question about tramlining on GT

[Bartly]

So, I'm shopping new wheels and tires and have a question about my GT following imperfections in the road. I'm on the stock black accent package wheels 8.5" wide with P-Zero all seasons still. All 4 tires are the same (255/40/19) and am wondering how going to a larger square setup vs. staggered setup will react. Was thinking 275 up front and 295 or 305 rear someday so would like to plan wheels accordingly. But if doing staggered setup will make the tramlining worse, it might make sense for me to stay with a square setup and loose the desire to go wide in the back. I've also been told its mostly dependent on tread design and maybe the all seasons that come stock are what I'm feeling and some good summer tires might make it better in either case. Also, being that the factory tires are 40 series, not sure if going 30 or 35 increases or decreases this.

The only suspension mod I have is the BMR CB005, and car was aligned after install and I've rotated my tires a couple of times already and they are wearing evenly.

One thing that I'm not sure of, I added a supercharger, so the front end might be 100lbs heavier now. Just thought about that, I didn't notice the tramlining before, maybe that has something to do with it?

Can anyone who has a grasp of this give me some feedback.
Thank you.

Sponsored

 

[VinnAY]

Tramlining most typically isn't going to be solved with wider tires which usually exacerbates the problems. In my car I called it bump steer but different people call it different things. There is a bump steer kit though.

 

[jbailer]

Tramlining and bumpsteer are 2 different things but frequently confused. Tramlining is what the OP described as the tires following imperfections in the road and indeed is increased normally with wider tires. However it's more to do with the tire design/ tread pattern. I know my stock P-Zeros weren't that bad when they were new but after about 5k miles I started noticing some. By 11k miles they were loud, hydroplaned and the tramlining was pretty bad yet is still looked like they had some tread life. Bumpsteer is noticeable when you go over a bump through a corner and the wheel jerks. At least that's they way I've always understood it.

I've had problems with bumpsteer on my last 3 Mustangs (06, 10 + 15), all lowered about an inch. I've used the Steeda bump steer kit to successfully resolve it each time.

 

[Norm Peterson]

So, I'm shopping new wheels and tires and have a question about my GT following imperfections in the road.

I've also been told its mostly dependent on tread design

Except possibly in the wet, tread design isn't nearly as important a factor as the tire's carcass design - the cord and belt plies and the details of their arrangement (which might not be as simple as most people think when they hear 'radial tires' ;) ).

Given that the non-R GT350 rides on wheels and MPSS tires a good bit wider than what you're currently driving on, that should be another good data point for choosing your own wheel width and offset. You should be OK with wheels in between those widths if the offsets fall more or less proportionately between what yours are and what the GT350 uses.


In my experience, MPSS tires (300 TW) are relatively insensitive to tramlining even when mounted on wheels of max-recommended width. 285/35's on 18x11's, where 235/50's were OE stock, not enough difference to matter even though the 285's are a little over an inch shorter.

On a different V8/RWD car of generally similar size and weight to these Mustangs, I've had 245/50 tires that were pretty bad as far as tramlining was concerned.


Norm

 

[ForYourOwnGood]

I have the same Pirelli A/S tires as OP and switching to the MPSS I have now helped a lot. It introduced other problems because now the tires are gripping better and the suspension weakness snows more, but the tramlining on the highway is significantly better. That being said, I have an EB so my front is much lighter, I don't know if my experience would translate to the OP's car.

 

[Bartly]

Hey thanks for the replies guys!! Sounds like tire manufacturer and design are going to help me make a better decision. Like always, now I need to do even more research on offsets and just jump in with both feet with spending some coin.

Thanks again.

Sponsored