Official Tire and Wheel Combo Thread, Post your combo here!
 

I'm making this thread a sticky, but it must contain useful first-hand information about your own car only. Post a picture if you can to illustrate, we all like to see pictures.

Don't post pictures that are so large that we have to scroll back and forth to read the thread.:smash:

If your pictures are too big, please ask for help reducing their size in the 'Test & Tune' forum, I will delete any giant pics.

Posts must at the very minimum contain the following 3 pieces of information:

1) Rim diameter and width, front and rear.

2) Wheel backspacing measurement, front and rear. What brand of wheel and the actual name of the wheel would be good info to include as well.

If you don't know the backspacing measurement, kindly remove one front and one rear wheel and measure them. The measurement is made from the very back edge of the rim lip to the mounting face. With the tire mounted on the rim, lay a straightedge (a yardstick will do, on it's edge) across the tire sidewall and measure down to the wheel mounting face. Then measure down to the rim lip outer edge and subtract this measurement from the first one, easy to find your backspacing. Without that backspace measurement, there's no way to help anyone with your wheel/tire information.

Link to help you measure:http://earlywheel.com/choosing.html

I know that backspacing on some wheels are measured from the actual inner tire bead mounting surface, and this is probably the proper way from an engineer's standpoint (I was reminded of this by PY member TJH, may he RIP). But it's easier for reference to measure from the back edge of the rim lip since you can actually see it with the tires mounted. Plenty of wheel makers use the method I like to use, from the back edge of the rim lip.

3) Tire sizes, front and rear.

Tire brand would be good too, especially for those who are running specialty tires like redlines.

It would also help to state if your car still has the original width rear axle still in it, as a lot of rear end swaps are done with wider or narrower OEM rear ends. Some of us run a custom-narrowed rear for better looks or tire fit.

If your car is tubbed like a drag race car or Pro-Street car, any wheel/tire info you post is useless without knowing the width of the rear axle from flange to flange. Same thing goes for Pro-Touring cars with extensive chassis work, please let us know what's holding up the wheels.

Every kind of Pontiac is welcome, restored, modified, Pro-Touring, Pro-Street, drag race cars, big luxury cars, you name it. But it must be a Pontiac, so of course any later model front-wheel drive Grand Prix, Firebird up to '02 or GTO up to '06 is welcome. We don't want to see your other non-Pontiac cars, no matter how cool you think the wheel/tire combo is.

This thread should be a good source of technical information for those who are trying to decide what will fit or what looks good. If you have any questions about someone's combo, please send them a Private Message or start a new thread referring to their post in this thread.

We want to keep this thread 'clean' so it can be a useful archive, just wheel/tire combos only. For this thread to have any sort of usefulness or longevity please do your best to post good information, don't leave anything out. Any posts not following the format above will be deleted from this thread. :sorry:

Thank you.:ranger:

the wheels are stock 15x7 ralley IIs with 4.5" BS. Front tires are 235/60-15 BFG radial T/A, rears are 275/60-15 radial T/As with a stock 8.2" Pontiac rear and Moog CC501 rear coils. I think I could fit a bigger tire in the rear.

My fronts are 14" X 7" Cragar S/S with 4.125" backspace. The tires are 225/70-14" Radial T/A's.
There is plenty of room left and when the 225's wear out I'll put 245/60-14's on.
The rears are 15" X 8" Cragar S/S with 4.25" backspace. Mounted are 255/60-15 T/A's. There is only 1/4" to 3/8" space between the tires and wheel wells, so wider tires with those wheels/BS will not work.
The suspension is fresh all around.

1970 Tempest T-37 with 15X7" Rally II wheels.
 

A very popular wheel is the 15X7" Rally II, it's probably used by enthusiasts on more late '60s and early '70s Pontiacs than any other factory wheel.

This was my '70 T-37, it now belongs to PY member 'goatless' (Jeremy) in CT. It has 'real' Pontiac 15X7 Rally IIs with 4.5" backspace, running 245/60s up front and 275/60s in the back. Tires up front were Remingtons, out back they were some other cheap generic brand tire.

Up front the 245s are about as big as you can go without rubbing issues. The 275s in the rear would be a better fit on a wider 8" wheel, but look just fine and handle pretty well on the 7" wheel (which is one of the recommended rim widths for this tire). Suspension and rear axle width is completely stock, including the original saggy springs.

http://i137.photobucket.com/albums/q...7/DSC00854.jpg

'61 Fullsize
 

17x8 with 5" backspace Torq Thrust II
245/45/17 BFG KDW

all 4 wheel / tires are the same, although if i did it again, i would shrink the fronts to 235 & more backspace (tuck in tire as much as possible before it starts polishing the sway bar). i would do this because the scrub radius with wide tires created a tramlining problem (tires nibble at ruts & cracks), although my scrub radius is already out 5/8" further than stock because of disk brakes.

back fits really great, can fit some chubby fingers between tires & frame or tires & fender lip. i wouldn't try and fit any wider without frame mods or fender roll.

see thread for more discussion: http://forums.maxperformanceinc.com/...ight=245+tires

http://img166.imageshack.us/img166/2748/img3067ws9.jpg

http://img521.imageshack.us/img521/243/img3068ti2.jpg

http://img134.imageshack.us/img134/9827/img3069bq3.jpg

http://img165.imageshack.us/img165/2569/img3070lc3.jpg

http://img209.imageshack.us/img209/2832/img3071ln3.jpg

1964 Tempest with 17X8" steel wheels
 

Here's a few pics and details on my 1964 Tempest.

Rolling stock consists of 17X8" custom-made black-painted steel wheels with 4.5" backspace (same as 'zero offset' on this wheel width) running factory Pontiac dog-dish caps. Tires are 235/45-17 all around. A 1/4" wide red stripe was painted on the rim lip to simulate the look of a factory 14" redline tire, fools a lot of people until they look a little closer.

These wheels are quite heavy at 37# each bare, the only drawback. It was worth it though to have a one-of-a-kind wheel, I'm not really looking for the ultimate in handling but the car is no slouch. I had the wheels made to put them out near the outer reaches of the wheel wells, in hindsight an extra 1/4" of backspace might have enabled me to fit slightly bigger tires a bit more easily.

Up front are '78 B-body (Bonneville wagon) spindles & 12" rotors re-drilled for A-body 5 on 4.75" bolt circle (B-body is 5 on 5"), along with Hotchkis tubular upper A-arms and HO Racing front springs. The factory lower A-arms have been reinforced with plates welded in the lower bushing area.

HO Racing 1-3/8" front & rear sway bars were installed, along with owner boxed rear lower control arms and new stock regular-ride rear springs cut down by 3/4 of a coil. Urethane bushings and KYB gas shocks are installed all around.

http://i137.photobucket.com/albums/q...4/DSC00839.jpg

http://i137.photobucket.com/albums/q...4/DSC00842.jpg

http://i137.photobucket.com/albums/q...4/DSC00845.jpg

http://i137.photobucket.com/albums/q...4/DSC00846.jpg

Here's the combos for both of my cars.

'72 Formula 400. I wanted to retain a "stock at first glance" appearance while actually going into the realm of "damn, never seen that before."

So, I had some custom 15x10" steel wheels, much like Bart's made. With chrome trim rings and dog-dish caps, it'll fool you from the side. 5" backspacing. 265/50-15 tires up front, 305/50-15 out back. The fronts fit with plenty of clearance all around, the backs are darned tight and the seatbelt bulges had to be flattened. The 305 tire has about a 12" cross-section so sticks out from under the fender a bit, but the tread is all under the car.

http://i114.photobucket.com/albums/n...s/PSFRONTH.jpg

And, at the autocross:

http://i114.photobucket.com/albums/n...arvincones.jpg

For my '73 'bird I wanted lightweight and best possible handling so went with the '00 TA WS6 wheels (17x9") and Michelin Pilots in 285/40-17 size. These wheels have too much backspacing so had to use some VB&P billet adapters, 1.25" I think without looking up my notes. This produced 5.25" backspacing which is fine, plenty of clearance up front but I did have to flatten the bulge in the rear again.

Note that in this picture I don't have the car lowered to where I want it yet and it's sitting on uneven ground which makes the front look higher than it is from this side.

http://i114.photobucket.com/albums/n...17sideview.jpg

69 gto convertible - tires.
 

Before and after pics - the FRONT are 235/60/15 BFG's on 15x7's (I think 4" backspace?? - whatever is pretty stock for vintiques wheels). OF NOTE: the after are same tires flipped to the black side.

Before BACK tire pics were BFG 245/60/15's and after are Nitto 555R 275/60/15 drag radials. Same rim for both tires is vintiques 15X8 w/ 4 1/2 BS.

Comment - my front springs are fairly new PST's built for stock height. I DID NOT tell them I would be changing to an aluminum intake - this makes the stock ride height (which is already a little high) even higher. My front tires will occasionally rub. (I don't think they would if the front of car sat a little lower on the springs). ALSO - they rubbed my wheelwell trim enough to make me take it off.

I have had the back right Nitto rub occasionally coming off of speed bumps.

1975 Trans Am. Both front & rears are Cragar D Window 15x8 (4.5" bs). Front tires are 225-60-15s and the rears are 255-60-15s. LS1 front brake upgrade/rear disc upgrade. Bilstein shocks & stock springs (new) in the rear; QA1's in the front (550 lb springs); PTF-Body tubular uppers & stock lowers w/ Del-A-Lum bushings. Poly swaybar/link bushings on all other places.

I like the black rim look. I was running 15x7 Rally 2's and wanted to go to 15x8s, but didn't have the budget for the set of Cragar S/S that would have to be blasted & powdercoated black. This was an el cheapo way out ($40/rim vs $100/rim + cost of blast & p/c).

I've since added QA1 coilovers, so the front is about 3/4" lower than in these pics.

http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j9...s%20Am/py3.jpg

http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j9...s%20Am/py2.jpg

http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j9...s%20Am/py1.jpg

1968 GP w/ 14" X 6" Pontiac 8 lug wheels.........
 

225/75R X 14" Cooper Trendsetter narrow whitewalls w/35# front and 32# rear. Xlnt. riding and wearing tires, as recommended by my PY Forums "Darksider" friends.

Front: new Moog ac springs, poly bushings, KYB GR-2 gas shocks, and Addco 1 1/8" sway bar.

Rear: new Moog cargo springs, poly bushings, KYB GR-2, stock 2:93 posi rear w/ owner boxed lower control arms, and 67 Catalina 7/8" sway bar.

Sits high in the rear due to the cargo springs, but levels out when loaded for those fun :D cross-country trips. This big ol' barge can keep up in the twisties with most anything :eek: ; considering the limitations of the drum brakes and it's 4500# weight, w/o driver/passengers.

Les

1966 GTO Sedan with AR Torque Thrust wheels......
 

Wheels/Tires street:
Front: 7 X 15, 3 3/4" offset, 215/70 X 15 BFG TA
Rear : 8 X 15, 4 1/2" offset, 255/60 X 15 BFG TA

Drag: 8 X 15 weld Draglites, 4.5" backspace, M/T 28 X 10.5 X 15 stiff sidewalls raced @ 15.5 psi.

Suspension/brakes:
Front: Moog #5400 (Chevy big block) springs with 1/2 coil removed, poly bushings, QA 1 shocks set on 4, 1 3/8" sway bar, 3-turn steering box, MPB 11" disc brake kit, 1 1/8" master cylinder, and SSBC electric vacuum pump. Note: the tall 70 seies tires hit the top of the wheel tubs on compression; 215/60 series clear without rubbing.

Rear: 12 bolt Chevy, stock Moog springs w/air bags @ 5psi street and 10psi/drag to clear slicks, QA1 shocks set on 7 street/drag, boxed lower and adjustable upper LCAs, no-hops, HR Parts & Stuf anti-rollbar, and MPB 11 1/4" disc brakes.

Les

1972 Firebird Trans Am with AR Torque Thrust "Ds"
 

AR TT "Ds": 16" X 8" wide w/ 4" backspace. 245/50 X 16 BFG G-Force KDW tires. For occassional track days, I have an extra set of steel wheels with Hoosier road racing slicks mounted on them.

Full Hotchkis sport suspension kit/ lowered 1 1/2" : poly bushings, 1 3/8" front sway bar, coil and leaf springs; Koni adjustable shocks, WELDED CE sub-frame connectors, and 3 turn steering box. Stock 10 bolt rr w/steel axles, Eaton posi, studded bearing cap, and welded axle tubes. Stock 11" front discs and SSBC 11" rr discs do the stopping with the help of Porterfield ceramic brake pads. Corners very flat w/xlnt turn in @ speed :eek: .

Les

My '69 GTO with 17s
 

Wheels: Boyd Junkyard Dawgs
Front: 17 x 8 x 4.5"
Rear: 17 x 10 x 5.5"

Tires: BF Goodrich gForce T/A KDWS
Front: 245/45ZR17
Rear: 285/40ZR17

Suspension:
Hotchkis Front and rear sway bars (2202F/R)
Hotchkis rear adj upper trailing arms (1202)
Hotchkis lower trailing arms (1302)
Hotchkis "Big Block": front coil springs (1916F)
Moog variable rate cargo rear springs (CC501)

Stock front disc brakes and Cardone quick ratio steering box.

Olds "Type O" (3.42 posi) rearend although I am almost certain that the dims are the same as the Pontiac rear.

The Hotchkis front springs lowered the front of my car between 3/4 to 7/8" of an inch from that with a new set of Moog factory replacements. In my opinion, it would look good just a little lower however I have already scraped my front sway bar a couple times on bad roads and am content with the current stance.

FYI, the car has the stock A/C but an aluminum Edelbrock intake manifold. No other substancial weight has been added or removed from the car.

In the rear I was at first concerned that the CC501s gave the car too much height however I now think it is alright although it looks best with a full tank of gas. In the pics it is sitting on 1/4 tank.

I also have a set of four 15 x 8 x 4.5" Rally IIs repros that I can use. They are on BFG Radial T/As, 295/50x15s rear and 235/60x15" front. The 295s rubbed the inner wheelwells on hard cornering until I installed the upper trailing arms, along with the lowers and sway bar that were already there.

There are not any rubbing issues and I am happy with both combinations. :D

Whell Vintques 16 x 8 R II's 4 3/4 BS all the way around.
Dunlop SP Sport 255/50 x 16's.
Original rear end, with stock suspension front and rear(poly bushings). No problems with rubbing front or rear.

Rally IIs on a big car
 

Here are Rally IIs on a 1969 b-body. They are 15X7 Rally IIs dated from 1979. The paint on them is from the kit Ames sells (Dupont, if I recall).
The rally IIs have 4.5 inches of backspace.
The tires are 225/70/15s all the way around.
Previously, I've had 235/60/15s on the front and 255/60/15s on the back without any major issues (slight rubbing in front when wheel cranked all the way to the left and you hit a bump).
I prefer the way the 225/70s drive.
FYI: The Rally II center caps are the reproductions from our sponsor. They do NOT fit a disk brake car without modifications. I'm told the GM clip-style ones they sell do clear the grease cap on these cars, though.
Anyway, here's what this setup looks like.

Cragars on '66 2+2
 

Here is my car with Cragar SS 15x7, 4.125" backspace. Tires are Goodyear Eagle GTII's, 225/70/15 at all four corners. The right rear one rubs on hard right turns with people in the back seat or with the trunk loaded. Will have to modify the wheel openings before I do the 4-wheel disc conversion this Fall!

1964 GTO - 15" standard steel wheels
 

My '64 GTO has a set of custom-made steel wheels, powder coated gloss black. The wheels centers were removed from a set of 1956 Chevy 15X5" wheels and welded into new steel rims.

The combo consists of 15X8" rear wheels (3-1/4" backspace) with 275/60-15 Firestone Indy 500 tires, and 15X5" front wheels (3-1/8" backspace) with 205/75-15 Kuhmo touring tires.

The rear end is a Ford 9" that has been narrowed 1-13/16" per side, it measures 56-3/8" wide from drum to drum. The stock rear was 60" wide. The rear wheel wells were not cut or rolled to fit the tires, but the inner wheelhouse was hammered a bit at the very rear inside bottom corner for clearance.

The rear springs are new regular-ride coils that have been cut down by 3/4s of a coil to lower the car, Air-Lift airbags (pumped up to 10 psi) are installed in both springs. Front springs are new 1967 Firebird V8 springs, they lower the front without any mods.

http://i137.photobucket.com/albums/q...lWheels052.jpg

http://i137.photobucket.com/albums/q...lWheels079.jpg

http://i137.photobucket.com/albums/q...lWheels068.jpg

http://i137.photobucket.com/albums/q...lWheels067.jpg

'67 firebird 14by6 and 15by10
 

here's my 67 Firebird. The rear shackle mount has been lowered 3", pic of this is included, homemade rear frame rails made out of 2 by 3 in tubing to match original. Stock rear end. Its wearing 14by6 3.5 B.S. Weld Prostars up front with 205/70r14 tires. They are super g/t sport radial 70's. In back it has 15by10 Weld Prostars with 4.5 B.S. with N50-15 Mickey Thompson Indy Profile S/S tires. The tires stick out a little for that 60's-70's muscle look.:D
Attachment 99398

Attachment 99399

Attachment 99400

Attachment 99401

Attachment 99403

64 Lemans, stock rear diff,
rear 245/60/15 BFG T/A
Weld Draglites 90
15x8
backspace 3.5

Front Weld Draglite 90
15x7
backspace 3.5
BFG 195/60/15

Rear tires hit outside wheel well on hard bump, need to have 4.5 backspace next time
Fronts are ok.
stock front and rear spring From Moog

I went with Torquethrusts. 16x8 on all four, 4.75" backspacing. Tires are 235-60 on the rear and 215-55 on the front. A 215-60 (taller) will most likely fit the front, but I was working off of the manufacturers' specs, which are larger than the actual tire turned out to be.