Wheel Fitment? Offset ???'s

[JAZ 5.0]

I'm looking into geting some wheels like these CLICK HERE but I've noticed the offset is different than the typical cobra rims used on foxes.

My question is, how will that offset affect normal driving or turning? I have a slight understanding about the offset, but with no hands on experience I'm still a bit unsure. Any help would be great.

 

[89CopCoupe]

These wheels will fit with the backspacing/offset, but here's the first thing to concider on a stock 4-lug Stang:

The distance from the 'wheel mounting surface' (brake rotor/drum) to the fender lip is 1" further on the rear compared to the front (4-1/4" vs 3-1/4").

So by retaining the stock track and buying these wheels (which all 4 have the same offset) you will have a situation where the rears will tuck inside the wheelwell about 1/2" and the fronts will stick outside the wheelwell about 1/4 to 1/2".

The visual appearance of the car will look okay from the side, but when looking along the body lines you will notice the tuck-untucked look of the wheels ... ugly.

The solution would be to buy spacers for the rear and then longer studs for the axles to band-aid widen the rear track.

I personally don't care for running a wheel larger than about 8" wide on the front of a Stang, as the car doesn't track as well and can be quite annoying

Also, when people buy the M2300K ford 5-lug Cobra kit, it comes with axles that widen the track 3/4" per side ... finding good 94-95 Stang parts works as well to widen the track and obtain a 5-lug setup.

I don't know, it's your car though.

 

[JAZ 5.0]

Well if it's going to look tucked and untucked that i wouldn't want to get that. I'm just looking for some rims to change her up a bit. I guess I'll probably stick with the 5-star cobras because I don't want to do a 5-lug conversion or use spacers to fix the problem. but you're saying that anything wider then 8in up front will hinder handling?

 

[89CopCoupe]

Well if it's going to look tucked and untucked that i wouldn't want to get that. I'm just looking for some rims to change her up a bit.

Look at the wheels that are on your car now with a tape measure.
Measure the distance from the wheel lip to the fender lip ... you will notice the rears are tucked further in relative to the fender wheel lip.

I guess I'll probably stick with the 5-star cobras because I don't want to do a 5-lug conversion or use spacers to fix the problem.

Sticking with a factory 4-lug setup you have to buy wheels with different offsets in order to avoid this "look" ...
For Cobra's you probably want to go with www.afswheels.com to get the 8" up front and the 9" out back with accompanying offsets for each.
This is also why the ROH ZS wheels come in two sizes 17x8.5 and 17x9.5, and are specifically made in 4-lug Stang spec ... so that they fit well relative to the fender lips and fill the wells up properly.
No matter what brand wheels you buy, if you don't increase the rear track and use the same offset front and rear you will have this tucked more/tucked less "look".

but you're saying that anything wider then 8in up front will hinder handling?

Wider wheels (9") give more rub issue on turning.
The wider meat also requires better chassis components to limit rut-tracking (especially noticeable on poor roads).
For appearances though it's harder to find a deep looking wheel (poor offset) without sacrificing performance.