This takes all assumtions and guess work out of the process.

 

http://www.wheelworksinc.com/wheel-fit-.html

Edited August 15, 2015 by str8pipez

[Michael]

Find a mentor that seems to have a build that you would like to mimic and PM him. Almost every time I have tried to help someone with wheel fitment they have just ignored all my advice.

On face value, that's an entirely reasonable approach, and merits further delving.  Unfortunately HybridZ has become a staid, archival site - a kind of exalted and austere library, rather than a discussion forum.  10-15 years ago, this was a very different site.  Oh well.

 

In any case, to summarize my situation - which is likely quite typical...  I'm not enthused in the near-term in doing a coilover conversion or the addition of flares, though I could be persuaded to roll the fenders.  As often happens with V8 swaps in 280Zs, the car sits considerably higher than stock, in my case despite cutting 1.5 coils from the stock springs.  The interior top of the arch of the front and rear fenders, and the centerpoint of the door-lock keyhole (a common reference) are approximately 25.5" inches off of the ground, with 225-60/14 tires.

 

The aim for the rear is a wheel of modest diameter (15"?) and large-ish (by modern standards) width, mainly for drag-radials (or slicks).  Searching this subforum offers much sporadic and anecdotal insight, but as most applications have drifted towards 17" diameter or larger, a solid consensus remains elusive.  In fact best archival reference seems to be the venerable JTR conversion manual. 

Edited August 17, 2015 by Michael

[str8pipez]

"a kind of exalted and austere library, rather than a discussion forum"

 

Agreed. Funny considering the rise in popularity (my perception) of the early Z.

 

As far as fitting wheels and tires in no way am I solely basing my decision to spend $3000+ on wheels and tires on what someone else has done. I'll use it as a starting point sure, but as I posted above I'm totally using the wheel fit tool.

 

On a side note I visited a well known pro touring shop and they actually buy the tires first and work on how the car sits and looks base on the tire sizes.

Edited August 22, 2015 by str8pipez