PlainWhite350z

iTrader: (1)

I'd be very skeptical of 17" wheels fitting. He's got Brembos, plus the brake rotors of both standard and Brembo were upsized in '06, which as I understand it is the main reason why 18" became the smallest stock wheel size. I have an 04.5 and have a set of 17" wheels w/ snow tires for winter, and that's what's holding me back from upgrading to the '06+ standard non-Brembo brake setup (w/ 2 piston calipers front)... the rotor size, I don't think it'll fit. 18" wheels will be no problem and is most likely your most cost effective option. If anyone with an '06+ has used 17's without any caliper clearance issues, please prove me wrong. I'd love the excuse to upgrade my brakes.

Side note: I think in order to avoid VDC occasionally going bananas, you're still gonna have to go with a slightly taller tire in the rear, so side to side rotation but no front to back unfortunately. Given that we're talking about winter driving, disabling VDC is not something you're going to want to do all the time.

VMRWheels

Spacers aren't necessary, although if you're getting something narrow for winter it might help make it look a bit nicer.

terrasmak

iTrader: (8)

OEM 17's fit over Brembo brakes without problem. Hell I ran 17's over my 6 piston calipers with 355mm rotors before

coops808

Thanks for the info guys. So basically, I would be safe with getting a set of 18x8 all around for my snow set-up?

Edmonton 350z

iTrader: (1)

Hi, I'm trying to buy winter wheels and tires for my 03 VDC Touring. I have read the 100 FAQ's and searched for hours on this. I found a set of 225/50/17 wheels and tires for a good deal. I see some people have used 225/55/17 rears. One person that used the 50's all round said "it didn't work well". What does this mean? Can someone tell me their exact experience with this square setup? Thanks

NG15

iTrader: (2)

i had 225/55/17 all around and it worked out find for me. I drove less than a dozen times in the snow and did not have a problem. Just obviously drive smart and it shouldn't be an issue if snow is on the ground.

Bret86944

iTrader: (4)

I would rather have 225 all around than 225 front and 235 rear. The narrower the better.

PlainWhite350z

iTrader: (1)

I run 50 front and 55 rear snow tires on 17" wheels. The reason why many run the 55's on the rear is because for VDC to function properly, the ecu needs to see the rear tire rotating ever so slightly slower than the front. If you use one of the tire size calculators, you'll see that the 50 front/55 rear combo most closely matches OE sized overall diameter... hence, happy and functional VDC. Although most of us turn VDC off when the roads are clear and dry, I personally leave it on in the rain, and especially want it working in the snow/ice. Every little bit helps.

If you need a wheel/tire combo for your winter setup, send a PM to Neal@Tirerack on the forum here. I went through him for my setup last year... great setup for a great price.

Edmonton 350z

iTrader: (1)

That's good feedback, thanks. Hmmm. I have 19's on there, and wanted to buy the oem 18's used and put winters on there, but found a set of 17's with the 225 setup for a good price. Not sure what to do!

royblackwood

I'm running blizzack ws70's 215/65/17 rear 215/60/17 front,, loving the smooth ride cant wait for snow to see how they perform!

jonnyrockets07

So I live in Toronto, Ontario and am planing on winter driving my Z this year against my better judgement, and was wondering if this tire setup would affect the VDC problem. (I've had it in the past and am currently running 245/45/18 fronts 255/45/18 rears which work fine, but I am downsizing for winter and getting some steelies.)

The size i'm going for is:

225/50/17 - Front (Overall Diameter: 25.85 in)
225/55/17 - Rear (Overall Diameter: 26.74 in)

I used the tire calculator and according to my understanding the diameter has to be within 1-3% and it looks like this is just over 1% so I should be fine right?

Thanks in advance !

Bret86944

iTrader: (4)

There's nothing wrong with those sizes. Other options would be 215 front/225 rear or 215 all around. Since you live in Canada I'm assuming you will get a lot of snow, in which case you may want to consider 215 all around.

*What is the VDC problem? I have a base so I don't deal with the VDC at all.

jonnyrockets07

Oh if you dont have VDC then you might not be the right person to ask.

The problem with it is if its not between 1-3% it 'thinks' your sliding when your really not. For instance, I put 255/45/18's on my rear while I still had 225/45/18's on the front and it was more than 3% and as I was coming on the on ramp to the freeway accelerating my VDC kicked in because it 'thought' my wheels had broke loose meanwhile I was just turning smoothly while accelerating and I was greeted with my car slamming on my breaks for me while I was trying to accelerate lol. Once I got 245/45/18's on the front it was back within 3% and now everythings fine.

Yeah I might go a bit smaller to be safe too.. That being said last winter was pretty mild here.. only a few bad days. For the most part just frosty temps and cold dry roads.

It looks like 215/50/17 with 225/50/17 is my best bet as it only has a 1.51% diameter difference.

Has anyone tried a tire setup similar to this for winter?

Thanks.

bmccann101

iTrader: (16)

measure stock wheel and tire rolling heights, mimic w whatever you decide to run.theres your answer.

jonnyrockets07

I could measure but I'm ordering them from a shop and don't have the luxury of measuring them before purchasing. I was just seeing if anyone had a setup that they ran successfully on a VDC enabled Z and could give me some advice =)

I read through the thread and see 225/50/17 front 235/50/17 is the common winter size for 17" rims, But I hear we're supposed to get a lot of snow this year.. I'm thinking I should go for something less fat than a 235 rear..

Has anyone ran anything with a 225 or 215 rear on 17's without causing VDC problems?

Let me know! Thanks =)

aboveliquidice

iTrader: (1)

Just go with OEM... BMWs rock 235 wide snow tires often, without issue. Porche does the same in Germany as well. I just went with OEM size... 225 50R 17 front and 235 50R 17s for the rear. The only brand I could find in stock right now was Pirelli Sottozero series ii. Toyo observe garit kx are supposed to be good as well, but 1010 wont ship to APO boxes. If you are stateside or Cananda, they may be your best bet.

zakmartin

I have the same Continentals as the OP. I bought a set of snowsocks from http://www.snowchains.co.uk/snowchai...Sock+Snowsock/ that are custom fitted to the rear tires. They set me back about $100. Cheap insurance and the snowsocks get good reviews. I don't want to use chains since they'd destroy my pristine factory rims. The snowsocks are just insurance. I never plan to drive my car when there's snow in the forecast. My wife has an AWD Rogue with Continental all-seasons and that thing drives like it's on tracks (we take it up to the mountains at least 15 times a year to go skiing.) I'm pretty sure that if we get snow and I'm at work, I'll make it home without having to put the socks on, but just in case, I think it's a good alternative.

Submariner

First off yes I searched (On rim size) and went thru the 3 pages it returned.

Now for the question. I have a chance to pick up a set of rims (Fast) and winter tires (Falken) off a 2009 G37s which have been used one winter for 800 bucks (See pic). All 4 tires are 245/45 18's which is fine with me since they are winter tires I have no problem with all 4 being the same size. My plan is to swap the winter tires onto my stock rims and run them in the winter then mount new summer tires on the aftermarket.

My concern are the rims. I think all 4 rims are the same size vs stock 18x8 front and 18x9.5 rear. He can't remember but I have asked him to check the inside of the rim to see if it is stamped. What are your opinions should I pass or take a chance?

oldschool350z

iTrader: (1)

I would pass.

RUNWDVL

iTrader: (10)

Keep your oem rims