Follow On Mission Posted March 28 Report Share Posted March 28 (AJ posting on the corporate account. The stupidity is my own.) Hey Guys (Paul please note... I did not use my preferred "Hey Gang"), Going to order a second set of tires and wheels tonight. The car has yet to turn a lap but at present we have: Not scaled yet, but working with a guessed race weight of 2900lbs (May be lower). Steelies with 275/40/17 Nitto NT05's Until we get the car sorted for D-class (Currently just going to run EC) we would like to stay with the 275/17 setup as it tucks up nice inside the unmolested quarters and fenders. What are your tire / wheel recommendations? AJ - Sends Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wvumtnbkr Posted March 28 Report Share Posted March 28 I would recommend NOT running steel wheels. They bend easily, are tough to balance, and generally, everybody that runs them buys better wheels eventually anyway. Maybe it's just my experience (we like to crush curbs on the track). I would be looking for some 11 inch wide wheels for 275s. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Follow On Mission Posted March 28 Author Report Share Posted March 28 4 minutes ago, wvumtnbkr said: I would recommend NOT running steel wheels. They bend easily, are tough to balance, and generally, everybody that runs them buys better wheels eventually anyway. Thanks WV, I need the input. The current steelies were just intended to hold the car off the shop floor. They seem to be just a "tad" heavy as well LOL. (They are Soft 8 truck wheels.) 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
veris Posted March 29 Report Share Posted March 29 17 hours ago, wvumtnbkr said: I would recommend NOT running steel wheels. They bend easily, are tough to balance, and generally, everybody that runs them buys better wheels eventually anyway. Maybe it's just my experience (we like to crush curbs on the track). I would be looking for some 11 inch wide wheels for 275s. I ran 11 inch wide wheels for 275s once. It can be done if your drivers are careful. The rim itself is exposed and unprotected. I have two cracked rims from this. A driver overshot a curb and the outside curb damaged the rim as it extends past the tire. I'd recommend 285s or 295s with 11s. And run 275 with a 10.5 or 10 rim . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ron_e Posted March 29 Report Share Posted March 29 If you are ordering new wheels then go with the recommendations above. However don't be afraid to run used whatevers that will do the job. We are 2750 lbs without a driver and ran 275/40/17 on 9" rims, set numerous race fast laps including when all the big cheaty eastern teams came out west to Laguna Seca, our first time there too and we ran a car that met the "western" rules. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mender Posted March 29 Report Share Posted March 29 (edited) We usually ran 255s on our 9" rims, put 275s on them for Laguna and found they moved around a lot. 255 on 9s is about as wide a tire on that rim width as I would recommend, 10" rim would be the better choice if you run 275s. Edited March 29 by mender 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wvumtnbkr Posted March 29 Report Share Posted March 29 We run 245 on 10s... My rule was always 205 on 8s, 225 on 9s, 245 on 10, 275 on 11. Yes, they do have a bit of stretch, but not much. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smitham32803 Posted March 29 Report Share Posted March 29 We run 275 on corvette factory wheels that are 9.5" wide and for the rear we run a range of tires but usualy 295-305 on 10.5 wheel and a 315 0n 11" wheel Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kevind43 Posted March 30 Report Share Posted March 30 (edited) My 2 cents. We have a F body approx 3000 lb, EC car but could run D. We started with corvette salad shooters 17x9.5 and 1” spacers and ran 255/17 RS-4. Work very well and cheap, with about 2.5 deg negative camber. Then we obtained some 17x11 zr-1 replicas. Both +50 and +38 offset. 1/2” spacer with the 50 offset and no spacer with 38 offset and experimented with 315/35/17 nitto NT05. They were a little slower than the RS-4 255 set up. They wore funny and felt weird. Wouldnt go back to NT05 unless forced to. Next we tried the 275/40/17 RT660 on the 17x11. Worked very good on out car with about 1.75 deg negative camber. In the rain excellent tire. In the dry very good and could a whole day out of them. I dont know why but most teams do not have the same results with the 660. Our car is 50/50 f/r and 50% cross and very easy on tires. Our next set up is the 18x10.5 corvette replicas and in my opinion, where you should be. We run 285 RS-4 with about 1.75-2 negative camber. Tire slection with the 18” rims is waay better than 17 and will be able to fit any brake combination inside 18” wheels. You will be limited on brake options with 17” wheels. We run c5 DBA rotor 12.88 diameters and wilwood superlite 4 piston calipers, Because if the 17” rims. You can run CTS-v 14” rotors and calipers with the 18’s. Hope this helps. Our next experiment is with 295/30/18’s. Edited March 30 by kevind43 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Team Infiniti Posted March 30 Report Share Posted March 30 255/40-17 on 9in cobra wheel, any more then 255 would require wider wheels. When worn out or damaged, it’s always been bent or cracked on the inside bead Just short of 3400lbs wet/full on grid w/driver 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wvumtnbkr Posted March 30 Report Share Posted March 30 We ran a 78 Malibu for a few years. We never had brake issues when we went to the b body spindle swap and bigger b body brakes. Still ran the drums in the rear with the r4 shoes. Did need to do a few things to correct the geometry with that setup, but it was pretty good. We also ran 17s on that car. I suggest the smallest diameter wheel you can get away with in order to get your center of gravity as low as possible. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Murray Posted April 4 Report Share Posted April 4 I'm also D class and our car is currently about 2800# (no driver). Double wishbone front, multi link rear. Generally good suspension geometry and control all around. Use a set of 18x11 and another set of 18x10.5. Used 315/30 Falken 615s on the 11s, as well as 275/35 Kumho v730s. Next I am trying a set of super cheap 295 federal RS-RRs on the 10.5 wheels. In the past we had 255 RS-4s on some old 17x9 mustang wheels. The best the grip the car ever had was on the 315 Falkens. Worst was the 255 RS-4s (although surprisingly they still wore like iron even in the smaller size) In short I would say 275 minimum and I would never seriously consider the Nitto NT05s. Too old of a tire that has been outclassed by all the newer stuff. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Follow On Mission Posted May 4 Author Report Share Posted May 4 On 4/4/2023 at 11:54 AM, Murray said: Next I am trying a set of super cheap 295 federal RS-RRs on the 10.5 wheels. In the past we had 255 RS-4s on some old 17x9 mustang wheels. The best the grip the car ever had was on the 315 Falkens. Worst was the 255 RS-4s (although surprisingly they still wore like iron even in the smaller size) In short I would say 275 minimum and I would never seriously consider the Nitto NT05s. Too old of a tire that has been outclassed by all the newer stuff. Murray I just ordered a set of these to go on 18/10.5's. At a minimum, something round and rubber to put under it while we get it sorted. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
333 Kinkle Posted May 5 Report Share Posted May 5 I would not buy federal agian. I have two sets and one set I didn't run. 230 rated I think. Hard, no grip, unpredictable tires. Screamers to as you push your car. $600 I will never get back or race. Yes round but will not help in tuning the car or finding your limits. Save your money for better grippy tires. Swapped to 200 - RS4 and big difference in the car. I have 8 ea federal 225-45 16's if anyone is interested. If not headed to the Mexican tire shop down the road at $35 ea. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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