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I bought an 02 6 months ago. Took it in for some new tires and low and behold the front and rear passenger side wheels were pretty damaged from a pot hole. Rides fine but one shows a small crack on the lip. One will not totally balance. So, I am getting to buy new wheels. Told the wife I have to! Stock size. Is there any advice you guys would give before I buy? I am looking at a black finish, its a yellow now with as much blacked out as possible. Any brands to stay away from? Any materials to stay away from? Any great looking wheels for an 02? TIA
Last edited by popshumphrey; Jul 21, 2021 at 02:55 PM.
Hello neighbor
Lots of options. Scroll through C5 and C6 classified on here, often some very good wheels at good prices. Not aware of any 'bad' brands but 'you get what you pay for' ie usa made forged wheels will be a lot more $$ than Asian made cast wheels. some good vendors on here as well. Good luck!
As acroy pointed out, there are many different styles (and costs) of wheels available, and if you want to keep stock sizes then you should find several in the C5 Parts For Sale section.
The wheels referenced above are great wheels and this is an excellent price!
What I have decided to do is go with a Cray Scorpion. The problem is they are hard to find. 17" fronts are not made anymore. So I will go with 18 fronts and 19 backs with a lower profile tire to make sure they are the same oem dimensions in diameter. The only problem is there are only 9" available for the back so that is the route I am going. The front and the back will both be 9" but they will still fit the correct tire widths. The offsets work as well. I will be going with a Continental DWS 06 that works with the wheels. The question is whether there is a problem going with a 9" rear wheel width other than the look which will not change much. Do you see any issues with this. The cray's fit the budget. Covid has made any new wheels pretty thin. I could not find a wheel on the forum that had the look I wanted.
Just keep in mind that the narrower the rear tire, the less traction that you will have. It all depends on how you drive the car, and what plans you have for it. Don't be surprised if you find the back wheel spinning whenever you try to get on it hard.
You can, and many do, run an 18" front and 18" rear wheel in different widths and with properly sized tires to keep that staggered height difference to keep the TCS/AH happy.
My CCW Classics are currently 18x10 in the front and 18x11.5 in the rear (rears are soon to be 18x13 with rear flared fenders setup).
You can, and many do, run an 18" front and 18" rear wheel in different widths and with properly sized tires to keep that staggered height difference to keep the TCS/AH happy.
My CCW Classics are currently 18x10 in the front and 18x11.5 in the rear (rears are soon to be 18x13 with rear flared fenders setup).
a square setup is fine. I worry about him wanting to run a 9" width on the rear.
Hello neighbor
Lots of options. Scroll through C5 and C6 classified on here, often some very good wheels at good prices. Not aware of any 'bad' brands but 'you get what you pay for' ie usa made forged wheels will be a lot more $$ than Asian made cast wheels. some good vendors on here as well. Good luck!
Just keep in mind that the narrower the rear tire, the less traction that you will have. It all depends on how you drive the car, and what plans you have for it. Don't be surprised if you find the back wheel spinning whenever you try to get on it hard.
I would put a LOT of thought into going to a narrower rear wheel. In fact, I've been on this forum for almost 17 years, and can't recall EVER seeing anyone going with a narrower than OEM rear wheel...
2020 Corvette of the Year Finalist (performance mods)
C5 of Year Winner (performance mods) 2019
if he's really concerned about straight line traction then sidewall and compound would be more important than 1" extra width imo but setting that aside I would be leary of a narrow rear wheel based on looks alone, just not my cup of tea on a street car
The tires themselves will not be narrower. It is just the wheel width and the guys say they will hold the tire. The issue is Covid has made wheels really difficult to find. I don’t drive it hard so I doubt I will spin. However keep the comments coming. They are very very helpful
What I have decided to do is go with a Cray Scorpion. The problem is they are hard to find. 17" fronts are not made anymore. So I will go with 18 fronts and 19 backs with a lower profile tire to make sure they are the same oem dimensions in diameter. The only problem is there are only 9" available for the back so that is the route I am going. The front and the back will both be 9" but they will still fit the correct tire widths. The offsets work as well. I will be going with a Continental DWS 06 that works with the wheels. The question is whether there is a problem going with a 9" rear wheel width other than the look which will not change much. Do you see any issues with this. The cray's fit the budget. Covid has made any new wheels pretty thin. I could not find a wheel on the forum that had the look I wanted.
i have the cray scorpions too. chrome though (old school ... gotta have something shiny!)
18" x 9.5 front ... 18" x 10.5 rear Michellins. I couldn't find 17"s in the Michellin! So, squared up as they say. So far no problems.
Thanks for all the help folks. I went with black cray scorpions. I learned a lot about wheels. I mounted Continental DW 06 on all four. 18" on the front and 19" on the back. The ratio is very close from front to back with the rear wheels .1 inch smaller in diameter. No rubs. No tcs issues. Thanks again.
New Wheels Need Advice
Stock size. Is there any advice you guys would give before I buy? I am looking at a black finish, its a yellow now with as much blacked out as possible. Any brands to stay away from? Any materials to stay away from? Any great looking wheels for an 02? TIA
