Ideal track tire width for 9.5" wheel?
 

Hi,

I was wondering what is the ideal width for tires on a 9.5"?

As far as i can tell you can fit anything between a 245-285 on a 9.5"

I'm thinking a 245 is a little too small and a 285 is too big.

You would want something that would let your sidewalls sit vertical/flush with your wheel width to maximize stiffness correct? would that be a 265? or 275?

Thanks

265 or 275 works great

Join Date: May 2005

After 7 years you should be helping new members with wheel and tire selection.

This. If you look at the manufacturers specs on their tires, they normally list a min to max wheel width range and a "measured" value. That is typically their optimal wheel width and the one that the posted specs (width, tread width, sidewall height, etc.) are measured on.

I would personally use 265s for the front on a 9.5" wheel. I had 285s on my 19x9.5 Nismo wheels, and they're a little bluged. 275 is more than likely what you're looking for.

How does this help?

was looking at the nitto nt05s

I guess the middle bracketed size is the ideal size for these then.

265/35ZR18 97W - 9.0-(9.5)-10.5

275/35ZR18 99W - 9.0-(9.5)-11.0

http://www.nittotire.com/Tire/nt05#size

275/35ZR18: Actual speed 100.0 MPH. Speedometer will read 104.3 MPH. Is this what you want?

I think the choice of RIM WIDTH comes first and is the most important factor.
In some cases, using the SMALLEST approved tire width for a well chosen rim width (9.5s up front) has it's advantages. For example, up front I have Cooper Zeon RS-3S 245/40s on 9.5s and the sidewalls are stiff as hell. Those are the smallest tires approved for that rim. Sharp turn in and minimal flex (cornering stability) are the benefits of using such a set up on the fronts. The wider the tire you use for a given rim width, the more it will flex and that *could* result in inferior handling. Wider tires are usually a great choice, but are not always the best option...especially up front.

^Good point but there's a downside: The wider rim you put, the heavier unsprung weight you get as well.

To answer OP's question:

on 18's: 265/40 or 275/35.

Since you mention track tire, stay away from NT05's , they wear fast and really don't have the greatist grip. Look into the Hankook RS3 , it is so much better of a tire. I run a 275/35 up front (RS3) on a 9.5 and a 285 out back on a 10.5 inch wheel. You can also run 285/35 all around if you want.

I guess the middle bracketed size is the ideal size for these then.


http://www.nicecarparts.info/songht2.jpghttp://www.nicecarparts.info/songgd.jpg
http://www.bookunion.org/12.jpghttp://www.nicecarparts.info/songjh.jpg

i would run 265/35/18 on all four corners on a 9.5

I'll look into the hankook rs3, i just mentioned the nitto nt05s because a friend of mine mentioned he runs those on his M3 and likes them.

Oh i am so confused.

We have one guy saying put smallest possible for 9.5 on front for better steering (245/40) and then bigger in the rear, 265/40-285/40 for the same 9.5"... (although RS-3 doesn't come in 285/40/18)..

Another guy saying (and from what i have read terrasmak knows his ****)
275/35 up front (RS3) on a 9.5 and a 285 out back on a 10.5 (these dont come in 10.5 )...but it would still fit fine

And another saying 265/40 and 265/40 all round

Prices for RS-3
265/35/18 $225
265/40/18 $284
245/40/18 $177
285/40/18 $252

Im thinking front 245/40/18 (perfect OD from stock) on 9.5 + 45? Would it be better for BBK clearance?
and rear 265/35 (265/40 is better for OD) but others say having 5 smaller sidewall on wider rear (vs front) is better ?? on 9.5 +25

Would the front look/perform better with deeper dish +25 offset ?

And last of all will these wheels in either offset fit AP Racing 3700 362mm 6 piston brakes? for them to fit there needs to be 25cm from the edge of the right side of wheel barrel to the left edge of wheel hub hole.. (can anyone measure ?) Spoke wise (if i need a spacer) depends on having 6cm from top of hub to closest spoke... Thanks for the help.

This is a god tool to play with...

http://www.rimsntires.com/specs.jsp

I have stock suspension and went with 265/40ZR18 up front and 275/40ZR18 rear. A larger mix of these cars are lowered so finding pictures of a setup with stock height wasnt easy. I used superstreet's write up to gauge what would work and ended up with no rub at full lock or compression. Figured I'd add some pics of stock height with these tire sizes for any who choose not to lower their Z.


https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/my350z....7a9ab3dc4f.jpg


https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/my350z....36c2b9e5b3.jpg