[96SNAKE]

Okay, so now is the time for me to get new rims because my stock ones are just not doing it for me. (I'd like them if they were chrome, though.) So I have a few questions. It says on Am.com that 17" are the best tire for my car.

94-04 Wheels FAQ Answer Popup at AmericanMuscle.com - Free Shipping!

But then on this page it says that 18" are better than 17" rims.

Mustang Wheels - A Simple Buyer's Guide

Since my car is my daily driver I'd like to keep the speedometer within the right reading on the dash. Would the Fr500's 17x9 and 17x10.5 be good for my car? Wouldn't wider rims actually decrease gas mileage? Would my car handle better with these wider rims, etc.? So, in a nutshell what I'm trying to find out is what the best rim size is for my car. And any other helpful advice I can acquire from you guys on this site.

I've also thought about the American Racing Rogues.. But don't know if I really like them or not.

17 Inch Black Wheels Rims rogue 5x4.75:eBay Motors (item 140367564289 end time Jan-13-10 05:40:03 PST)

If I were the get the fr500's Id get them from am.com, and here are the tires Id get too.

Sumitomo HTR Z 17" (315/35-17) Mustang Tires at AmericanMuscle.com - Free Shipping!

Sumitomo High Performance HTR Z II Tire (275/40-17) at AmericanMuscle.com - Free Shipping!

[Till]

22's..... j/k


I personally like 18's and also if your rim is wider their is more tire to touch the ground so id say better traction......


mpg yeah but its a mustang.....

[rk_2000_Z/28]

Originally Posted by Tiller 22's..... j/k I personally like 18's and also if your rim is wider their is more tire to touch the ground so id say better traction...... mpg yeah but its a mustang.....

Kind of. A larger contact patch is going to make for better traction, but as far as launch, the amount of sidewall makes a huge difference. 18" rims tend to run a lower profile tire, therefore not as much grab.

Also, tires for 18" rims are a big jump from 17" rims.

That being said, I think 18"s look the best on Mustangs.

[96SNAKE]

What does the "sidewall" mean again? Will I have better performance and launch from the 17 fr500's?

[rk_2000_Z/28]

sidwall is the side of the tire. Watch a drag car with slicks launch in slo-motion (there are videos out there). You will see the sidewall wrinkle up as the tire grabs. That's what you want.

Are FR500's going to do well in 17". Probably better than a 18". But not as good as a 15" rim.

Someone once posted something on another forum that I have never forgotten. You will never be the fastest, so you might as well look your best.

In other words, you will get better performance out of a 17, but the 18 will look better. If you decide to go with 17 than you will get better traction, but you are still going to get beat. We all do.

[96SNAKE]

Dude, rk. That is literally the best advice I have yet to receive off of this website. I friggen love this site! "You will never be the fastest, so you might as well look your best."

Also why do you say that fr500s would do better in 18" than 17"?

[rk_2000_Z/28]

No, what I was saying is that the 17" rim will work better performance wise because it will be much easier to get a 'taller' tire than for the 18". By taller I mean more sidewall. I hope it all makes sense and I'm not confusing you more.

[Scott2001GT]

18's look best IMO...but RK if right. The price of 18's are a lot. I have 18x9's front and 18x10's out back and I payed 721 bucks for all for tires with a 35sidewall all around.

The taller sidewall the price will go up from what I have seen..idk.

[Scott2001GT]

you have that Mystic 96 right? There is a Vortech 96' Mystic in my town with chrome 17's FR500's...Looks great but go 18's!

[M.P. Cobra Fan]

Yes, a taller sidewall will cost you more. I have 40 series on the rear of my car. They cost a few dollars more then the 35s.

Looks are all subjective. When it comes to a few things, exhaust and wheels, I say go for what looks and sounds best to you. The performance gains for a street driven car are minimal in these areas. If you are building a track car, then we would be having an entirely different conversation.

I think 17's look too small on these cars. I even think some 18's look small on these cars. I have seen 20's look like shit smeared ghetto fab, but then I have seen others that make me smile like a cheerleader. Color combo and wheel design play a HUGE role in how big or small a wheel will look on a vehicle. For instance if you take 2 cars and put 18's on both but change the finish, the wheels will look different sizes even though they are not. It is all about picking the right wheel design, size, and color combo between wheel and car to get that perfect look.

[Ryan Paymaster]

It's also all in the "style" you are going for. Pick a style and stick with it. If you want the muscular look then you may be very happy with a nice 17" wheel. When you are looking at FR500 I'd recommend an 18" wheel since that style generally looks better in a larger size given the fact Ford designed this wheel with a larger size in mind. (New Cobras - They're massive cars and have pretty massive wheels compared to the SN-95.)

What's your style? Is this all for the street? A street Mustang will still perform very well at the track. You'll still be able to buy drag radials for an 18" - even if they'll run you more.

If I were you I'd look at an 18" staggered setup. If you're looking to save on the tires then buy the Sumitomo. I feel like in either style you've shown they will look best in an 18" format. If you're going 17" I would look more at "classic" wheel styles such as the Cobra R, Cragars, Weld, specific American Racing, etc.

It's all opinion though - I just feel like fancier wheels you're picking look best larger. We've all seen too many Honda Civic running around with 16" 10 spoke Enkei wheels and it just looks awkward.

[98Cobra_sleeper]

i have 18" fr500's on my cobra. take a look at my avi and see what you think., or go to my garage and look at the pic in there, its a bit better and u can enlarge that one.

[ReverendDexter]

What's more important to you, launching or cornering? If you're a straight-liner, you want a nice soft sidewall that grabs off the line. If you're a corner-carver, you want a nice stiff sidewall that'll give good transition response.

The issue going between 17s and 18s is the weight of the wheel. In general, larger diameter wheels weigh more, and as wheels are both rotating and unsprung, this is the WORST place you can add weight in terms of how it affects the performance of a vehicle. It's a little less important for 1/4 mile, as you're not as concerned with cornering and braking, but for a DD it also means worse mileage.

Another thing to consider for a daily driver is that while wider tires will add dry traction, they'll have worse traction when it's wet/slick out.

The first rim you've linked isn't the right bolt pattern for your car. Mustangs are 5x4.5, not 5x4.75. The tires you've linked aren't real great, either. The only thing they've got going for them is price. If you want a cheap allseason, the Kumho ASXs are a much better choice.

275s are about as wide as I'd ever go up front, I'm currently running 'em on my 17x9s, and honestly when I replace my tires I'm going back down to 255s. Now, I'm a cornering guy, so I'm looking to "tighten up" my sidewalls by going to a slightly narrower tire. Staying wider keeps your sidewalls loose, so if you're a 1/4-miler, I'd stick with 275s on a 9" rim, and 305s on a 10".

[Scott2001GT]

yeah I got 255 on my 18x9 and 285 on my 18x10 FR's

but going to a 45 wall alround and keepin the same size up from but going 305/45/18 out back...i am not lowered though.

[96SNAKE]

Okay thanks for the advice guys.

Yes I have the 96 Mystic. I bet that vortech one looks good, man!

My car will be a daily driver, so yes it will see action alot mostly on the street, man. So basically let me get this righ, Dexter. The narrower the tire the better it handles corners (like street) and the wider the tire, the better your 1/4 will be correct? And the taller the sidewall the better the grip, and the shorter the sidewall the the grip is worse?

[brharris777]

beware of the soft compund on the HTR Z. its incredibly soft and if you do any kind of competition where turning is in order you can kiss the sidewalls goodbye. theyre a great tire for street driving, digs, and rolld but on an autocross or track car they wont last long. First hand experience speaking

[96SNAKE]

The thing that I'm kinda of torn between is getting 10.5" in the back and 9" up front; how long my 315's will last and so forth for the 255's. Another thing is that when I have to get my tires rotated I can't put the 10.5's up front and the 9's out back.. Don't know if I should go staggered or just get 9" fr500's all around. I'm trying to go the best economically/best performance way. Th anks again, bhariss. What tires do you recommend?

[Shelley]

Size does matter!
Go with the 18"
And post a pic so we know what your car looks like!

[ReverendDexter]

Originally Posted by 96SNAKE So basically let me get this righ, Dexter. The narrower the tire the better it handles corners (like street) and the wider the tire, the better your 1/4 will be correct? And the taller the sidewall the better the grip, and the shorter the sidewall the the grip is worse?

It's not that simple. Basically, there's a "right" size for the rim, which is usually about 120% of the rim width. Going slightly narrower than "right" is going to give you the effect of slightly stiffer sidewalls, going slightly wider is going to give you the effect of slightly stiffer sidewalls. But you can't just keep going narrower or wider and keep getting more performance. You wouldn't want to go any narrower than the rim width, and you don't want to exceed ~130%

Also, even for a cornering car, you want as much rubber down as you can get to increase your dry traction. Your goal is a compromise between overall grip and cornering response.

For all around performance, I would just follow use the "right" size for the wheel. For an 8" rim, that's a 245; for 9" that's 275; and for 10" that's 305.

[ReverendDexter]

Originally Posted by 96SNAKE The thing that I'm kinda of torn between is getting 10.5" in the back and 9" up front; how long my 315's will last and so forth for the 255's. Another thing is that when I have to get my tires rotated I can't put the 10.5's up front and the 9's out back.. Don't know if I should go staggered or just get 9" fr500's all around. I'm trying to go the best economically/best performance way. Th anks again, bhariss. What tires do you recommend?

If you want tire longevity, keep to the same size wheel/tires all around, and don't get directional tires. This will allow you to swap front to back and side to side, thus maximizing tire life.

The other thing to consider here is that if you don't know WHY to change something, you should leave it alone until you understand both the benefits and detriments of that change will be.