[mrvandermey]

Okay, I went to take the Stang to the shop to repair the damage from a couple months ago....and guess what? I lost ANOTHER tire...this time the front one. I am now beginning to think I had defective tires. No sharp object punctured either tire. The tires had Nitrogen in them so no tire pressure fluxuation. But two tires have gone flat on me.

Here is my question. I recenty replaced the rear tires with 275/35ZR20..love the look. The fronts are currently 245/40ZR20. I now need to replace my front tires. Now if I keep them staggered with 255/35ZR20 (can not find a matching set for 255/40ZR20), there will be a 1/2 inch difference in tires from front to rear (rear being the larger). Is that half inch going to make a signifcant difference in handling or performance. Should I just spend more money to get matching 275/35ZR20's?

So here are my options for getting two new front tires:
1) 245/40ZR20....$300 for the two....staggered look & narrower footprint but similar overall diameter to rear
2) 255/35ZR20....$300 for the two...still staggered & slighty narrow footprint, but 1/2" smaller in diameter than rear
3) 275/35ZR20....$500 for the two...not staggered, same foot print and diameter....but more expesnive

Any advice, ideas, suggestions?

[BKid]

I would spend the money to get all matching yet this is just my opinion. If you plan on driving the car as an everyday car you can rotate the tires. Now if the look is what you want then go the other way.

[mrvandermey]

well we all know my car is not a daily driver. So rotating tires is not that improtant to me..I am just concerned about the 1/2 inch difference in overall diameter.

[jgard07]

Are you sure the 275's will work on the front without any clearance issues?

[mrvandermey]

Well since this was the first time in history I did not get any real assistance from AFM, I made a gamble and shose the 255/35ZR20...I grant they are approx. 1/2 inch smaller in overall diameter from the rear tires, but the overall diameter is still at 27 inches which is what the stock wheels/tires...so my speedometer calibration should still be good.

The 275/35ZR20 will fit on the front, and should not have any clearance issues....Saleen and Shelby use 275's on the fronts.

[$teve]

Originally Posted by mrvandermey

Well since this was the first time in history I did not get any real assistance from AFM, I made a gamble and shose the 255/35ZR20...I grant they are approx. 1/2 inch smaller in overall diameter from the rear tires, but the overall diameter is still at 27 inches which is what the stock wheels/tires...so my speedometer calibration should still be good.

The 275/35ZR20 will fit on the front, and should not have any clearance issues....Saleen and Shelby use 275's on the fronts.

Seems like a good move, not sure if 275s would fit on front. Also, I think a half inch higher in back is better than a half inch shorter.

I would assume speedo goes off back tires -- do you know if this is true?

[mrvandermey]

Hhhmmm...I thought the speedo was off the front wheels, but I could be wrong.

I am just hoping the half inch difference does not cause any problems with performance of the car.