Why 19 inch wheels as performance option?

[Stuntman]

It's as if you didn't read what I said, every point you made was already covered by my post 10min before your post. so i'll simply add, 18in wheels won't fit over the 15in brembos.

The BBS 18" wheels on the BOSS 302Rs 15" brakes clear.

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[JoeDogInKC]

Not sure, but does the BOSS have 6-piston Brembo's, or just 4-piston?

 

[S550Boss]

The 18s are shorter than stock, less tall. The only reasons they are used is because of dated Continental rules.
For handling, the last thing you want to do is to put shorter tires on the car. This car is too big and too heavy for 18s.
The Boss has 14" 4-piston and little stock size rotors on the back. It's under-braked.

And the Z/28 has 19s.

 

[Stuntman]

For handling, the last thing you want to do is to put shorter tires on the car. This car is too big and too heavy for 18s.
The Boss has 14" 4-piston and little stock size rotors on the back. It's under-braked.

And the Z/28 has 19s.

Why is that?

The 302R has 15" brembos and it and the CTSCC both run 18s

 

[S550Boss]

They had to create special 18" wheels to fit over those brakes. This isn't something desirable - it's just the rules of the series they are stuck with.
The 302R started out with 14" brakes and 4-pistons up front. They were only allowed the slightly larger 15" 6-pistons because the car was becoming uncompetitive. Now the car is very uncompetitive and fading quickly.
The Z/28 team determined it would handle better with a certain amount of sidewall all around the 19s with a 305 fit that specification and also fit under the car around the steering. The 20s are very very heavy. Alpha, BTW, uses a shorter tire to keep weight down.

 

[Stuntman]

They had to create special 18" wheels to fit over those brakes. This isn't something desirable - it's just the rules of the series they are stuck with.
The 302R started out with 14" brakes and 4-pistons up front. They were only allowed the slightly larger 15" 6-pistons because the car was becoming uncompetitive. Now the car is very uncompetitive and fading quickly.
The Z/28 team determined it would handle better with a certain amount of sidewall all around the 19s with a 305 fit that specification and also fit under the car around the steering. The 20s are very very heavy. Alpha, BTW, uses a shorter tire to keep weight down.

The 302R is using the same 18" BBS wheels that it was introduced with 4 years ago. They are not special wheels. The 302R also now has a 4-piston Brembo and 15" front rotors and 14", GT500 rear rotors.

Both the 302R and GS--classed Z28 run on 275/35-18s.

 

[S550Boss]

Tiny tiny tires... stupid. None of this is any relationship to the street cars and Ford wouldn't design them that way.

 

[Stuntman]

Tiny tiny tires... stupid. None of this is any relationship to the street cars and Ford wouldn't design them that way.

Its the same diameter as an 03 cobra.

 

[KGrGunMan]

You know, perhaps he clicked the "Go Advanced" button down below the quick reply box and was typing out his post before seeing yours?

Set your watch for 10min, then read what he said; it seems insulting to his intelligence if it took 10min to come up with that. He posted no new information, and was proven wrong before he even posted. He reads so little, in his last post he thought I was agreeing with him and wanting credit when I was trying to show he was incorrect. He has not posted back because he doesn't read the threads.

 

[Javelina]

A 305 wide tire that is between 27 and 27.7in tall.:(

I could only find 295's that fit that bill.

http://tire-size-conversion.com/tiresizes/295-35R19.htm

 

[KGrGunMan]

I could only find 295's that fit that bill.

http://tire-size-conversion.com/tiresizes/295-35R19.htm

Yea....305/30/20's fit that bill what was this thread about?

 

[BNSF E9]

I'm not so concerned about tires, as I am with wheels with the PP option.

I've always wanted the Cragar Series 08/61 Super Sport Chrome Wheels. However with the Performance Package I can't find Cragars in the 19 inch SS Series.

It looks like the 610C comes in a 20 X 9 which should work in front, and 20 X 10 which should work in the rear. I do realize that new tires are needed. Would the increase in size work with a plain GT, and not the Premium?

I've never had the opportunity to run Cragars before, and may not be able to this time either.

Any advice would be appreciated.

 

[KGrGunMan]

I'm not so concerned about tires, as I am with wheels with the PP option.

I've always wanted the Cragar Series 08/61 Super Sport Chrome Wheels. However with the Performance Package I can't find Cragars in the 19 inch SS Series.

It looks like the 610C comes in a 20 X 9 which should work in front, and 20 X 10 which should work in the rear. I do realize that new tires are needed. Would the increase in size work with a plain GT, and not the Premium?

I've never had the opportunity to run Cragars before, and may not be able to this time either.

Any advice would be appreciated.

Base vs premium will make zero difference to what wheels you're capable of fitting. The offset of the wheel is extremely important, assuming proper offset, either 20x9's or 20x10's should fit on all 4 corners. You better be concerned with tires and tire sizes, that'll make or break if your wheels truly "work".

Tires are extremely important to nearly every aspect of the cars behavior. I personally choose my tire size first, then find my tires of choice, then choose the best wheels to make that tire size work. Looking at every piece of information I have available to me (and this might change an hour after I get the car, when I can measure some things) from a performance point of view, 305/30/20 looks like the way to go. The selection of tires in that size is almost as massive as it's contact patch. My tire choice lead me to needing a wheel that is 20x10.5 with an offset T.B.D. when I get the car.

 

[Norm Peterson]

I'm not so concerned about tires, as I am with wheels with the PP option.

I've always wanted the Cragar Series 08/61 Super Sport Chrome Wheels. However with the Performance Package I can't find Cragars in the 19 inch SS Series.

It looks like the 610C comes in a 20 X 9 which should work in front, and 20 X 10 which should work in the rear. I do realize that new tires are needed. Would the increase in size work with a plain GT, and not the Premium?

I've never had the opportunity to run Cragars before, and may not be able to this time either.

Any advice would be appreciated.

For an alleged performance pack, 9" wide wheels aren't even entry-level, and will normally dictate a narrower front tire (read: heavier understeer that shouldn't be a PP goal). Having a slightly better configuration than the non-1LE Camaro SS (20x8/20x9) doesn't make it very good.

Until and unless people discover that the S550 needs a little extra lateral stiffness in the rear wheel/tire package than it needs up front, you probably want to stay away from wheel width stagger. As an individual DIY mod, handling balance doesn't have to be as important, but it is something you might want to consider.


A couple of searches at Tire Rack finds 45 different tires in 285/35-19 (and 32 more in 285/35-18, which is still enough tire in terms of load capacity). These will mount nicely on wheels from 10" wide (a rather conservative choice) to 11" (if you're a more demanding driver).


Really, the only functional reason I can think of for 20's or even 19's is that you can't fit 18's over brakes much bigger than 14".


Norm

 

[tbonez3858]

Base vs premium will make zero difference to what wheels you're capable of fitting. The offset of the wheel is extremely important, assuming proper offset, either 20x9's or 20x10's should fit on all 4 corners. You better be concerned with tires and tire sizes, that'll make or break if your wheels truly "work".

Tires are extremely important to nearly every aspect of the cars behavior. I personally choose my tire size first, then find my tires of choice, then choose the best wheels to make that tire size work. Looking at every piece of information I have available to me (and this might change an hour after I get the car, when I can measure some things) from a performance point of view, 305/30/20 looks like the way to go. The selection of tires in that size is almost as massive as it's contact patch. My tire choice lead me to needing a wheel that is 20x10.5 with an offset T.B.D. when I get the car.

You seem to know a lot about tires. Its one of the areas Im most ignorant as I've never spent time learning the details. Do you work for a wheel manufacturer or tire company?

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