280YZ and fitting wheels. Help with backspacing please.

[proxlamus]

Hey everyone, been a while since I've posted.

 

So im ready to order the wheels for my 280YZ project and I've been doing TONS of searching and digging around.

 

I found a company called PS Vintage Wheels (http://psvintagewheels.com/products.html)

 

 

They offer 15x10 and 15x12 or 17x11.

 

My biggest question is regarding the backspacing.

 

The 280YZ manual says the factory backspacing is 3-7/16". I will be running coilovers and I've seen a lot of posts mentioning they've used backspacing from 3.5" all the way to 5.5".

 

I would like to run the 15x12s all around but I really have NO clue what backspacing to use. I am also concerned about the front wheels being too wide and rubbing anything. (Although I know how hard it will be to turn).

 

Here's some info I've written down for people running different sized wheels

User and size

-Cuzak901 has 15x10 and 3.5" backspacing

-74_5.0L_Z has 15x10 and 5.25" backspacing with .25 spacers.

-Dan Juday has 15x10 and 4.5" backspacing

-infinite_worx has 15x10.5 and -32 offset which would be a 4.5" backspacing

-stivaas30 has 17x10 and a -70 offset which would be a 2.75" backspacing???

-blu_ballz has 18x12.5 not sure of backspacing

 

So as you can see I am a little confused on what backspacing to go with. The suspension is NOT assembled on the car and I cant do any measurements. So any help would be very valued.

[74_5.0L_Z]

With coil-overs, you can run 5.0 inches of backspacing all around without spacers using 15 inch wheels.  You will have more space between the tire/wheel and the strut on the rear than on the front.  On the front you will have about 1/8 inch clearance and on the rear you will have about 5/8 inch clearance.  I wanted to tuck my rear tire in a bit more in the rear, so I opted to go with 5.25" back space and use a spacer on the front wheels.

I have the SubtleZ fenders and quarter panels on my car and the 15x10 barely fit under the fender and quarter lips.  The advertised clearance for the SubtleZ kit is 1.5 inches more than stock (I believe).  The 280YZ kit advertised clearance is 3.5 inches more that stock (If memory serves).  Therefore, the 15 x 12 should fit all around with 5 inches of backspace.

 

I would err on the side of caution and purchase the wheels with a little extra backspace (say 5.25 or 5.375 inches) and plan on adding spacers as required.  If you have too much backspace then you can add spacers to fix it.  If you don't have sufficient backspace then you have problems that cannot be fixed cheaply.

 

If you go to a 17 inch wheel, you can run a little more back space than with a 15 inch wheel.  How much more I cannot say because I have not run 17 inch wheels.

Edited December 28, 2016 by 74_5.0L_Z

[proxlamus]

Thank you so much for the reply and information. The 280YZ extends out 3" on each side.

 

So 74_5.0L_Z have you had any issues with the front wheels rubbing anything or restricting thr turning or is it clear from obstructions with your current setup? Do you think a 12" wide wheel would clear it?

[74_5.0L_Z]

No problems at all, but I am running 23 inch tall tires (275/35/15 Hoosiers, 240/600/15 or 23.0 x 10.5 -15 Avons). You are more likely to have problems in the front with larger diameter tires. The issue that you will encounter with high backspace and large diameter on the front is rubbing of the tire on the T/C rod or frame at high turn angles. I used to run 245/45/16 tires (24.7 diameter) with the 5 inch backspace and had rubbing issues. I coped by limiting rack travel with the larger diameter tires.

[jt1]

Note that the brake setup can affect backspacing.  If you go with a hat setup, the thickness of the hats changes backspacing.  You can also get some caliper/wheel clearance issues.

 

jt