C5 Corvette Tire Question
Administrator
Joined: Mar 2001
Posts: 368,405
Likes: 24,797
From: In a parallel universe. Currently own 2014 Stingray Coupe.
C7 of the Year - Modified Finalist 2021
MO Events Coordinator
St. Jude Co-Organizer
St. Jude Donor '03 thru '26
NCM Sinkhole Donor
CI 5, 8 & 11 Veteran
The coupe and vert came with runflats standard and the Z06 came with non-runflats and a plug/compressor kit. Yes, you can replace the runflats with non-runflats if you like. I did on both my 2000 and 2003 C5.
Burning Brakes
Joined: May 2016
Posts: 1,024
Likes: 387
From: Port Charlotte Florida
I carry a GTO spare on very long trips
Team Owner
Joined: May 2001
Posts: 87,375
Likes: 1,593
From: Western NY
Not in my experience. Twice, I have been stranded (once on the side of a busy Florida Interstate highway) for many hours waiting for AAA to send a tow truck. The Interstate nightmare lasted 4 hours and the other incident involve a 6-hour wait. After that, I learned my lesson. Now, when I go on long trips, I carry a 2004 - 2006 Pontiac GTO "donut" spare in the back of my C5 coupe. It is a 17" spare, so it will fit on the front axle. I had to slightly file the lug holes to make it fit. My rear rims are 18", so I could only use the spare in a dire emergency to drive a very short distance very slowly, perhaps enough to get me to the next exit without damaging (hopefully) the rear differential. I wish I could find an 18" spare so I could use it on the rear axle and on the front axle (obviously no front differential to damage).
With respect to your spare tire situation, you don't need a larger diameter rim, you just need a larger OD tire, one that will match the OD of your rear tires. However, you even have to be careful in that area, too. Back when my C-5 was only a couple of years old, I had to replace one of the OE rear tires, as I had run over some debris, and cut the tire where the tread and sidewall meet, rendering the tire dangerous to use. I replaced it with another GoodYear RF.
Apparently the new tire and the OE tire wore at different rates, as when the new tire first went on, things were OK. After a few thousand miles, the rear tires wore at different rates, and the difference in ODs became more pronounced, and the posi unit in the differential wasn't happy. I pulled into work, one morning, and smelled hot gear oil. A new set of tires went on the car in short order...
Melting Slicks
Joined: Feb 2007
Posts: 3,297
Likes: 398
From: Raleigh Suburbs
Yes, TireRack is invaluable for researching tires. You can enter your vehicle, and it will show you all the tires they carry in the stock sizes, give it a try.
For C5Z, little more complicated, because there are no options for the front stock size. You can however enter the tire size manually, and still search there for available tires. Great!
For C5Z, little more complicated, because there are no options for the front stock size. You can however enter the tire size manually, and still search there for available tires. Great!
Le Mans Master
Joined: Sep 2016
Posts: 6,480
Likes: 556
Agree completely. That’s what I plan on buying when my tires age out. I currently have Nitto 555s which I am very happy with on my Base C5. I only put 2 to 3 k on each year so they age out long before they would wear out. If you put a lot of miles on your C5 you may want something that wears longer.
Advanced
Joined: Jun 2018
Posts: 97
Likes: 3
From: Chicago Illinois
I HIGHLY recommend Michelin Pilot Super Sports. The front tire is 245/45 ZR 17 and the rear is 275/40 ZR 18. I have found that these make a HUGE difference. The one thing to keep in mind is that this is a summer tire. You can can get a good deal on these from tire rack that comes with a free warranty. I actually got a nail in mine a week after I got them, and they replaced it quickly without hassle.
Safety Car
Joined: May 2015
Posts: 3,680
Likes: 1,040
You be very careful running those tires at any speed!!... I did what you're thinking (for fun) with a favorite car of mine... Tires lost grip and slid into a freeway wall... Totaled car.😭😭 I was sick for two years!! Old tires extremely risky with a performance car.
Corvette Stories
The Best of Corvette for Corvette Enthusiasts
Top 10 Most Expensive Corvettes Ever Sold on Bring A Trailer
Brett Foote
10 Things Every Corvette Owner Needs (2026 Edition)
Michael S. Palmer
8 Most "Only Corvette Owners Understand" Quirks and Problems
Pouria Savadkouei
10 Reasons the C6 Z06 is Still A Performance Benchmark After 20 Years
Joe Kucinski
How Much Horsepower Every Corvette Engine "LOST" in 1972
Joe Kucinski
Top 10 DOs and DON'Ts for Protecting Your Convertible Top!
Michael S. Palmer
Top 10 Most Explosive Corvettes Ever Made: Power-to-Weight Ratio Ranked!
Joe Kucinski
150 hp to 1,250 hp: Every Corvette Generation Compared by the Specs That Matter
Joe Kucinski
8 Coolest Corvette Pace Cars (and Replicas) of All Time
Verdad Gallardo
Safety Car
Joined: Jan 2019
Posts: 4,308
Likes: 3,455
From: Somewhere, Florida
St. Jude Donor '20-'21-'22-'23-'24
Not in my experience. Twice, I have been stranded (once on the side of a busy Florida Interstate highway) for many hours waiting for AAA to send a tow truck. The Interstate nightmare lasted 4 hours and the other incident involve a 6-hour wait. After that, I learned my lesson. Now, when I go on long trips, I carry a 2004 - 2006 Pontiac GTO "donut" spare in the back of my C5 coupe. It is a 17" spare, so it will fit on the front axle. I had to slightly file the lug holes to make it fit. My rear rims are 18", so I could only use the spare in a dire emergency to drive a very short distance very slowly, perhaps enough to get me to the next exit without damaging (hopefully) the rear differential. I wish I could find an 18" spare so I could use it on the rear axle and on the front axle (obviously no front differential to damage).
I agree with your assessments about running non-RF tires. I'll stick with RFs, because there's no way in hell, I'm sitting on the side of the road for several hours, waiting for a flat bed to show up.
With respect to your spare tire situation, you don't need a larger diameter rim, you just need a larger OD tire, one that will match the OD of your rear tires. However, you even have to be careful in that area, too. Back when my C-5 was only a couple of years old, I had to replace one of the OE rear tires, as I had run over some debris, and cut the tire where the tread and sidewall meet, rendering the tire dangerous to use. I replaced it with another GoodYear RF.
Apparently the new tire and the OE tire wore at different rates, as when the new tire first went on, things were OK. After a few thousand miles, the rear tires wore at different rates, and the difference in ODs became more pronounced, and the posi unit in the differential wasn't happy. I pulled into work, one morning, and smelled hot gear oil. A new set of tires went on the car in short order...
With respect to your spare tire situation, you don't need a larger diameter rim, you just need a larger OD tire, one that will match the OD of your rear tires. However, you even have to be careful in that area, too. Back when my C-5 was only a couple of years old, I had to replace one of the OE rear tires, as I had run over some debris, and cut the tire where the tread and sidewall meet, rendering the tire dangerous to use. I replaced it with another GoodYear RF.
Apparently the new tire and the OE tire wore at different rates, as when the new tire first went on, things were OK. After a few thousand miles, the rear tires wore at different rates, and the difference in ODs became more pronounced, and the posi unit in the differential wasn't happy. I pulled into work, one morning, and smelled hot gear oil. A new set of tires went on the car in short order...
Team Owner
Joined: May 2001
Posts: 87,375
Likes: 1,593
From: Western NY
I simply marvel at posts like these, and there have been MANY, over the years. In my 52 years of being a licensed driver, and the THOUSANDS of miles I've driven over that time, I've encountered 3 "flat tires". Only ONE of those, would have been able to be handled by a "can of fix-a-flat", or a portable air compressor. That was when some SOB decided it would be cute to let the air out of one of my tires, while I was at a movie theater. Fortunately, back then, my car had a full size spare tire.
The other two times I had a "tire situation" was when I encountered unavoidable debris on the road, which totally cut up the sidewall of the tire, turning the tire into instant junk. Again, I was fortunate that the cars I was driving, had some sort of spare tire.
Bottom line, based on my experience, it's RFs for me...................
Melting Slicks
Joined: Feb 2007
Posts: 3,297
Likes: 398
From: Raleigh Suburbs
I simply marvel at posts like these, and there have been MANY, over the years. In my 52 years of being a licensed driver, and the THOUSANDS of miles I've driven over that time, I've encountered 3 "flat tires". Only ONE of those, would have been able to be handled by a "can of fix-a-flat", or a portable air compressor. That was when some SOB decided it would be cute to let the air out of one of my tires, while I was at a movie theater. Fortunately, back then, my car had a full size spare tire.
The other two times I had a "tire situation" was when I encountered unavoidable debris on the road, which totally cut up the sidewall of the tire, turning the tire into instant junk. Again, I was fortunate that the cars I was driving, had some sort of spare tire.
Bottom line, based on my experience, it's RFs for me...................
The other two times I had a "tire situation" was when I encountered unavoidable debris on the road, which totally cut up the sidewall of the tire, turning the tire into instant junk. Again, I was fortunate that the cars I was driving, had some sort of spare tire.
Bottom line, based on my experience, it's RFs for me...................
There's a reason the 20/19 widebody stock size tires are available RFT only with Michelin, AS3, Cup 2, SS. They are one hell of good tires.
