Wheel to Strut Clearance

[thatonenozz]

Which front suspension offers the best wheel to struts clearance? I know the stock struts have a dent in them presumably for wheel clearance, but I'm wondering if there are aftermarket coilovers that offer more? Just got a set of apex 18x11's +52 to run square with extended studs and a spacer in front, but I don't wanna go too crazy with the spacer so I'm looking for suspension options to go along with it. Anyone running a similar setup?

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[NightmareMoon]

AFe have extra clearance built in.

Or you could slot your top strut to spindle bolt hole a couple of mm and run camber plates if you just need a little. Some brands come slotted that way anyhow, but aFe are one of the few designed for extra tire clearance.

 

[thatonenozz]

AFe have extra clearance built in.

Or you could slot your top strut to spindle bolt hole a couple of mm and run camber plates if you just need a little. Some brands come slotted that way anyhow, but aFe are one of the few designed for extra tire clearance.

Thanks for the info! Do you by any chance know how they compare to the Cortex JRi's with the offset strut in terms of clearance?

 

[Hotpart.com]

I believe Cortex has offset front struts.

 

[NightmareMoon]

Thanks for the info! Do you by any chance know how they compare to the Cortex JRi's with the offset strut in terms of clearance?

No clue, all that stuff is outside my price range at the moment.

 

[Wolverine]

NightmareMoon - I think you suggested the same thing I was considering regarding slotting the strut and running camber plates to get a little extra tire clearance.

That discussion is here if anyone's interested: Camber plates + camber bolts = tire clearance?

 

[It's Rob]

I'm also looking to get the apex 18x11's +52 SM-10 and looking to run 295/30/19 tires in square setup. It's suggested that i would need a -2 degree camber to fit 295 tires.Ii'm hoping to go with a little less camber like 1.6 front. Would the OHLINS mustang road and track suspension kit be considered offset struts for the front?
https://www.cobbtuning.com/products...nd-track-coilovers-mustang-ecoboost-2015-2020

 

[NightmareMoon]

I'm also looking to get the apex 18x11's +52 SM-10 and looking to run 295/30/19 tires in square setup. It's suggested that i would need a -2 degree camber to fit 295 tires.Ii'm hoping to go with a little less camber like 1.6 front. Would the OHLINS mustang road and track suspension kit be considered offset struts for the front?
https://www.cobbtuning.com/products...nd-track-coilovers-mustang-ecoboost-2015-2020

I don’t believe those are offset struts. Doesn’t really matter as you only need offset struts to run very wide tires, wider than 305s anyway. The 2 degrees is to get it to tuck under the fender, not to clear the strut.

why run so little camber? Seems a waste to run Ohlins and 11” square wheels and then run Prius camber settings. 2 deg is kind of conservative. If you’re using the car (track or autox), even more camber would be better.

 

[It's Rob]

So the idea here is the this will be my daily driver 90% of the time. I'd like to keep the tires at less of a camber during my normal driving for the best traction, without too much poke, zero fender rub, and zero suspension rubbing. And the rest of the 10% I'll be taking it to the track for my fun days.
I got my Info from https://support.apexraceparts.com/h...5483093-S550-Mustang-Wheel-Tire-Fitment-Guide
See the portion under the performance street/track fitment;
"295/30-19 or 295/35-19 tires can also be used with approximately -2 degrees of front camber and at least 12mm spacers up front to clear most suspensions. Aftermarket suspensions with offset struts can typically bypass spacers. See below."

 

[Stang55]

Which front suspension offers the best wheel to struts clearance? I know the stock struts have a dent in them presumably for wheel clearance, but I'm wondering if there are aftermarket coilovers that offer more? Just got a set of apex 18x11's +52 to run square with extended studs and a spacer in front, but I don't wanna go too crazy with the spacer so I'm looking for suspension options to go along with it. Anyone running a similar setup?

Apex SM10 19x11 ET52 squared here, I'm on Ford Racing shocks and struts and you'll need no more or no less than 25mm spacers in the front to clear the strut. After you install it you will see that it clears. Just make sure you check clearances after modifying your alignment to your liking. Do not drive off until you check the clearance yourself.

 

[NightmareMoon]

So the idea here is the this will be my daily driver 90% of the time. I'd like to keep the tires at less of a camber during my normal driving for the best traction, without too much poke, zero fender rub, and zero suspension rubbing. And the rest of the 10% I'll be taking it to the track for my fun days.

yep, less than 2 degrees will poke more, grip less, and may rub the outside fenders. The right amount of extra camber helps with all that.

the wheel lips will be very close to the strut (if these are not offset) with 25mm spacers. 12mm has got to be extremely close to metal on metal contact. 25mm allows a 305 to just barely clear., thats what I’d run for spacers.

 

[Jackson1320]

Why a 11” wheel if you are only running 295s. Seams like you are just making things harder. I don’t think you need a wheel that wide for that tire. But anyway a 10.5 wheel fits just fine even with 305/35/19 with almost any coilover. Not sure about 11” wheel as no one I have ever known has felt the need

 

[Jonyxz]

Why a 11” wheel if you are only running 295s. Seams like you are just making things harder. I don’t think you need a wheel that wide for that tire. But anyway a 10.5 wheel fits just fine even with 305/35/19 with almost any coilover. Not sure about 11” wheel as no one I have ever known has felt the need

Agreed, if you only plan on 295/35 you can go 19x10 square and wont need extended studs. Most 295/35 have a 10" thread width

 

[It's Rob]

Aren't there are ideal tire sizes for function and performance for specific tire widths. Ideal tire widths for a 10.5 rim would be 275-285, with a maximum of 295. I need reliability when cornering at 60-80 mph without any adverse effects going on at the wheels. maybe my information is incorrect, but please tell me otherwise, i'm still learning.
What can happen if i'm running a 10 inch wide rim, and a 295 tire? won't the tire bulge out too much at the rim lip when cornering hard, or will the tire move too far away from the width of the rim lip? i'd like the tire and rim to line up perfectly, and not look like the rim is squeezing the tire(or looking like a mushroom top).

outside of reading the forums and other website, i'm using the three website below for my data;
https://support.apexraceparts.com/h...5483093-S550-Mustang-Wheel-Tire-Fitment-Guide
https://www.tyresizecalculator.com/tyre-wheel-calculators/tyre-size-for-rim-size-width-calculator
https://tiresize.com/calculator/

 

[NightmareMoon]

If you’re limited to a tire width by some rule, then you definitely want to go as wide as possible with the wheel. All things being equal, stretching the tire onto the widest possible wheel gets the most out of the tire.

A square tire fit to the wheel is usually the best way to get the most performance when you’re limited not by class rules for tire width, but by strut clearance or some such thing (305 on a 11, 295 /10.5, 285/10) are what the tire manufacturers expect for wheel width and usually performs just fine for the type of stiff sidewalled performance tire we hope to be running. If you’re using a squishy sidewalled comfort-optimized street tire (Continental, I’m looking at you), then stretching the tire may be a bit better than a square fit.

a pinched fit like a 285 on a 9” or a 295 on a 10” isn’t typically optimal, but its not necessarily all that much of a bad thing if the tire is good and stiff, and you may not feel the difference at all if its a mild pinch of only a half inch like a 285/9.5 or 295/10. You basically give up much of the extra contact patch from the wider tire but results will vary as to if its faster or if it feels worse.

i’ve used all three fits, from pinched to stretched to square, and 305/30 is the best, if you don’t mind the extra cost of good spacers and labor of longer studs to fit the 11s on the front. Hell, I may try 315 square on an 11 next if a test fit looks like it will clear on my car.

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