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Old 06-14-2003, 02:37 PM
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Question 17in. wheels and tires

I was wondering if any of you guys are using 17in. wheels and tires. I'm currently building a new kit, and I'm considering 17in. wheels. I want to know how bad they effect the ride compared to the 15in. wheels and tires.
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Old 06-14-2003, 02:50 PM
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I've had both, I prefer the 17" by far. If you lower the air pressure down to 25-27 lbs they feel just like 15". The 17"s have much better grip than the 15"s. They give you much better confidence in poor weather, on the track, and on the road in general. They're bunch more choices in 17 rubber than 15s. The only down side is they cost more.
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Old 06-14-2003, 04:28 PM
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Hi bluoval,

I use the 17s: 315/35 rears on 11", 285/40s fronts on 9-1/2".

Reason: safety & grip. Couldn't find V or Z rated tires in 15"; no good sizes in 16".

Added benefit: 13" front brakes fit fine!

I like'em

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Old 06-14-2003, 04:36 PM
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I've got a set for sale in the "parts for sale" section if you're interested...
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Old 06-14-2003, 06:44 PM
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How I agonized over this one. 17"!!! Once you use them, you'll never go back. You won't believe it's the same car. No Sh!t! All the factory performance cars are using 17" wheels and tires, and only pure grocery getters and econoboxes are using 15's. Ever wonder why? And they don't look out of place, or not period correct, or like fork lift truck tires. Send me your e-mail, and I'll return some shots of mine with the 17's.

As above, on a 2400# Cobra, run your air pressure between 24 & 28 #.

The dry and wet road traction is awsome. Cornering is awsome. What you'll miss is the tire squealing, spinning, and smoke. The 17's just grab and go. A little "Chirp" when you get on it. Most guys with 15's don't dare drive their Cobras in the rain. With 17's, you're as much at home on a wet road, as a dry one.

Wheels are Team III, 17x8 front, 17x 9 1/2 rear. $300 apiece. Tires are 235/45ZR17 front, 275/40ZR17 rear. Sprung for Falken 451's. Less than $500 for the set of four from vulcantire.com. including shipping. Second choice was Bridgestone RE730's from Tirerack.com.

Tire selection. Don't believe the tire mfg's advertizing hype. Initially I was looking at BFG Comp T/A's, and Pirelli's. Read the consumer comments section on tirerack.com for some "Enlightening" commentary on what works, and what doesn't on some contemporary HP cars. It opened my eyes.

What sold me on Falkens? Contacted Falken Tech Support. They sent me a reprint of an article from the German equivalent of Road & Track comparing a variety of tires under a variety of conditions. The Falkens competed favorably against the Michliens, Pirelli's, Dunlops, BFG's etc., at about 2/3 - 1/2 the price.

13,000 miles on them now. Normal wear pattern. They should go 40,000 miles front, 50 - 60,000 miles rear.
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Old 06-14-2003, 07:59 PM
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See what they look like here:

http://www.legendarycobra.com/wheels.html
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Old 06-15-2003, 12:36 PM
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I just removed a set of 15" "torque D" wheels from mine and installed some 17" rims with P245/45/ZR17s in the front and P275/40/ZR17s in the rear on 8" and 10.5" rims respectively.
I lowered the pressure to 25 lbs front and rear, but for the life of me the car still rides like a skateboard on bumpy roads......The 15s with TAs on them were a lot smoother. Am I missing something or doing something wrong?
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Old 06-15-2003, 01:13 PM
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Wink Better traction may be an understatement

With my Pirelli Pzero's I am amazed at the traction.. they (rears) ARE almost 1 ft wide however

The handling in corners is amazing and thrilling. DO be careful not to go too wide especially on the front tires/rims, as due to the combo of height and width the tires may rub something in your fenderwells. In my case it was the (plastic) radiator overfill tank, which ended up having a hole eaten in it from full lock right turns I simply removed it and am instead relying on the plastic bladder overfill thing
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Old 06-15-2003, 08:21 PM
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Fxbill,

Also have CR, and it rides pretty smooth. Difference may be in suspension and shocks.

On rear, using Moog Chevette progressive wound load leveler springs which I think is the only replacement Chevette spring available. Shocks are Konis crossreferenced from the CR Monroe shock.

Fronts are tubular with Carerra coil overs.

Koni's and Carerras are adjustable, and I found softening them up took away some of the harshness that the stiffer 17's added.

Last edited by Jack21; 06-15-2003 at 08:26 PM..
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Old 06-15-2003, 08:29 PM
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Thanks Jack,
My front end has what it came with.... I've been wanting to do the tubular changeover anyway....maybe now's the time to do it. I'll try playing with it for a while and see if I can improve it some. Now if I can get DV to tell me how he gets such awsome rear traction I might be able to get some use out of all this horsepower!lol
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