z461

I just saw www.zdriver.com and they have a gallery with SSR GT3's on a 350Z @ SEMA. Now on that picture the offsets look correct and it seems the wheels fill out the wheel arches very nicely. Does anyone know how?? The SSR GT3's I tried to order before had horrible offsets, they were +41mm in the rear on 10" and +37mm in the front on 8.5" which tucks the wheels in. Do they now have new offsets for those wheels?

jrreed350togo

Z461

First, I was able to change my order to the 19's. TireRack is all over that car and I'm hoping they'll have the correct/better offsets before my order is shipped. Did you see my comment about the 1/4' spacer idea. It's hard to tell but they seem to have that one showcar. Question is are they using the same offset from the showcar to make sales. The pics you posted is of the same car I received from my rep. I asked would they look the same, of course he told me yes.

zland

Hmm, can i be bold and ask you some questions concerning your order of these rims?
Do these SSR GT3's come in 18 inch rims? What size tires are you putting on them. what kind of cost can I expect to pay for them? I was thinking 18 rims but you are going 19. Do you just like the look better or have other reasons that are laening you that way?

z461

Maybe i can answer some of those questions. I originally purchased SSR GT3's in 19" w/ Bridgestone S-03 Tires. I backed out later and cancelled it when I found out the offsets on the wheels were wrong (they don't come out to the edge enough and look sort of tucked). For 19" you want to put 245x35x19 in front and 275x35x19 in back. For 18" you want 245x40x18 and 275x40x18 in back I believe. I would go with Bridgestone S-03's or Toyo T1-S which are both great wet/dry traction tires with low road noise. The 18" SSR GT3's are not that good looking IMO because the lips are so big that it makes the rim look small. The SSR GT3's ARE heavy however, in 18" they're 2 lbs lighter than the stock 18" wheels and in 19" the 8.5 width is the same weight as the stock wheel and the 10" rear is 2 lbs heavier.

I decided to drop my order and have since ordered a set of volk TE-37's in silver 19"... They're 7 lbs lighter each than the stock rims and come in the proper offsets so they go all the way out to the edge and fill out the wheel well properly.

zland

I am really much more attracted to the SSR's than the T-37. You look like you changed your mind because of the 7lb difference. Does it really make that much of a driving/performance difference? You also were concerned about the spacing being not optimal. Can spacers be used and if so, is that a big negative?

Thanks so much for the info you gave already...Jeff

N74DV

I'm running 42mm offset 19" wheels.... They tucked way too far and I was not satisfied with the look.

I had a set of 1.3" spacers for the rear and 1.05" spacers for the front machined from billet bar stock. It pushed them out to just about .25" inside the fender.

The spacers have thier own lugs and bolt on to the existing Z lugs. I had no problems installing them and they look and work great!!

There's alot of great wheels out there with a high offset, but with a custom set of billet spacers any wheel combo is possible.

go to wheelspacer.com and contact Fred if youre interested.

z461

Weight is a big concern, not only does it affect performance, but it can hurt the ride of the car by making unsprung weight heavier. In addition, it makes braking distance longer, and overall the car will drive differently. I know because on another car I had wheels about 3 lbs heavier than stock and I could DEFINATELY feel the difference. Also, I personally don't like running spacers, especially on performance cars, some people say there is no harm, some people absolutely refuse to touch spacers. Supposedly they place extra stress on the axles and other suspension components... I personally don't know...I also think the SSR GT3's don't complement the Z as well as the TE-37's... The SSR's look good from a distance but close up they're too complicated for the Z's smooth lines.

jrreed350togo

I guess we'll see when mine get in after Thanksgiving. Z461 it seems you've done a 180 on those SSR's. You ordered them at one point so I know you don't hate them as much as you say. Regaurdless of spacers or not the SSR's look much better than the Volks. If you're talking about filling out the wheelwell then yes the Volk's +22 offset should do the trick. I think that's with a 9.5 rear. IMO the SSR's with the silver center go best with my CS Z. N74DB I'll remember that email adress if I think they're a little too tucked. Jeff I think all of your questions were answered except for price. Expect to pay $525 fronts and $545 rear for 18's. 19's are 545 fronts and just over 6 for the rear. My total cost from Tirerack was $3454.00 with S-03s in 245 and 275.

jrreed350togo

Z461
I really don't think you can count 2 extra pounds on each wheel as unsprung weight. 7 lbs or more I would worry. Most of the time Chrome wheels are the culprit.

Driven

OK...can someone summarize please? For those of us that want to stuff some fat rubber under our Z's?

What are the correct offsets for 18x10 rears?

What are the correct offsets for 18x9 fronts?

Assume a 285 series rear (295 if it fits) and at least a 255 series front. Feel free to comment on the ratio between rear to front also. I know the SEMA setup had a 285 rear and 275 front (fat up front too, but I'm not sure I'd go down that road unless someone could educate me as to why I should with a 285 rear.)

Did that all make sense? Please help! Thanks

Driven

Before anyone jumps on me I better clarify: My information is second hand...and from what I understand there were like five Z's at the SEMA show. The one that I refer to with the closest setup to what I want was a LeMans color, was running HRE five spoke rims and was running 285/30/19's rear and 275/30/19's front. This is what I was told...but the offsets were not discussed, and as I mentioned...I'm not sure I'd go with that fat of a tire up front.

z461

2 lbs is more than you think... I do still like the look, but I believe the TE-37's look better on the Z, the SSR's are a nice fit on M3's and the Lexus GS400 but too complicated for the simple Z's lines IMO. Also, the offsets aren't correct, and I don't want to run spacers as I'll be lowering my car and that causes extra stress on your suspension. The offset is not even a little off, it's a LOT off. That's the main reason I cancelled my order. It's +41mm in the back and +37mm in the rear. The TE-37's are +22 front AND rear... And most other wheels have +27-30mm spacing for front and rear fitments. The SSR's are between 7-18mm off depending on what you want to compare them with. If I were you i'd wait until they come out with the correct fitment for them. I'm sure SSR will do that in several months time.

jrreed350togo

2 lbs is more than you think... I do still like the look, but I believe the TE-37's look better on the Z, the SSR's are a nice fit on M3's and the Lexus GS400 but too complicated for the simple Z's lines IMO. Also, the offsets aren't correct, and I don't want to run spacers as I'll be lowering my car and that causes extra stress on your suspension. The offset is not even a little off, it's a LOT off. That's the main reason I cancelled my order. It's +41mm in the back and +37mm in the rear. The TE-37's are +22 front AND rear... And most other wheels have +27-30mm spacing for front and rear fitments. The SSR's are between 7-18mm off depending on what you want to compare them with. If I were you i'd wait until they come out with the correct fitment for them. I'm sure SSR will do that in several months time.

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I agree the TE-37 do look good but not better. Here's why I'm keeping my order: The difference between offsets of say+33 and +41 is like stacking 4 or 5 CD's on top of each other. Also keep in mind the your TE-37's will have a 9.5 rear. The SSR's come in 10's so you can basically run it at +33 and get the same look as your TE-37's.
N74DV are you the person that got the wrong order from Maxwheels? If so I remember you saying that the width they sent you was all wrong.(7.5 or 8) all around..I'll do a search for your thread. I remember you being pissed that they wouldn't take them back. If you only had to do a little over 1 inch with spacers I think the SSR's I ordered will give the same look you have right now with spacers without them. Also how much did those spacers run you?

jrreed350togo

Thread from N74DV

regarding my 19" wheels :-(
I've been getting many requests to talk about my 19's. It's a sad story actually.

I don't normally bash companies on forums, but this one just has to be told..... forgive me if it's unethical.

It all started 3 days after I got my 5sp Auto Daytona Blue Touring.

I wanted a set of 19's instead of the stock 17's. I did some looking around locally andonline. My first mistake was to shop price instead of service/quality.

I found a place in Miami, FL named Wheelmax. They have a site, www.wheelmax.com. They appeared to have a great deal on a set of 19" ADR GT Sports for $2000 with Toyo tires. I promptly made a call. I told the salesman, Tony, that I had a brande new 350Z and did he have a set of ADR's in 19" to fit that car.

He said he did in fact. I asked him if the wheels were 19x8.5 because on his site it said he had them in 19x7.5. I told him that 7.5 was too narrow. I also told him I needed the wheels to have about a 30mm offset. He said no problem I have the exact dimensions you need.... 19x8.5 in 30mm offset. I again asked him ... youre sure these will work on this car?? Again he said.. no worries.

I was also told by him I would get 245/40/19 Toyo's in the front and 255/40/19's in the rear. Good I'm thinking... just what I am wanting.

I give him my CC number and hang up. 6 days later a set of wheels shows up.... I race to the UPS man like a kid in a mall with a Santa. Rip out the first wheel only to notice it looks a bit narrow....

tire says... 235/35/19 WHAT?!

then I look at the wheel... on the inside it says 19x7.5 42mm offset. WHAT!!!!???

All 4 wheels are the same way.... They sent me freakin wheels for an Integra or some other rice ****. way too narrow for my tatses.

I call them back.... basically am told by the manager at Wheelmax...

"We have sold 30 sets of wheels to 350Z owners. All of them said the 7.5" wide wheels with 235 tires were fine... whats your problem?"

I told him how my salesman told me they were 19x8.5's with 30mm offset.... he lied to me to make the sale.

He says

" Sorry, bro... all sales final... sorry you don't like what you have but we will NOT take them back."

I say "even though your salesman lied to me??

he says "our salesman are very professional.... been in the business for many years. they would never lie to you."

I hung up.... called my credit card company and am working to get the charge reversed..... In the meantime I have a set of wheels that are too narrow for my tastes with tires that are too small for the Z.

ohhh by the way... the guy said he sold over 30 sets of 7.5" wide wheels and 235 tires to 350Z owners..... BULL F'ing ****! I was probably the first to buy a set of wheels for a Z from them and they had no clue what the Z requires...

Lessoned learned.... do more research and buy from a reputable company...

AND...... Wheelmax has a negative rating with the Better Business Beareau for " Un resolved Customer Complaints"

My stand on this... DON' BUY FROM WWW.WHEELMAX.COM!!!!

Looking to roll on these 19's for now until I get a new set in the right size sometime in the next couple of months.

They still look ok... but not exactly what I wanted.
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After reading this post I figure the SSR's will be OK

Not only are the fronts +37 but also 8.5 on the SSR's
Though the rears are a +41 they're 10'. which is 2 1/2 inches wider than those 7.5 he has on.

If N74DV is satified with the look after adding basically 1 inch spacers I think I'll be happy with those SSR's and will think about a 1/2 inch spacer if that's even possible.

z461

Sort of makes sense... Except offset means the whole wheel is placed inward... SO, 8.5 means 1/2 inch is going to be out front, and 1/2 inch is going to be wider in the wheel well. In the back, the wheel will fit better, the SSR will be out more by about 1.25 inches (2.5x2) as compared to N74DV's wheels. SO, basically i'm more worried about the front fitment than the rear, as 8.5's in +37mm will be about 3/4 of an inch inward, and for the most part will look stock up front. Compared to the rear which will be pushed out a bit more, but still will not be filling out the wheel wells..

I have one other wheel which looks really good, has the right fitment, and is lightweight. It's the Volk Racing GT-C, I would recommend that you look at that style...

https://my350z.com/forum/showthread....threadid=10800

There's the link!
Good luck!

jrreed350togo

I like those...NICE....
I think I'll go ahead and order those spacers Just in case....
I'll take pics and post how they come out.

Brad4rdHay

2 questions:

They look great woth those meaty sidewalls, but will they physically work right...will spedo be off, will it rub against the wheel well?

Are the spokes the standard silver...they look more gunmetal-y. Me like-y.

jrreed350togo

2 questions:

They look great woth those meaty sidewalls, but will they physically work right...will spedo be off, will it rub against the wheel well?

Are the spokes the standard silver...they look more gunmetal-y. Me like-y.

__________________________________________________
If you're talking about the SSR's the one on the showcar are 18's thats why you see all the meat. The standard spokes are silver...The showcar has black or gunmetal. Do a search for SSR-GT3's in the forrum search and click on the thread. You'll see a picture of a red 350 with SSR's in 19's. They look great.

N74DV

the fact is spacers DO NOT place any undue stress on any part of the vehicle as long as they are used to bring the offset to a factory offset condition.

in other words, the vehicle knows no different if there are spacers or not providing the spacers were used to make a 42mm offset wheel be a 22mm offset.

If the centerline of the wheel/tire is the same as stock but you have spacers... the car "can't tell the difference".

It's when you use spacers for that "mexi-vato" look which puts the wheels 3" out which places stress on the bearings and other components.

some 1,000 hp 1/4 mile drag cars even run spacers.... no harm done if you do it right.

be not frightened if you need to run spacers.

jrreed350togo

Truth be told only the Volk wheels seem to have that low offset and that's because the center bolt is humongus.

N74DV....How much were your spacers and what offset did you ask for? I'm thinking +30 for the 8.5 fronts and +35 for the 10" rear.