I'm looking at getting some new wheels and tires soon.

So far as wheels, I'd like to stay with the stock 15" diameter, and I'm looking at something like A/R Outlaw II's, Weld Draglites or Centerline Convo ET's.

I like the look of wheels that are slightly skinny up front, and as wide a rim and rubber that will fit in back without rubbing the fenderwells. Of course, I don't want the rims up front to be too skinny to be safe on the street with...

Also looking at Drag radials (M/T or Hoosier's) to try and get as much traction as I can. I'm running 3.73:1 rear gears and have plenty of torque - should I get tall tires?

The car will spend most of the time on the street, not a DD, with occasional visits to the track. I won't be trying to win road course races with it.

Any suggestions welcome. Some of you guys might already be running the combo I'm looking for, so speak up!!

 

If you want skinnys and fat's then you should go with 165-15 (165-80-15) a.k.a V-dub tire's and for the rear 275-50-15 M/T ET street's....Thats what most people in my area run....

 

Thanks! I've been searching and a lot of people recommend the 275/60's or the 50's. I tend to think the taller tires (275/60's) may help me out a bit though since I run 3.73's out back and first gear is almost useless as is (I run a 5 speed).

So as far as rims for those tires, would a 15x8" with a 5.5" BS tuck a pair of 275/60R15's under the fenders without mods or a BFH? I'm looking to get the tires as close to the frame rails as I can without hitting, and get as much tire width as I can tuck without hitting the fenderwells on either side with someone in the back seat.

Sorry if this seems easy to some, but it seems like the more I search, the more confusing it gets because invaribly someone chimes in and says "they won't fit" and it throws me off....and I just don't have the $$ to experiment to find the widest tire I can get back there.

Also as for the front tires - a 4" wide rim for the 165/80R15's right? What backset - none? Would the 80 profile with the 60 profile out back cause my front end to sit higher than the rear?

Again, sorry about having so many Q's...I just wanna get this right the first time.

 

the front tires are very short. the front end will not sit higher than the back, unless youve got some really stiff springs up front.
go with the 60's
275/50 are too tiny from a visual aspect.
youll want a 1.75 backspacing on the front.
some makes are only 1.625, but those will work fine too.
5.5 is going to be tucked in with a 8" wheel.
i run a 5"BS on my 8" wheels.
you can get by with a 4.5" if you want a wider stance.
all depends on how you like your tires to sit in the wheelwell.

 

Tire and wheel sizes are in my signature .

 

Very nice ride ronusmcmma!! Love the color!

The wheels look nice too, but what's the BS on your rear rims? Hard to tell from the pic, but it looks like the rears might stick out from the fenderwell a bit. Do they rub at all? I'd love to see a pic of the rear of it. With 295's, I bet it looks like steam rollers out back.

 

I ran the BFG 295/50R16s on my stock 16 years ago, with zero sheetmetal cutting and no problems. I'd do the 295/50R15s in your case, not just 275s.

Get your backspacing right & you might even squeeze in 315s! I KNOW you can, if your willing to trim some sheetmetal.

 

Yes, those wheels were only offered with 3.75 back spacing. The rears will just miss tucking in the wells by 3/4 of a inch. If you run 295/50r15s in the rear you will need at least 4.5 backspacing. I had to run air shocks in the rear to keep the height I wanted. They do not rub. Its kind of cool being able to adjust the rear height when I want to but have been told that Its old school technology and there are better ways.
By ronusmcmma, shot with PENTAX Optio A20 at 2009-11-04

 

By the way the 295s are listed as 26.7 in. tall by 11.6 in. wide. At least that's what my Hankook Ventus rears are listed at. I measured them the other day and that seems to be correct.

 

The AR-23's, to my knowledge come in two sizes, 15in and 16in, The 16in AR-23's come with a 4.5 BS. Just thought i'd throw that in there.

By the way, I run AR-23's on my car, I'm also running 295/50 in the back, i had no problems fitting them, nothing rubs, but as you said, they do stick out just a little. I'm thinking about getting 16's for the back, and see if they work out any better.

In any case, your car is fantastic.

 

Vulgar, Would love to see your car with the AR-23s. Your the only other Camaro I know of that's running them. Can you post some photos?

 

I don't have pictures currently, car is torn down a bit in my brothers garage, swapping motors next spring. I'll see what i can do though.

 

I have 315 DR's and don't have any problems....

 

Hey thanks for the pics ronusmcmma - I think both you and Stephen convinced me that 295's are the way to go. I like the looks of your wheels, but like most of the ones I listed previously - they don't come with the right BS.....I want them to fit as squarly as possible between the inner and outer fenderwells without rubbing, and I really don't want to run air shocks or BFH it since it'll have a new 4K paint job on it when I do this. Looks like if you had a 5" or more BS, those tires might have tucked under.

Looks like there are a couple of wheels out there that offer a 5.5" BS though. So just for clarification one more time....a 5.5" Back set rim with 295/60R-15 DR's will fit under without the need for massaging correct??
That seems to be what I've heard so far....just want to be absolutely sure before I pull the trigger on this.

 

Aw c'mon guys.....someone MUST know for sure withot a doubt...post up!!

 

I am no expert but I have ran a 15x8 Weld Rodlite w/ 5.5 BS and a 275/60/15 BFG DragRadial and it fit and looked awesome, no rub or cutting. I have 3.73 gears and am looking towards a 15x10 w/ 5.5 BS with a 325/50/15 (28x11.5) but will probably settle for the 15x8 and 275/60 for now. Jeg's has a newer Weld style wheel that seems reasonable and comes in 5.5 BS. Here is a pic of someone elses car but I am sure they are pretty close to what you are looking for.

 

Just so you know the 275/60r15 list at 28in. tall

 

Thanks c10crewchief - I plan to get a 8" wide rim with 5.5" backset. Nice to know the 275/60/15's will fit with no problem.

Are the tires in the pic you posted 295/60/15 sized tires?? And if so, do you know what the backset is on those rims? If they are 4.5" backset, that might tell me those tires might fit better with a 5.5" backset rim, but alas, not enough info.

So, I'm back to the original question - will a 295/60/15 fit using a 8" wide 5.5" backset wheel without hammering or cutting?

 

ronusmcmma about your wheels.
I really like the looks of the back wheels and tires, but the front set seems a bit narrow and too much under the fenders.
If I get a set of 4 eight inch wide AR-23 how do you think they will sit in the front with 245 tires? Do you think they will be too far out?

 

That blue camaro is mine the wheels are 15x8 with 4.5 BS. The tires are 9 inch wide E.T. streets. 28x11.5LT. They fit great but when I run 275/60/15's I feel like they could be tucked a bit more.

 

Of course I am very biased, I think I have the best combo. I am running a P295/35R18 BFG G-Force TA Drag Radials on the rear, and P275/40R17 BFG G-Force TA KDWs on the front. A couple years ago, I purchase a set of Z06 style wheels and went with the 17s on the front and th 18s on the rear. I'll search for a suitable pic.
EDIT: I have cut several 1.7x 60' times at the drag strip, and the BFG Drag Radials being a true radial tire goes around the corners well also.
EDIT: I purchased these wheels from Lakeshore Wheel and Tire.

 

Here is a pic.

 

I always used 15x8 Prostars with 28x11.50 ET Streets and never had an issue, with 15x4's up front.

 

Riss,

Sorry about not getting back to you about wheel and tire sizes on the AR 23s. First of all let me say that if they had offered the 15 in. AR23s in a 4.5 BS thats what I would have gotten for the rear so they would have tucked in a little more. This Is my first attempt at setting up a Camaro like this so you live and learn. The 8in. 3.75bs AR 23s wheels on the rear are flush with the rear fender. The 295/50r15 rear tires are flush with the fender flares. Theres no room for the tires to set in side the flares with out rubbing.( thus the air shocks) As far as 245/60r15 on 8in. 3.75 BS wheels I think you'd be pushing it. The 8in. AR23s have 3 and 3/4 in. of wheel lip. (deep dish). Thats were the fitment problem comes from. I believe the more back spacing you have on a wheel the less dish you have on the out side of the wheel. If you try to run a deep dish wheel on the front of your car you may run in to fitment issues with the out side lip of your fender. Even though my rear back spacing may be off a little I still would not trade my AR -23s . By the way Ive been told you can get the AR 23s in a 4.5 BS 16IN. wheel. Thats something to consider I guess. Let me know how things go for you . Ron

 

ronusmcmma - Still lovin your paint scheme on that car! The last pic you posted is the perfect angle for me to see how your wheels actually fit...very helpful. Not bashing your wheels, but I can see the rears on your car stick out too much past the fenderwell for what I'm looking for. I tend to think 5" of backset might have tucked yours in, so.....

I like the look of the Center Line Convo ET Wheels, and they offer them in a 15x8-1/2" size with 5" backset. I'm hoping I can run a pair of either Mickey Thompson ET Street Radial Drag tires in a P275/50R15 size or something simular. Unfortunatley I have a Moser 9" rear, and I read on a post somewhere in here that another guy running a Moser 9" found out that his rear is actually 1/2" shorter on each end than a stock thirdgen rear. If that turns out to be the case with mine, then a 5" backset may be too much...

For the front, they have a 15x4 or 15x6 for the fronts....not decided on whether I want the real skinnies up front or not for street driving.

 

The Center Line Convo ET Wheels really look great. Even though I really like the wheels I have I would not mind finding a wheel with the proper back spacing. The more I look at what I'm running in the rear the more I can see your point of view. Kind a sucks because I have run out of money. At least for wheels.

 

Confuzed1, Cant wait to see the finished wheel/tire set-up with your car. How long till you get it all together. Wheel and tire set-up is a one time shot. Its not like you can take them back if you don't like them or the way they fit. Sounds as if you know exactly what you want and I'm glad I could be some help to you. Keep me/us posted on your progress. Ron

 

He has until Spring. Then all the Wisconsin people need to get together for a cruise or just loiter in a parking lot.

 

Well, I won't have the car back until March or April at the earliest. It's being held hostage in the body shop right now.....I really need to go peek in on the progress soon!
I'm in!

 

I was looking at using these wheels from summit:
http://www.summitracing.com/search/D.../?Ns=Price|Asc
I know that I would use the 15"x8" with the 4.5" backspacing on the rear. If I am gonna do the 15"x7" size wheels in the front, which backspacing would I want...the 3.75", or the 4.25"? Thanks.

Cam