So I finished my DIY minitub job. First off, for those of you who are thinking about doing this I highly recommend the Lingenfelter kit, it will save you lots of headaches.

Why Minitub?
Frankly the stock width rear tires look ridiculous on the vette. Even the 295s on the Z06 are way too skinny. I ended up going with 345/35/18s in the rear...too skinny still.

How much of a minitub?
Widening the inner fender wasn't too bad. I went 2.5" as to make sure I would have ample clearance and still be able to fit the targa in the back.

Wheels
I have 345/35/18s mounted to 18x12 (professionally widened) Y2Ks. I personally think that the polished Alcoa (forged) Y2Ks are the best looking wheels hands down for the C5.
While the 345s fit on 12" wheels, they would fit better on 13" wheels no doubt. However, there is no way you will fit a 18x13 wheel on the vette without major modifications to the upper control arm. The offset of the Y2Ks isn't optimal so to get the wheels to fit (avoid contact with the upper control arm at full extension:
a) I had to run 5/8" spacers (and new studs).
b) Use the Lingenfelter shock relocation/travel limiter kit.
c) Grind a small 1/4" notch out of the upper control arms.

Tires
I wanted to run 345/35/18s as opposed to 345/30/18 or 335/30/18 as to fill up the wheel well. The only 345/35/18 that I think are being made right now are drag radials. I got really lucky and I found someone on the viper forum selling a brand new set of Michelin Pilot Sports for $500 shipped. I was really happy about that as he paid over $1100.

Inner fender liners
These alone would be worth purchasing the Lingenfelter kit. It took several attempts to get these right. Although I had access to an additional set of liners, it wasn't as simple as cutting the liner in half and gluing in a 2.5" strip. The frame of the car gets in the way, so I still had to glass the front section.
You wouldn't believe how much work it is to get the 345/35/18 to fit in there and not rub when hitting even small bumps. After a few attempts, mostly with fiberglass work, I was finally successful.

Fiberglass dust
Virtually none. I held a shop vac right next to the dremel when I was cutting. You definitely want to do this. If you don't there will be dust everywhere...you have no idea. Look at the attached pictures, I never had to clean up any dust, this is exactly what it looked like after I cut all the fiberglass.

Interior.
Easiest part of the job.
a)You will have to cut the wheels well section out (to remove the 2.5" per side).
b) I needed to dremel out the speaker covers a little so the hatch shocks (or whatever they are called) would fit better).
c)I resized the two hatch compartment covers (dremel, sissors, staple gun).
The targa top still fits perfect. You can't really tell the difference, the interior pieces are very forgiving. I'm especially surprised at how well the rear speaker covers fit considering the wheel wells were moved in 2.5" I didn't think they would work at all.

Would I do it again? Yes, but I would definitely spring for the Lingenfelter kit. Here's what I think I spent on the project (not including wheels, spacers or studs).

Fiberglass cloth (2 packages) - $20.00
SMC Fiberglass resin (2 quarts) - $65.00
Bondo Fiberglass resin (1 quart) (for inner fender liner) - $15.00
Loctite plastic epoxy (6 tubes) (for inner fender liner) - $30.00
Spray paint (1 can) - $5.00
SMC adhesive (1 tube) - $30.00
Misc (dremel bits, sandpaper, respirator, tape, etc.) -$75.00
Lingenfelter Shock relocation/travel limiter kit (forum member) - $100.00

Total - $340


Here's a few pics, I'll take some more pics of the finished product if there is any interest.





Not a very good picture, but...

 

good job with your project.



i personally think a 345 looks better on a 12" wheel because the tire bulge offers the wheel sidewall protection.

A 345 on a 13" wheel looks stretched and the tire won't protect the wheel as well against curb rash.

a 12.5" wheel for a 345 is probably the ideal compromise.

 

 

Excellent write-up - I like write ups

Good job and well done - Magazine material if you ask me -

Thanks,Matt

 

Looking forward to seeing the finished pics!

 

Added a few more pics. I'll try to get a shot of a side-by-side with a coupe running the 275/40/18 pizza cutters.

 

For those of you who are interested the currents mods on the car are:

Engine
In no particular order...
Dart Pro 1 205cc heads
Comp Cams 228/232 .571/.573 112 sep
BBK shorty headers
Fast 78 Intake Manifold
Heavily ported BBK 80mm TB
Smooth silicone coupler, oversized air bridge.
Vortex Ram-Air
160 stat
125-250 NOS Plate System

Trans
Yank SS3600 Converter
Z06 3.42 rearend

Exhaust
Z06 Titanium

Exterior/other
Drilled/slotted rotors
Z06 rear brake ducts

Future
Supercharger
Rollbar
C5R wing (the real style)??

 

Looks really awesome. Nice job. Just need a few better pics from the rear.

 

very interesting... it looks like the carpet fit back in place also ... ? ?

 

Well I had to remove about 2" from each side. Basically, you have to cut the wheel wells out. So you end up with 3 pieces of carpet (the two wheel wells and the "floor" piece.

 

I bought the LPE kit, but have not yet installed it.

Nice job, how long did it take you to complete the job ?

 

It took more time than I would have liked. I started the project last fall and finished it up in the spring. I pretty much just took my time.

With the LPE kit you should be able to get it done in a weekend no problem. Cut the inner fender out, bolt in the LPE inner fender liner for fitment, glue in the LPE inner fender, unbolt the shocks slip on the shock travel limiter, swap out the shock mount, trim the carpet (if necessary), and your good to go. Piece of cake.

For me the fiberglass work was a bit of work as I haven't done it before. Yeah I would definitely go with the kit, that's the smart way to do it.

 

I bought the LPE kit mainly for the wheel well tubs. I'm installing LG2 Adjustable coil overs so that should limit my travel some.

I figured it would take two weekends to do, mainly for drying time of the adhesive for the inner tubs.

 

Awesome write up and I need to tub my Vette

 

I was planning on getting some decent shots by today but I've been dealing with the "service column lock" issue. I just got the CLB installed and now I'm good to go. I'll try to get some additional pictures posted this weekend.

If anybody has any pics of their mini tub jobs, please post!

 

I'd like to mention that if people are getting a 13" wheel to fit under the wheel well please post! Unless its a 19" (or larger) I don't see how it will fit and even then it is going to be tight. With a 12" and 345s I am really close to the frame and getting the inner fender liner to fit was just ridiculous.