Tire Size for 17x9's

[conneljw]

I have Cobra R Replicas. 17x9's. I have had 255/40's on them since I got the rims, and I don't so much care about the added grip from wider tires as my baby is getting kinda old and I need it to last another 2 years until I can buy a daily driver and put some work in on the Mustang.

I was wondering if 245/45's are too thin to put on the 9" rims? I'm thinking they will help decrease road noise a little, help with wet traction, and there are also more tires available in that size. Are 245's to small to put on my rims, will the rim stick out past the tire and be easily scratched if I bump a curb (I haven't yet, but you never know).

Thanks for the help.

Jon

 

[2002BLGT]

275/40/17s

 

[AP1995V6]

245s are too thin.

I'd go with 265.

 

[ChingonStang]

I disagree, I like the look of 245/45/17. Uses less tire dressing too.

 

['66 coupe]

I disagree, I like the look of 245/45/17. Uses less tire dressing too.

That's an 8" wide rim.

My friend has 245/45/17's on a set of '95 Cobra R rims(17x9). He hasn't had any problems at all; but personally, I don't think it looks right.

 

[cobra232]

275/40/17s

ditto. 275's are just fine for 17X9's on all 4's

and for those that think they require more dressing. guess again the sidewall is the same area as a 245/45/17

 

[Gearbanger 101]

Depending on the brand of tire, 245's will work just fine on all four corners. And if you're trying to keep cost down and don't really care about running anything wide out back, then stick with them. You could go with 245/45 up front and 275/40 out back, but you lose the ability to rotate from back to front.

275's will work all the way around (as proven on the '03-'04 Cobra) but you really don't want them on there unless you plan on being agressive with your driving. The wide tires up front really like to "hunt" and catch every little rut and crack in the road. Trust me, the "cool" factor of having a set of 275's up front is quickly offset by poor road maners, uneven tread wear, more frequent front end component wear and increased road noise.

 

[AP1995V6]

I have 285s on the front of my car, and I can vouche for the fact that the car steers itself on worn roads. It sucks. Especially during hard braking.

Can't wait to get some smaller tires up front.

 

[98V6 K.I.T.T.]

I have 275's up front (9"), and 315's (10.5" rears) out back. I like them because of the added grip/traction, but like the others said sometimes it likes to drive themselves. I think I'm going to go down to a 255 next time, but I wouldn't go with a 245 on a 9" wheel. The price difference is not much from a 245 to 255 and a 255 is a better size for a 9" width.

 

[ChingonStang]

I noticed that my 245/45's tires rub a little bit on the shock on the fronts. Would moving to a 275/40 tire eliminate this? Would adding a spacer correct this problem also? It's really causing some low speed noise.

 

[98V6 K.I.T.T.]

I noticed that my 245/45's tires rub a little bit on the shock on the fronts. Would moving to a 275/40 tire eliminate this? Would adding a spacer correct this problem also? It's really causing some low speed noise.

I'm surprised to hear a 245/45 tire would be rubbing on anything. If your suspension isn't stock, then maybe. At this point, I don't think a 275 would make things any better, probably worse. I have no issues with my 275's in the front, but I also run the stock GT suspension still. I would not recommend using a spacer on the front suspension. I would take it to a performance shop, and ask what can be done to fix it..if you take it to any regular shop they will just tell you your wheels/tires are too big and wont even consider modifying a part or even know what you can do to fix it. I don't want to even get into my story about Les Schwab.

 

[ChingonStang]

I'm surprised to hear a 245/45 tire would be rubbing on anything. If your suspension isn't stock, then maybe. At this point, I don't think a 275 would make things any better, probably worse. I have no issues with my 275's in the front, but I also run the stock GT suspension still. I would not recommend using a spacer on the front suspension. I would take it to a performance shop, and ask what can be done to fix it..if you take it to any regular shop they will just tell you your wheels/tires are too big and wont even consider modifying a part or even know what you can do to fix it. I don't want to even get into my story about Les Schwab.

At first I thought it was just the tires making a lot of noise since they are used tires that came with the rims when I got them. But it sounded like rubbing to me so I pulled the front tire off and noticed that there is a clean area on the strut casing that lines up with the tire. I will check out the performance path to fixing the problem. But no spacers on fronts? I was just curious because I had spacers on my white 96 Mustang on all four wheels. I didn't even know until the tire tech told me after I got new tires.

 

[98V6 K.I.T.T.]

At first I thought it was just the tires making a lot of noise since they are used tires that came with the rims when I got them. But it sounded like rubbing to me so I pulled the front tire off and noticed that there is a clean area on the strut casing that lines up with the tire. I will check out the performance path to fixing the problem. But no spacers on fronts? I was just curious because I had spacers on my white 96 Mustang on all four wheels. I didn't even know until the tire tech told me after I got new tires.

Here is what I'd do, get some chalk and mark on the strut or area where it looks like it's rubbing, with a helper (if you have one) crank the wheel all the way to each side. Doing this on a flat surface push the car back and forth with the wheel cranked to one side and see if the chalk rubs off (or I guess you could even drive it back and forth but the fans and vibrations might blow the chalk off maybe). If the chalk rubs off you have a rubbing issue and you will know exactly where. But at that point I would look at your suspension because the odds of the tire size causing the problem is rare.

I honestly don't know, but when I was having an "issue" with my 275 rubbing in the front, I called my mustang friends 1 that has an 03 Cobra with 275 tires and a GT with them too, he said I could put a spacer in the front but that's not the greatest thing to do for the front end. I think it's more so the fact that a spacer is really not neccesary for the front. I think you can light shave down the strut to add some clearance but it makes no sense with those wheels and tires are meant to be on that car from the factory.

Oh and just to add, my 275's didn't rub after I told Les Schwab to put the wheels back on and show me where they are rubbing, they told me the wheels/tires don't fit my car. They said the tires/wheels (they didn't know exactly) don't fit my car and they are rubbing pretty bad on the front sway bar..... 17x9 FR500's and 275 tires right, too bad many people have my combo and that was what was recommended even from AmericanMuscle.com. I think the idiots tried to put the 10.5" 315's on the front.

 

[AP1995V6]

That's weird. I have coil-overs with my 275s and don't get any rubbing whatsoever.

Do you have stock wheels?

 

[stangup]

Front Wheel Spacers

I'm surprised to hear a 245/45 tire would be rubbing on anything. If your suspension isn't stock, then maybe. At this point, I don't think a 275 would make things any better, probably worse. I have no issues with my 275's in the front, but I also run the stock GT suspension still. I would not recommend using a spacer on the front suspension. I would take it to a performance shop, and ask what can be done to fix it..if you take it to any regular shop they will just tell you your wheels/tires are too big and wont even consider modifying a part or even know what you can do to fix it. I don't want to even get into my story about Les Schwab.

I was just getting ready to purchase wheel spacers for all 4's, but saw this post about not doing spacers for the front suspension. Is it a safety or handling issue?