why 17x9.5"/17x10" won't rub on this gen 1.. :-)

[DemonNeno]

Time for surgery! Come spring/early summer, I should be hugging the road with true Cobra rims.. For the time being, I'm considering the '93 Cobra rims redrilled & filled to fit the SHO bolt pattern, but if all doesn't go well then '01 Cobra R rims will be the replacement.. What about rubbing, you ask? There's something I like to call custom wheel flares. Not too dramatic, but enough to make the cars stance significantly wider and broader looking. yay!

 

[SHOnuff93]

93 cobra rims are only 17x7, and they would look sweet, is the backspacing even close to being right though?

As for a 17x9 , that is going to be interesting, they will stick out in order to not rub the strut. I am curious as to how the car will look with flares.

Also, there is no such thing as an 01 cobra R. If you meant the 00 cobra R, sorry to say that it didnt come with 17's, it had 18's

 

[AutoSHO]

The SVT Tbird wheels are all over ebay in a 17x9 wheel. Pretty sure they're the 5x108 pattern.

 

[ohioshodude]

AutoSHO:
The SVT Tbird wheels are all over ebay in a 17x9 wheel. Pretty sure they're the 5x108 pattern.

yep you'll need about 1/2" spacer for them to work right but they look great and fit without rubbing. i'd go that route. much easier thumb

 

[Hack]

DemonNeno:
What about rubbing, you ask? There's something I like to call custom wheel flares. Not too dramatic, but enough to make the cars stance significantly wider and broader looking.

Just a thought, but if you increase your front track you will probably get increased torque steer to go with it. Don't get me wrong, I am not trying to be a naysayer. Just bringing it up in case you had not thought of it. I had hoped to do something similiar many years ago, but could not find anyone willing to tackle the job. Make sure you post pics!

 

[30footSHO]

Where are these nice li'l jobbers at? Don't like them anymore? I think they look purty.

 

[AutoSHO]

30footSHO:

Where are these nice li'l jobbers at? Don't like them anymore? I think they look purty.

I agree, that car looks really good.

I also agree with the above about torque steer. It also puts quite a bit more load on the wheel bearing is you run a spacer. Simple solution to that is to get wheels with the correct offset.

As a sidenote, I went and looked on ebay and I cannot find those wheels currently. Last time I looked (maybe a week ago) there were 20 or so auctions for them, chrome and silver finish. I would guess they will be back.

 

[SonicRiot]

mmm. wheel flares. wider track. cobra rims. naughty


keep me posted.

pcorn

 

[RI-SHO]

I would love to see the wider flares.

Here is the Gen II that has the 17x9's you want, now you can imagine...

Pictures are from my SHO PC/HD folder, his Member name is: jdh00 #338.

 

[SLOSHO89]

AutoSHO
It also puts quite a bit more load on the wheel bearing is you run a spacer.

shrug

 

[Lance Cheney]

AutoSHO:

30footSHO:

Where are these nice li'l jobbers at? Don't like them anymore? I think they look purty.

I agree, that car looks really good.

I also agree with the above about torque steer. It also puts quite a bit more load on the wheel bearing is you run a spacer. Simple solution to that is to get wheels with the correct offset.

As a sidenote, I went and looked on ebay and I cannot find those wheels currently. Last time I looked (maybe a week ago) there were 20 or so auctions for them, chrome and silver finish. I would guess they will be back.

Yeah, why bother with the spacer when you can get the 17x9s with a 24mm offset. That puts the inside of the wheel at about the same spot as a 17x8" would with a 36.5mm offset. Granted, ideally you'd want a 38-40mm equivalent, but if you're tubbing it anyway, it doesn't matter if it sticks out an extra 2-4mm...

Of course, do that and you might not have caliper clearance, ... it'd be nice to have one just to try out.

They sell these for the T-bird SC here (and probably lots of other places):

17x9 Cobra replicas with 24mm offset

This place has 2002-style Cobra wheels that I suspect you could get with a similar setup. I like them better than the standard 5-spoke 'R' style wheels. At $152 each they're pretty tempting, although they're really heavy wheels (24-26lbs each).

Cobra wheels

How much difference does unsprung weight make on a road course (track). I know it has a big effect on ride quality and tracking over uneven surfaces, but given that I'm adding (vs. a lightweight 15lb wheel) 25% total to the wheel+tire package, or probably 12% to the total unsprung weight, I can't imagine it have a huge effect for an occasional weekend racer. I'm putting on coilovers, which probably just removed 5-6lbs in spring weight, so ...

-Lance

<small>[ February 06, 2004, 02:03 PM: Message edited by: Lance Cheney ]</small>

 

[SHOfun 93]

Those are the wheels I plan on going with on the 93 when it is all done...put some 13" rotors behind those babies...and WOW!

 

[GreenBird]

SLOSHO89:

AutoSHO
It also puts quite a bit more load on the wheel bearing is you run a spacer.

shrug

a bearing isn't made to weight on it, and moving the wheel outward will change the suspension angle, putting weight on the bearing.

Hmm, basically a wide body kit... throwup

 

[DemonNeno]

Hello all and thanks for the feedback!

Here's the deal, the reason I want teh flares is to tame the look of wider rims. As RI-SHO posted, thanks chief, you can see what a gen2 looks like with a true Cobra style rim. Problem is, the gen 1 wheel wells are less forgiving and ride lower for the most part as well (esp with the lower skirts in the rear, which isn't the actual ride height, but the skirts are low stock, let alone lowered!)

As for the rims, those no longer are on my SHO. I've went back to slicers since due to rubbing in the rear, sad part is it turns out that my rear camber was the cause from the get-go! I forgot which rims they were, but will update you guys. very cheap as well! I believe sub-$100 a piece!

Also, I did mean the '00 Cobra R rim and replica's are available in 17x8.5"/9" as well as 18's.. 17"x9" are a rarity, though...

Finally, torque steer is definitely going to increase, however, I'm hoping that the Quaife will aid in reducing that factor a bit. I'm also looking into altering the spindles push the bearing/hub assembly further outwards, allowing me to prevent the usage of spacer plates... But that just sounds nuts and I DON'T want to see the cost of something like that.

Other choices would be BBS Rims which I always found to be sharp lookin' rims, esp. for auto-xing SHOs. With minor flares and a bit of a refined rounded look to the wells, I'd imagine such a rim would be nothing short of DEAD SEXY! But those are too expensive for rims to just "experiment" with..

We'll see how the project comes along within the next few months. Also, so I don't bust anyones bubble to late down the road, this may be cancelled/postponed if need be. I'd much rather build a strong drivetrain at the moment rather then produce the ultimate flare kit... lol..

Greenbird, no not a wide body kit... you're thinking 4" wheel flares that run along the doors and bumpers, lol.. NAY! I'm just flaring the top of the wheel wells and a tad along the sides to increase the gen1's clearance, mainly for the rear. Some of us have issues with rims wider then 7.5" and others are luckier with issues... I've had endless problems with clearance and it's beginning to really nag me off...

I wouldn't worry about wheel bearing wear, 17x9" cobra style rims have been used on a SHO and I've spoken to the owner a while ago drooling over the looks of his sharp gen 2! And if you're out there, I forgot your name, but never forgot that dreamed you helped influence amongst us SHosters looking for something more RWD-ish in our cars!

 

[DemonNeno]

with the BBS... I love the "deep dish" look with the honeycomb style rims... or whatever it is they call 'em!

 

[cRaZySHO.]

SLOSHO89:

AutoSHO
It also puts quite a bit more load on the wheel bearing is you run a spacer.

shrug

I can attest to that. I have 245/45/17's on all four corners on a 17x8 wheel, and needed to shave my rear fender wells, and use small 5mm spacers up front. And I have gone through 2 sets of front wheel bearings in about 3 months(with hard driving). It puts such a load on the bearings that it cracks the bearing retainer, and seized the inner race to my hubs, on all four accounts. Which jumps from a $40 job to an $80 job each time.

Just a piece of mind for ya......

 

[DemonNeno]

CrazySHO - Ever consider shaving off some of your strut and possibly welding in a curved plate to remove the spacers? I mean.. at $80 a pop, I'd look into some of that nature!! Maybe we can get our spindles angled to allow more negative camber w/o wearing the tires immensely? There has to be a cure.

cRaZySHO.
It puts such a load on the bearings that it cracks the bearing retainer, and seized the inner race to my hubs, on all four accounts. Which jumps from a $40 job to an $80 job each time.

Just a piece of mind for ya...... [/QB]

 

[DemonNeno]

30footSHO:

Where are these nice li'l jobbers at? Don't like them anymore? I think they look purty.

I'm not 100% on what they were anymore, but i believe they're Konig GT-R's... fairly cheap rims but i believe their discontinued now.

 

[Chris Benvie]

JaySHOguy is running s set of wheels (konigs i think) on his black 89, they look JUST like the BBS wheels, they look great, go for it.

 

[JaySHOguy]

AutobahnSHO1130:
JaySHOguy is running s set of wheels (konigs i think) on his black 89, they look JUST like the BBS wheels, they look great, go for it.

Thanks Chris.
Actually, they are American Racing Vortec wheels. Heavy pieces, but I think they look good on the car.
18x8" with unknown offset with a 235/40/18 Falken tire. They JUST barely clear the strut tubes in the rear and I only had to roll a tiny little bit of the left rear wheelwell because it rubbed(1/4").
Here are 2 pics:

<small>[ February 13, 2004, 01:05 PM: Message edited by: JaySHOguy ]</small>