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Wheel size question on stock (Unrolled) S13 coupe?

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DJ Catchem

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Discussion starter · #1 ·
I realize that the dreaded wheel size question is beaten to death on a regular basis, but I've spent a few days searching for answers in here, and frankly, there's not much of a consensus, but plenty of suggestions...some pretty out there.

In short, I've narrowed things down with the help from what I've searched and read in here, and I'm hoping that I can get some final help before a purchase.

Chassis: '92 S13 coupe, SR swap.
Suspension: Currently stock, planning on Koni or KYB/ Eibach combo.

This is a project car my father and I ahve been working on over the last year. It's rarely going to see track use, but may occasionally, and will be a weekend cruiser for the most part. We're still building for performance (read: no crazy body kits or wings), so we've settled on a set of 5Zigen FN01R-Cs. We're looking to fit a decent amount of rubber under the stock fenders, and get as flush to the fenders as possible.

CHOICE 1:

17 x 7 +35 front, 225/45/17 tire
17 x 8 +20 rear, 245/40/17 tire
CHOICE 2:

17 x 8 +35 front, 225/45/17 tire
17 x 9 +20 rear, 255/40/17 tire

I'd love to go with the second option, and I'm pretty sure that the front would be no problem, although I'm a little unsure on the offset. Still, I'd love some feedback (or correction if I'm wrong) and/or pics if anyone has any.

The rear is the big question. I can't seem to find anyone to verify this wheel/tire/offset on an S13 coupe. Does anyone have any feedback here? Am I way off, or does this work? Would we be better off with the first combo?

Thanks in advance for the help. I appreciate it.

--->DJ
 
#2 ·
Well, I had 245/45/17's on the front and the rear. Had to take the fronts off because they rubbed my struts but the rear was just fine. In fact, I liked the way it handled with the bigger tires on the back. Good luck with whatever you choose.
 
#3 ·
the 17x8 +35 is going to sit awfully close to the shocks, like dangerously close. go with +25 or so on the 17x8 if you can. but why not just go 17x9 +20 around? that way if you run the same tire sizes you can rotate the wheels. there is really no point in running staggered wheels
 
Discussion starter · #5 ·
silviaks2nr said:
the 17x8 +35 is going to sit awfully close to the shocks, like dangerously close. go with +25 or so on the 17x8 if you can. but why not just go 17x9 +20 around? that way if you run the same tire sizes you can rotate the wheels. there is really no point in running staggered wheels
Click to expand...
I thought there were issues running a 17x9 in the front of an S13?


--->DJ
 
Discussion starter · #7 ·
murphy said:
only if you can't tuck em.
Click to expand...
I don't think we want to tuck or run crazy camber settings. Like I said, we're trying to basically set the car up to be a fun weekend cruiser that might see an occasional autocross or track day. We're basically talking as near to stock alignment as we can get on a slightly-lowered coupe, for better tire wear and all-around handling.

We do want to go staggered. If there's room to fit more wheel and tire in the back, we want to take advantage of it. We'll be tuning the natural understeer out of the suspension with the springs/shocks/sways, so that's not an issue, and we won't be drifting the car, but we will eventually be building the engine for more power, so the more traction in the rear, the better; that's why I was aiming for 8" wide in the front and 9" in the back with the 225/255 split on 17s.

So I may see issues with 17x8 +35 in the front? How about the 17x9 +20 in the rear?

Thanks again, everyone. Great information here.

--->DJ
 
#8 ·
yea 17x8+35 is no good. get at least a 25 but look for a +20. and the rears are ok just as long as you're not dropped to low. and go for less of a stagger in tire size. it will still create under steer if you're running stock power even with the upgraded suspension.
 
Discussion starter · #9 ·
SR20sleeper said:
yea 17x8+35 is no good. get at least a 25 but look for a +20. and the rears are ok just as long as you're not dropped to low. and go for less of a stagger in tire size. it will still create under steer if you're running stock power even with the upgraded suspension.
Click to expand...
Looks like we may just source 17 x 8 fronts and 17 x 9 rears, +20 all around, and maybe stick with the 225 in the front and go with a 245 in the rear.

I'm not as worried about the stagger, since we've already fitted a FMIC and high-flow fuel pump, and will be putting an EBC to it by the time we source the wheels, so we should be near 225-250whp at that point. We'll be doing turbo/injectors in the near future past that, so I'm confident we'll be able to make use of the extra tire in the back.

--->DJ
 
Discussion starter · #10 ·
Okay...I'm hoping someone can point me in the right direction here. I've been searching to find pictures of specific wheel/offset combos on an S13, and I'm just coming up blank on every search combination I've tried. I doubt I'll be so lucky as to stumble across one on my own.

Can anyone point me to pictures of S13s that run 17" x 9"s all around, and/or a 17" x 8" in the front? I'd really appreciate it.

Thanks,

--->DJ
 
#11 ·
i have 17x8 +35 front and 17x9 +35 rear.....


no issues. but you will need to roll/pull a little or they will rub.
 
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Discussion starter · #12 ·
turbo510 said:
i have 17x8 +35 front and 17x9 +35 rear.....


no issues. but you will need to roll/pull a little or they will rub.
Click to expand...
Cool! Thanks for the reply. Do you see clearance issues front and back, or just up front? Is it shock clearance or fender clearance issue?

If I have the space on the shock side, I'm okay with going with a lesser offset to clear that wheel/tire size on the fender side.

Thanks again,


--->DJ
 
#15 ·
235/45r17 on a 17x9 +35, no pull, not even rolled. sorry, no pics of the front, but coilover clearence was fine.

Image

Image

Image


and same wheels on my coupe, same deal

Image

Image

Image
 
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Discussion starter · #16 ·
turbo510 said:
235/45r17 on a 17x9 +35, no pull, not even rolled. sorry, no pics of the front, but coilover clearence was fine.

Image

Image

Image


and same wheels on my coupe, same deal

Image

Image

Image
Click to expand...
That's a 17 x 9 +35? Wow...looks really good. I was expecting it to be a little more sunken. Seems like a +20 offset might run into fender trouble on a 9" rim. Glad to know that fits like that. Great pictures!

Did you try to fit them in the front at all? I'd like to see some feedback on the fronts.

Thanks,

--->DJ
 
#17 ·
the 9's on the front hit the coilover with +35
 
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#19 ·
DJ Catchem said:
How much contact? I'm thinking a 17x8 with the same offset in the front, which should buy me some space, but I could drop to a +20 if necessary, and hope I don't run into clearance issues with the fender.

--->DJ
Click to expand...
it doesnt really matter how much contact. contact is contact and u dont want it. i heard that +35 offset on a 8" wide wheel is really close to touching, but is safe. if u dont care about "flushness" then a 17X8 +35 will fit easy. if i were u i'd just go 17X9 +20 all around.
 
Discussion starter · #20 ·
ladiesman8527 said:
it doesnt really matter how much contact. contact is contact and u dont want it. i heard that +35 offset on a 8" wide wheel is really close to touching, but is safe. if u dont care about "flushness" then a 17X8 +35 will fit easy. if i were u i'd just go 17X9 +20 all around.
Click to expand...
I was wondering on the contact because if a 17x9 +35 just makes contact, I could easily toss a +20 offset and be safe...or throw a 17x8 with the same offset and be golden.

I don't care particularly about having perfect flushness...anything is going to be better than a stock wheel. I want to be close, of course, but the most important thing is getting as much rubber on the road as possible. This is also why I want to stagger my setup...I know I can fit more in the rear than I can on the front.

--->DJ
 
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