Nice rims! I have been thinking about having that done to mine since there are a bunch of chips and scratches on them. Are the powder coated or painted?

 

i got those 06 oem rims from a forum member here and had them custom painted (GM gunmetal) at my buddy's body shop here in Norcal(specialized in highend european vehicles). i did all the prep work myself in advance before painting/clearcoating. It's been 2 years and the paint is holding up fine.

 

Hmm, I am gonna have to do that I think. What prep work was there to do?

 

careful hand sand the old finish with 600 grit follow with 1000 and 1200 grit papers.

 

The tire looks a little "bulged."

What is your wheel's width?

--Spike

 

I have 245/35/19 on the front and 275/35/19 on the back. and it looks and drive good.

 

hm..
as i have said earlier.
you guys mentioned the tires are both 18x8 on both?
i want to confirm because the answer to me doesn't seem really sure.
because i read somewhere saying they were 18x8 and 18x8.5 in the back
because right now i'm running on 225 and 245.. and it looks to me the rims in the back are bigger for some reason.. .

so if you are saying.. the rims are both 18x8 in the front and back.. so that means i can do 245 front and 245 back right? or 235 front and 245 back right? or stick with 225 245.

thanks in advance again

 

^^ Your 2004 Touring Model’s stock wheels are all the same size, 18x8”. The reason the rear wheels look wider to you is they are fitted with wider tires. It’s simply an optical illusion.

You can use these tire sizes with your stock wheels:

• Front: 225/45-18” or 245/40-18”
• Rear: 245/45-18”

--Spike

 

Thanks spike~

 

don't worry.....General UHP 275/40 would fit just fine on 06 rear rims.

 

Those wheels are a bit sunken into the tires, i didnt like the way 275's handled on 9 inch wheels, and wouldn't put them on anything less than 9.5's

 

I see the tire in this pic, but I cannot see your wheel.

It would be helpful to see the tire on the wheel (bulged... stretched... "normal"). It appears as though your tread on this setup lays correctly.

But... the setup looks a little bulged. I cannot see the wheel at all.

--Spike

 

rubber actually protects the rim from curb rash...
much cheaper to buy new rubber than rim replacement IMO.

 

^^ Sounds as though you prefer a moderately bulged setup to protect the rim from scrapes. I see nothing wrong with that (in fact, that's my preference and why I avoid "stretched" setups). Just look at the Classified Wheels and Tires section, and you see almost every offering describing some "minor" wheel rash.

--Spike

 

a BMW 700 series stock rear tires are more bulged than those.

 

^^ Probably why you don't hear much from BMW owners complaining about "rim rash."

--Spike

 

How are those 265's mounted on on the 8" OEM wheels working out while autocrossing?

Would you choose the same width again when it comes to replacing them?

Do you feel any instability in the wheel while cornering with the sidewalls bulging? I've seen mustang guys running 275s on 8" rims and they claim they get away with it because they buy higher end tires with stiff sidewalls. Is that your experience too?

I found this thread searching for someone auto-xing w/ OEM wheels. Right now I'm running 9.5 width rota's and its bumping me into a class where i'm out-gunned for the moment. Obviously, I want to move back to B stock class using my OEM rims. The OEM rims will be used strictly for auto-xing and the occasional HPDE so i'm not looking for an optimal street setup.

 

They've worked very well for me. I've used them for about 1½ years now and they're just about shot but the wear is even on all four so I can't complain. I've driven them to events 250+ miles away and had no problems with them on the streets.

Probably the only downside is finding somebody willing and able to mount those tires on those wheels. The shop that did them gave me a rough time (jokingly) when I brought them in to be mounted. I watched two BIG guys wrestle with the tire on a Hunter machine trying to get them mounted. They earned their money that day.

Yes. I'm about to replace them with some 265/35 RE-01s.

I haven't noticed a lag or sloppiness when doing quick direction changes. I think the slow Z steering response is more a problem than the tires. I'm currently using Falkens and the 265 size was one that has reinforced sidewalls. I'm sure that helps lessen the effect of the ill fitting tire. The 265 RE-01s also have reinforced sidewalls.

 

Cool. Just wanted to hear from someone that actually has 265s mounted. Even better that you are using for the same purpose that i intend to and you could offer some feedback.

Good choice on the RE01Rs. That seems to be a very popular choice out on the tracks. I drove my friends s2k with RE01Rs on a fun run and was impressed with the grip they offer.

I've also heard some good things about the new Dunlop Direzza Z1 Star Spec. They supposedly offer similar grip to the RE01Rs and the compounds don't need to be heated as much for optimal grip which of course would be great for auto-x. I also like the fact that they are roughly $200 cheaper per set than the RE01Rs. I'm leaning towards picking up a set. I have another friend that is about to order some so i'm gonna see how they work for him first.

Either way u prolly can't go wrong tho.

Thanks for ur response.

 

ok so to get this straight, the 275 40 18 will fit on the anniversary wheels? (18x8.5) what was the verdict... my friend is telling me that 275 40 18 will fit his car, but I think it will be really tight. He mainly wants it for street use, and cant afford wider rims right now. Thoughts????

What do you guys think is a good bigger size for the stockies?? Thanks again!