interesting about deciding I want to run a 275mm tire...The suspension dictates the tire. You are going to build the car to that tires capability ? You don't even know what the capability of it is because you haven't run it yet. Just an FYI tread wear ratings are different between all manufacturers and even within the same manufacturer different tire lines. There is NO industry standard on Tread Wear ratings. It was supposed to be that way but to do so would mean that some one like the DOT would have to establish a standard. All manufacturers would have to agree to the same standard and then someone would have to pay to monitor and enforce the standard. Never happen.
The tread wear rating is established by the tire company as a standard of measure between THEIR own tires. So a 200 twr by Michelin would not be the same as a 200 by Goodyear or Hankook, Pirelli, Dunlop.....And it also is no indictor of the actual traction of the tire. Low tread wear numbers just mean the tire wears faster than a higher tread wear rating of that manufacturer. Not a measure of traction. That is partially addressed by the traction letter codes A, AA, AAA but again not an industry standard. And under what conditions? Tire size, load being carried by the tire, remaining tread depth, speed of the tire, air pressure in the tire, wet or dry, surface, asphalt, concrete, dirt .... The package determines the tire not the other way around, except if you just like a tire and make the car fit it I guess. Not really efficient.
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Tire Width for a Wheel/Rim Size Chart
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Still *** backward. Tell "the suspension dictates the tire" to all guys you see running $5k coil over conversions with 215/60/15 BFG T/A's on the front. Colossal waste of money. Or all the guys running BFG T/A radials on the factory suspension components that were set up for bias ply's with half as much grip wondering why they have so much body roll and suspension bottoming out. Seems like the suspension isn't dictating the tires in
either of those scenarios. And there are lots of examples of both on here.
Have you looked at my build thread? It's literally all there, the entire progression. My Duster started out to be a basic daily driver with a 318 that I was going to run while I worked on my Challenger, nothing fancy. I ran it with 225/60/15's, 1" torsion bars, no sway bars, stock UCA's with offset bushings, pretty much no chassis stiffening, etc. In other words, built to the level of grip those 225's would provide. It had a few extra things based on my experience from putting 70k on my Challenger as a daily. But it didn't have subframe connectors, or torque boxes, any of the other chassis work I've done since, or any of the adjustable suspension I run now. So what happened? When I realized the rust in my Challenger would take it off the road for years I decided to put my 340 in it. And as soon as I decided that I decided to do the full build as a corner carver. And with the 275's and hp from the 340 in mind, it got subframe connectors, torque boxes and all the additional chassis stiffening because it would NEED it with that kind of grip. The 1" bars were sold for 1.12's, the UCA's were replaced with tubulars to clear the 275's and provide the alignment setting they'd need, the rest of the suspension that was stock was replaced. I ran it with 225's for a bit with most of suspension and chassis work done just because of the logistics and finances of buying the larger brakes and new wheels and tires while I broke in the engine, but all that stuff was done for the 275's. The sway bars stayed off until the 275's went on. Heck I even screwed it up, I've made the suspension even more aggressive than I originally intended because it became apparent that the 275's were better than I thought they'd be- that's right, tuning the suspension to better match the tires! Weird huh?
Yes, tread wear ratings are slightly different from manufacturer to manufacturer. Same with traction and temp ratings. But, what do you use otherwise? You order a sample of tires, do all the testing yourself on
your car, and then pick your tires? Of course you don't. Treadwear, traction and temp ratings are
GUIDELINES. They put you in the ballpark. Is a 400 treadwear tire from one manufacturer the same as a 200 from another? No, it's not. Could a 300 treadwear tire from one company have less performance than a 340 from another? Sure. But that's why you look at tire tests done by places like TireRack, or reviews by people that have run the tires, see what people using their cars like you are running, etc. Otherwise what do you do? You either test every brand/model that will fit on your car yourself, or just randomly pick one you like? You aren't doing the first, and the latter isn't a better method. So poo-poo all you like, you don't have to listen to me. Why don't you explain how YOU pick a tire by not using any of the manufacturer's published tire specs?
Thanks for the reply, Im going to take your advise and go with 17x8 American racing 515 wheels with 5.5 BS in the front and 4"BS in the back. they fit within the dimensions you suggested and its what Summit has. also taking your suggestion on tires but with 255/45/17 in the back.
Ill get some pictures up as soon as I get them mounted.
Thanks again for the help, where abouts in nor cal are you?
Nice! Those should work for you.
I usually prefer to use the max backspace possible since spacers can fix that if you're close since every car is a little different. But I see the AR's are either a 4.75" or a 4" backspace for the back so 4" is the best you can do. You should still have a 1/2" to the quarter with those, so it should be fine as long as your measurements are accurate.
