Hey guys, I have a question for everyone who has tried this set up, specifically the rears! I talked to a guy at Tirerack.com who left a bad taste in my mouth about this setup. I wanted to go with a 255/45/18 rear all seasons with 245/40/18 fronts. I know this topic has already been mentioned in this forum but I've seen very little actual content about how this setup performs and feels. The guy at tirerack.com said I would basically neuter the car because the rear tires would roll under the rim while cornering. I'm not looking for super performance here, but I don't want the rear to feel like its floating or squishy. I was a little surprised that he would say that considering it is only a little wider than stock. Could someone who actually has this setup please comment on their experience!
Thanks!
Jeff

 

Hmmm no response to your question so I guess I will post up for you.

I am running a TE37 9.5 front and 10.5 rear. The fronts with 245/35 are perfect...but I think that I can go wider. The rears HAVE to use the 255/40 or else I am going to hit the crap out of the fender lip which is already rolled. The tires are stretched a little due to the 255 on 10.5" rims.

I have no real problems with this set up. Then again I am running on wider rims and the tires are stretched..thus the tire rolling under the rim....is a little unlikely. I have gottten a little faster at the track versus my 275 sizes before. The handling is still mostly neutral with some tendency to oversteer with throttle input. I prefer this setup to my last one of 245 front 275 rear however.

Though...why would you want to spend the money on a tire that is only slightly larger than stock. The overall difference in width might be a quarter of an inch or less depending on the tire brand and model. In my opinion, unless you modded the engine to generate more power, the extra width will only be for looks...and if you are going to do that...use the 275 in the rears. If you are planning to road race the car, from my experience and thoughts, I think that the fronts should be replaced with the 245,..and then just run 245 on all 4 corners. This will reduce the understeer a little and make the car a little more neutral. That is assuming that you want to spend as little money as possible. Next best bet would be to change the sways, to reduce understeer a bit more and a little more on the side of oversteer....controlable oversteer that is.

The guy at the Tirerack might be on to something if you are using the stock 18's and running a higher profile tire. The tire will be crowned and sidewall flex will be increased. You would have to really lean on it to roll.....but I guess it could be possible. The stock rims are a little too narrow (8 inches) to run wider than the 245's. The 255 already recommend 8.5" minimum. Which means that the tire will crown a little when inflated.....not too good for tire longevity and handling if I may say so.

If you want a wider stance using stock rims...then I would suggest using a 5mm spacer. This will effectively give you a percieved offset of +25. The stock offsets (not sure about the 05 model) are +30mm. You can run a +22-23 mm offset with 9.5 wide rims okay. Run the spacers on all corners and use the 245's and that might work. Mind you though that as good as the spacers are today...you still would want to use the correct offsets in the rim to eliminate the need for them. Gap between the rim and the hub under a lot of constant stress could lead to some issues in the distant future.

<P ID="edit"><FONT class="small"><EM>Edited by XLR8SN on 11/10/04 02:14 PM.</EM></FONT></P>

 

Thanks! I am going to be using my stock rims. The tires that I selected for the rears say they will fit on rims 8" - 10.5" so I'm at the narrowest of the rims it will fit, but I"m not going outside their recommendations for rim size. This is why I thought it would be ok. I'm not changing the profile of the tire, the diameter on the stock rear tires is 26.8", the P255/45/18's that I want to put on are 27" in diameter. Not much of a difference there. I just really don't see how 10MM will change the performance and/or look of the back end. Unfortunately the tires I want do not come in P245/45/18's. So I just want to be confident putting them on that they will last and have decent performance. Any thoughts?

 

One more thing. The whole reason I'm changing the tires is because I live in Ohio and winter is right around the corner. I will leave it in the garage when we get heavy snow storms but it is my daily driver so I need to put all seasons on it! The all seasons I want only come in P255/45/18's for the rear and P245/40/18's for the fronts. I'm looking forward to having a wider wheel up front, I don't think I'll really notice much of a difference on the back with the P255's.

 

Oh, if it is going to be for the snow season....then more than likely you should be okay. You are not supposed to be "racing" around anyhow.

The 255 wont make a big difference in regards to performance due to the slight width change. I think that the brand and type of tire would be more important. The 10mm actually does make a difference when you use a 10.5" rear rim. I forgot about that in regards to the stock rim...I would have about 1" more to worry about since the stocks are 8 and I am running a 10.5. The bolts arent long enough to run a large spacer...so I would not exceed 5mm anyways.

Why dont you get the Blizzak LM-22 with UNI-T? The ratings were good and they have 245/45 18's in stock. Direct replacement for stock tire sizes.

 

I have the Kuhmo ASX 255/45/18 rear and 245/40/18 front. I am pleased thus far. I have 3000 miles on the tires.
First impression....VIRTUALLY NO UNDERSTEER with this size on the front....you will love it.....
Second impression will be that they are soft/squishy.....i ran 35psi at first. Jumped to 37psi and the soft/squishy feeling deminished....
Third impression...after 1500 miles, I no longer felt that soft/squishy feeling...No they don't corner as well as the Pilot or other summer only high performance, but they are more than adequate for everyday driving and decent FUN factor....
Fouth Impression....THEY ARE QUITE and you don't have to crack them off the rim to rotate...They are not direction, just "this side out"...So rotating the front from side to side as required will help prevent "cupping" and keep them quite...
Fifth impression....NO VDC problems....Tire Rack told me the same CRAP....all has worked flawlessly....
Sixth impression....GREAT PRICE.....
Seventh impression....The only overall negative that I have is an easy one to change....Since the fronts are a bit shorter than stock (more space from time to fender), I really want to lower my car now.....I am going to do a .8ish drop rear and 1.2ish drop front....
Second impression.


Hope this helps....
g35coupe@comcast.net

 

Thanks! That is what I wanted to hear! I was a little worried after talking to the guy at tirerack, I didn't really think it would change the performance all that much. Thanks for posting you guys! I appreciate it!

 

Good luck and take care in the winter.