theoldmusicman

This questions has probably been asked before but.....
My 97 C5 came with Z06 wheels but had the stock tires. 245/45-17 and 275/40-18. Looked a like weird, the wheels stuck out more than the tires. I'm going to be putting new tires on sometime next month. I'd like to go with the Continental ExtremeContact DW tires. Problem is the Continental's don't come in the stock Z06 sizes. They have the 295/35-18 rears but don't have the 265/40-17 fronts. They do have both 255 and 275 sizes. So my question is, should I go with the 255/40-17 or the 275/40-17 on the front? Also, if I change the front size, should I also change the rear size to a size smaller, or a size larger?
Thanks guys, and gals..

troyguitar

You can run either of those sizes in the front safely with the 295 rear. In my opinion the 255 will look better but the 275 will perform better.

REDHOTS

I have the same problem, limited Z06 tires in the correct size. I wouldn't have bought my new TSW wheels if I hadn't got such a great price on the close out on the Hankook in the stock C5 size. 245/40-17 look fine on a 9 in wheel, but the rear 275/40-18 look too narrow on the 10.5 in wheel. Would like to sell the new Hankooks and go with Z06 sizes, but not much out there. Bridgestones are back ordered now. My only other choice would be to use a 295 rear, 245 front. If I had to do it over, I should have went 18/19. Never ends.

f6john

I'm running Hankook 255 on the front with good results. For a street driven car the performance has been great. Stil would rather have had a 265, but I'm just too cheap I guess.

dr_whigham

The 275 will be a lot better

ztheusa

I run the 275 and it looks just fine. Also, consider Vredestein. Great tires, and the best if there is any rain.

Vredestein, made in Holland, not China.

Get them from a forum sponser:

http://forums.corvetteforum.com/whee...-shipping.html

theoldmusicman

I've read some good things about the Vredestein tires. I'll have to check into them. What type and size Vredestein's are you running?

theoldmusicman

I can agree with that. I'm not a heavy footed driver, a little spirited at times maybe, and I don't drive the vette everyday. Maybe only 2 or 3 days a week, so performance isn't that large of an issue, for me at least.

theoldmusicman

I'm also considering the Bridgestone Potenza RE760 Sport tires. They do come in the OEM Z06 sizes. Not as high a performance tire as the Continental but I think they would work for me. Maybe a little longer tread wear with the Bridgestones also. Still leaning towards the Continental's but not sure. Anyone have an opinion on that?

bjones7131

Do u have picks of front and back, i am n the same boat, i got new c5 hankooks sitting n my shop waiting on new c6 z06 replicas 17/9.5 and 18/10.5. Tire and wheel vendors tell me they will look and work fine. I am not convinced but like u l have already dropped 450.00 but if they will look weird i don't want to drop another grand, i will just put new tires on my wagon wheels. Opinions welcomed

troyguitar

I wouldn't put those 245/275 sets on Z06 sized wheels. It's safe but will look silly.

IMO 255/295 is the best looking combination or 265/305 but those sizes don't exist. Do the math on the sidewall heights:

255/40 = 102mm
265/40 = 106mm
275/40 = 110mm

paired with

285/35 = 99.75mm
295/35 = 103.25mm
305/35 = 106.75mm
315/35 = 110.25mm

The best pairs are 255/295, 265/305, and 275/315 - but 255/295 is the only one that exists in production today and even that is only in a few different compounds.

theoldmusicman

I agree completely. As I said in my original post, I have the 245/275 tires on the Z06 wheels and they do look silly. The wheel rims stick out further than the tires. You DO NOT want to rub up next to a curb with that tire/wheel combo!

bjones7131

I would love to see a pic from behind and facing tire/wheel if not to much trouble, not that i don't believe u but pic says a 1000 words. Is my only option for good looking chrome wheels the wagon wheels, thanks gentlemen

PhysicsDude55

I have 275's on my front 18x9.5 wheels (same width as Z06 wheels), and I think they fit perfect, the tire is pretty much perfectly flush with the edge of the wheel. I definitely prefer going a little bigger on tire sizes, and not all brands/lines of tires fit the same way, but I would definitely want a tire to be slightly too big for a wheel rather than slightly too small.

theoldmusicman

No problem. I'll see if I can take a few pics tomorrow.

theoldmusicman

Here you go:

bjones7131

They do look a little stretched, not bad, thanks for posting pics

need4speedmotors

I would recommend a 255/295 combination like everyone says.

thats what I do on the C5 most of the time anyway.

dr_whigham

I agree 100%. Stretching a tire "in" from the rim to its tread just looks plain silly to say the least.

theoldmusicman

Anyone got any pictures of a 255/40 on a 9.5 in rim? The few pictures I can find on the web still seem like the tire is stretched. Continental says in the data that the 255/40 will fit on up to a 10 in wheel, but I don't want to damage expensive wheels every time I brush up next to a curb.