[marshallbhh]

I have talked to numerous dealers and there is a lot of conflicting information out there.

First off, will the Shelby GT 500 replica wheel (18x9.5) fit both in the front and back of the Mustang? I have heard that only 8.5s will fit in the front?

Second, on 18x9.5 wheels, what is the widest tire you can put on there without it extending out wider than the car and without rubbing? It seems that 255 is safe, but the 275 is do-able.

 

[Stevan26]

I have talked to numerous dealers and there is a lot of conflicting information out there.

First off, will the Shelby GT 500 replica wheel (18x9.5) fit both in the front and back of the Mustang? I have heard that only 8.5s will fit in the front?

Second, on 18x9.5 wheels, what is the widest tire you can put on there without it extending out wider than the car and without rubbing? It seems that 255 is safe, but the 275 is do-able.

at 8" wide rims, you can go 255 MAX at 9" wide you can go 275 MAX. with 9.5 you can go 285! thats what the GT500 has. and thats the size of width tire that fits that rim...

 

[redruder]

The GT500 is a S197 just like the GT and V6. The diference between them is the drive train and grills. The GT500 has a different hood and bumper cover. Everything else can be interchanged.

 

[marshallbhh]

Cool, thanks fellas.

So the 18x9.5s will fit in the front, as will tires that are 285 wide, but will they stick out farther than the width of the car or will they rub? The GT 500 has the staggered look which I was hoping to avoid by putting 275s on the front and back which seems to be the limit for the front but I'm not sure.

 

[sqidd]

Cool, thanks fellas.

So the 18x9.5s will fit in the front, as will tires that are 285 wide, but will they stick out farther than the width of the car or will they rub? The GT 500 has the staggered look which I was hoping to avoid by putting 275s on the front and back which seems to be the limit for the front but I'm not sure.

You can go as high as a 18x10 in front with a 285 without rubbing. You can go with a 18x11 in the rear with most 315's without rubbing. The offsets need to be prefect though.

A good fat setup is:

18x9.5's with 44mm of offset in the front with 275's

18x10.5's with 69mm of offset in the rear with 295's or 305's depending on the tire manufacturer recomendation.

Keep in mind all tire widths are not created equal. Manufacturer "A" may recomend a different width rim than manufacturer "B" for the "same size" tire. Always consult the tire manufacturers rim width recomendations before buying tires. I have seen 275's from different manufacturers that measured as much as 20mm different than eachother.

 

[marshallbhh]

I agree. That setup would be pretty nasty.

I don't know much about offsets, though I looked around online and got the gist of it. The GT 500 replica wheels have an offset of +50mm. Is this too far off or is it close enough that NITTO 275s could go in the front?

 

[marshallbhh]

And I would also like to avoid doing any suspension work at the moment if that factors into it.

 

[sqidd]

I agree. That setup would be pretty nasty.

I don't know much about offsets, though I looked around online and got the gist of it. The GT 500 replica wheels have an offset of +50mm. Is this too far off or is it close enough that NITTO 275s could go in the front?

That's only 1/4", they will fit fine. 44mm puts them right at the outside edge of the fender. Sticking them in another 1/4" leaves lots of room still.

 

[sqidd]

And I would also like to avoid doing any suspension work at the moment if that factors into it.

You will be fine. Next step would be some higher rate springs and shocks/struts to control the extra mass of the wheels/tires.

 

[marshallbhh]

I appreciate all the help. I'm going to order these puppies next week.

Thanks.

 

[sqidd]

I appreciate all the help. I'm going to order these puppies next week.

Thanks.

Most replica wheels are junk compared to their OEM counterparts. One of the biggest problem being hub diameter which can only be solved with hub centric rings.

Hub Centric Rings:


The most likely problem you have with the aftermarket wheels is that most of the time the hub and the part of the rim that the hub centers on are not the same size. Even with tapered lug nuts the wheels still won’t center themselves properly. Add to that bigger rims and low profile tires and you have a nasty vibration issue. I just got some custom rims right before the end of the season. I already knew that the hub/wheel interface was not the same size, I couldn’t get them that way. I bolted up the rims at my house and drove over to my friends machine shop to make hub centric rings. They take up the space between the wheel and the hub. I made my own because I wanted them to have ZERO slop I them because this spring the car is going for 200mph. On the way to my friends shop there was definity a vibration in the car, especially at 140mph. On the way home with the rings we made the car was smooth as glass all the way up to 170mph (didn’t do any testing above that). Some hub centric rings will help out tremendously. Just do a google search and tons will pop up.

Another problem with aftermarket wheels is that they are NEVER STRAIGHT AND ROUND. My new wheels had to be widened I the rear so I could get the width I wanted and part of that process is making the rim true. I was actually very surprised at the difference after the rears were widened/trued. The rear rims were as smooth as glass and the front rims, which didn’t have any work doe to them had a slight vibration. I pulled the front wheels and had the same guy true them up for me. Once back on the car they were as smooth as the rears. At the end of the day you get what you pay for and unfortunately true high performance rims cost $1000/wheel. If you don’t spend that much you get lower quality. I can’t justify spending $4000 on rims so I got a $1000 set and paid about $600 getting the rears widened/trued and the fronts trued up. All in about $1600 and they are fairly light too.

If you are going for GT500 wheels there is a place that sells OEM sets with the OEM tires with ZERO miles on them cheap. They sell on eBay. Their handle is greenleafprime. Look em up, it’s hard to pass on.:bigthumbsup