Anyone run 18" rims all the way around?

[01TriBlack]

I just got 18" American Racing rims and Kumho tires all the way around (well...DUH!). I dunno about the look. The rears appear smaller than the front. I would imagine this is because the 18" rims in the front fill the wheel space more than the 17's and the rears now look as though they aren't filling the same amount of space? I think they look sort of odd - does this "look" stick out like a sore thumb to the uninitiated?

Have great weekends, all. Cruisin' weather looks great!

Mary

 

[ZZRider]

I have 18's all around, and do not notice a big difference in appearance. Mine is also lowered though.


ZZ

 

[TooTall]

I run 20's all round. The rear rotors are smaller are smaller than the front which should make them appear larger than the front.

 

[VETTEX2]

DO YOU ALL RUN THE SAME SIZE TIRE ALL THE WAY AROUND?

I want to run 4 of the same size so I can rotate my tires......

 

[Tripleblack51]

Mary,
This may be due to a couple of reasons. One is what you stated, the other is the fact that you may have put on lower profile tires than were originally on the car. It may be a combination of both.
There is an easy fix to either/both...lower your car.
I lowered mine as far as it would go on the stock bolts (3/4 inch in the rear and 1/2 inch in the front. It gave the car a sleeker look and did not affect my ride.
It also effectively closes the gap in your wheel well.

Good luck with your beautiful vette.

Regards,
Pedro

I just got 18" American Racing rims and Kumho tires all the way around (well...DUH!). I dunno about the look. The rears appear smaller than the front. I would imagine this is because the 18" rims in the front fill the wheel space more than the 17's and the rears now look as though they aren't filling the same amount of space? I think they look sort of odd - does this "look" stick out like a sore thumb to the uninitiated?

Have great weekends, all. Cruisin' weather looks great!

Mary

 

[01TriBlack]

Hey, Pedro. Yes, the Kumhos are a lower-profiled tire for sure. I was thinking this also has an impact in the filling of the wheel well area. The front is filled, for all practical purposes.... I can't see lowering the front. (One nice side benefit of the larger rims in front is I don't scrape going out of the driveway as bad.) It's the rear that looks as though it's got a severe gap. I was considering lowering the car - but can the rear just be lowered? Wouldn't this look goofy? Could I get a different Kumho tire for the rear that wasn't as low a profile (would this look ridiculous with low profile front tires?) and then lower it minimally? I'm afraid I made a huge (and costly) mistake here.

Thanks for your input..... appreciated, always.

Mary

 

[01TriBlack]

DO YOU ALL RUN THE SAME SIZE TIRE ALL THE WAY AROUND?

I want to run 4 of the same size so I can rotate my tires......

I'm curious of the feedback you get on your question. I think that's my problem and intend on remedying it today (hopefully). They put all the same size tire (Kumho Ecsta MX's) on my car: Too large for the front (hence making them appear too small for the rear) and creates a very imbalanced look because of the wheel well issue. Whacked appearance... in my opinion, anyway.

I'd be interested in hearing what you decide.

Mary

 

[Tripleblack51]

Hey, Pedro. Yes, the Kumhos are a lower-profiled tire for sure. I was thinking this also has an impact in the filling of the wheel well area. The front is filled, for all practical purposes.... I can't see lowering the front. (One nice side benefit of the larger rims in front is I don't scrape going out of the driveway as bad.) It's the rear that looks as though it's got a severe gap. I was considering lowering the car - but can the rear just be lowered? Wouldn't this look goofy? Could I get a different Kumho tire for the rear that wasn't as low a profile (would this look ridiculous with low profile front tires?) and then lower it minimally? I'm afraid I made a huge (and costly) mistake here.

Thanks for your input..... appreciated, always.

Mary

Mary,

I wouldn't say you made a mistake. I'm sure your car looks great.
You can indeed lower just the rear end. That may be your solution.

I am getting ready to put 19" wheels all the way around on my tripleblack and will undoubtedly have to lower it some more because of the lower profile tires.
I will probably go with aftermarket bolts and add some Bilstein shocks.

Sometimes when you make one modification, you have to make an additional one to "balance" things out.

By the way, got any pics of your tripleblack?



Pedro

 

[01TriBlack]

Hi again, Pedro. Thanks so much for your help on this.

Okay. I've ordered different tires for the rear. I don't know if they're going to make a difference. I need to backup here: I got these Kumhos from my mechanic (very well known Vette mechanic in the Twin Cities) - they have less than 100 miles on them... he had them on one of his Vettes he just sold. I was out of town and brought the car in to have some minor stuff taken care of and he noticed the wear bars were showing on my run flats. He knew I didn't want to spend a gob of money on tires just now - and he knew I was considering putting the 18" rims all the way around. He had these rims he had taken off another Vette of his, sooo he was kind enough to put the American Racing rims (Casino-style) on the car with the Kumhos he had taken off his car. He sold them to me for $1,200, all inclusive. I love the rims. I love the tires... but they're the wrong size, clearly. They are all 275/35/18's. (I had people POINT at the car today - you know they were goin', "Whoa! Look at the rear! Those tires are smaller!" They aren't, but appear to be.) If I start from scratch, replacing all 4 tires, it's going to be spendy! I already paid him for the wrong-sized tires. So my questions are these:

1. Will switching the rears to 275/40/18's fill the gap? I could justify the price of 2 tires, but not 4.

2. If not, will lowering just the rear, in combination with the 275/40/18's, fill the gap and not look odd?

3. Is the lowering of the rear end something my mechanic can do? If not, where would I bring it?

Thank you, thank you, thank you for your guidance.

Mary

(P.S. No pics yet - I'm waiting for some greenery for backdrop. I'd love to see yours. )

 

[Tripleblack51]

Hi again, Pedro. Thanks so much for your help on this.

Okay. I've ordered different tires for the rear. I don't know if they're going to make a difference. I need to backup here: I got these Kumhos from my mechanic (very well known Vette mechanic in the Twin Cities) - they have less than 100 miles on them... he had them on one of his Vettes he just sold. I was out of town and brought the car in to have some minor stuff taken care of and he noticed the wear bars were showing on my run flats. He knew I didn't want to spend a gob of money on tires just now - and he knew I was considering putting the 18" rims all the way around. He had these rims he had taken off another Vette of his, sooo he was kind enough to put the American Racing rims (Casino-style) on the car with the Kumhos he had taken off his car. He sold them to me for $1,200, all inclusive. I love the rims. I love the tires... but they're the wrong size, clearly. They are all 275/35/18's. (I had people POINT at the car today - you know they were goin', "Whoa! Look at the rear! Those tires are smaller!" They aren't, but appear to be.) If I start from scratch, replacing all 4 tires, it's going to be spendy! I already paid him for the wrong-sized tires. So my questions are these:

1. Will switching the rears to 275/40/18's fill the gap? I could justify the price of 2 tires, but not 4.

2. If not, will lowering just the rear, in combination with the 275/40/18's, fill the gap and not look odd?

3. Is the lowering of the rear end something my mechanic can do? If not, where would I bring it?

Thank you, thank you, thank you for your guidance.

Mary

(P.S. No pics yet - I'm waiting for some greenery for backdrop. I'd love to see yours. )

Mary,
A popular choice for a lot of C5 enthusiasts with 18" wheels all around is
18 x 9.5 front and 18 x 10.5 rear wheels
265/35 front and 295/35 rear tires.

This works well and will give you the desired look of bigger/fatter tires on the
rear.

I hope that this is helpful. I'm sure someone else will chime in.

A couple of pics of my tripleblack and '67 are in my signature.

Regards,

Pedro

 

[powderski13]

I run Z06 chromies 18x9.5 front and 18x10.5 rears. Michelin Pilot Sports 265x35x18 front and 295x35x18 rears. Lowered about 1". I like the look of 18" wheels

 

[01TriBlack]

Mary,
A popular choice for a lot of C5 enthusiasts with 18" wheels all around is
18 x 9.5 front and 18 x 10.5 rear wheels
265/35 front and 295/35 rear tires.

This works well and will give you the desired look of bigger/fatter tires on the
rear.

I hope that this is helpful. I'm sure someone else will chime in.

A couple of pics of my tripleblack and '67 are in my signature.

Regards,

Pedro

Hey, Pedro. This is what I ended up with and I'll lower more if it needs it:

Fronts: 275/35-18
Rears: 275/40-18

Or instead of lowering, I may very well change out the fronts to balance the look - we'll see how it looks when the larger rears are mounted. The rims are all 10".

Kind regards, my friend,

Mary

 

[01TriBlack]

I run Z06 chromies 18x9.5 front and 18x10.5 rears. Michelin Pilot Sports 265x35x18 front and 295x35x18 rears. Lowered about 1". I like the look of 18" wheels

'

It's good to hear a positive vote for 18's all the way around. Thanks!! Oh, BTW, any pics??? Love to see it.

Mary