[Z06] Stupid question: 17” rims on rear and handling
03-29-2018, 02:29 AM
#1
Pro
Thread Starter
Stupid question: 17” rims on rear and handling
I did a search and perhaps my Google-fu sucks but I couldn’t find anything that answers my specific question.
I know people do 17” C5Z front rims on the rear of their c6z to help traction at the drag strip. Theoretically if I run that set up on the street or go canyong carving (keeping the front factory c6z 18” wheels) what would be the negative effects?
I assume 17” wheels with more tire sidewall would help straight line traction, but would it negatively affect handling in the corners due to the sidewalls not being as stiff as on the factory 19” wheels or something?
I know people do 17” C5Z front rims on the rear of their c6z to help traction at the drag strip. Theoretically if I run that set up on the street or go canyong carving (keeping the front factory c6z 18” wheels) what would be the negative effects?
I assume 17” wheels with more tire sidewall would help straight line traction, but would it negatively affect handling in the corners due to the sidewalls not being as stiff as on the factory 19” wheels or something?
03-29-2018, 02:40 AM
#2
Pro
Thread Starter
Larger sidewalls allow better ride quality, better straight line launch, braking and do not necessarily decrease grip but may make the car handle less precisely. In other words, the sidewall flexes so the steering response will be slower and you get a lot more "roll" in the bends. Too big of a sidewall can cause excessive tire temperatures due to a lot of flexing about and possible failure in race conditions so it still is ideal to keep relatively low profile sidewalls on performance applications as we mentioned earlier.
So theoretically if I keep my fronts the factory 18s or hell go factory 19” z06 wheels my turn in shouldn’t be affected? The rear would have more (short term) traction but more sidewall temp fluctuation etc so not a good idea for road course or even canyon craving?
What other downsides are there? I feel like I’m missing a gigantic elephant in the room here lol I’m sure more people would run this set up outside of the drag strip if there weren’t some glaring downsides other than appearance
Last edited by furiousox; 03-29-2018 at 02:42 AM.
03-29-2018, 02:49 AM
#3
I did a search and perhaps my Google-fu sucks but I couldn’t find anything that answers my specific question.
I know people do 17” C5Z front rims on the rear of their c6z to help traction at the drag strip. Theoretically if I run that set up on the street or go canyong carving (keeping the front factory c6z 18” wheels) what would be the negative effects?
I assume 17” wheels with more tire sidewall would help straight line traction, but would it negatively affect handling in the corners due to the sidewalls not being as stiff as on the factory 19” wheels or something?
I know people do 17” C5Z front rims on the rear of their c6z to help traction at the drag strip. Theoretically if I run that set up on the street or go canyong carving (keeping the front factory c6z 18” wheels) what would be the negative effects?
I assume 17” wheels with more tire sidewall would help straight line traction, but would it negatively affect handling in the corners due to the sidewalls not being as stiff as on the factory 19” wheels or something?
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furiousox (03-29-2018)
03-29-2018, 09:34 AM
#4
Team Owner
If you have 17s with drag radials, the drag tires will kill the corner carving far more than the reduction of tire wall. Now if you ran a high performance cornering 17" then it wouldn't be a big difference, but then that negates any drag performance.
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furiousox (03-29-2018)
03-29-2018, 07:06 PM
#5
Pro
Thread Starter
If I get non-DR 17" wheel tires wouldn't they still flex more when accelerating to create more contact area with the ground due to more sidewalls?
03-29-2018, 07:23 PM
#6
Team Owner
Mildly, but the DRs are made to flex, and a sticky compound. They are drag tires. You are not going to get best of both worlds.
Depends on which 17s, some will just cup and you lose traction. Others won't flex much at all. I much rather run a sticky 18-19 for traction/handling than a hard/non DR 17 to help with traction.
Depends on which 17s, some will just cup and you lose traction. Others won't flex much at all. I much rather run a sticky 18-19 for traction/handling than a hard/non DR 17 to help with traction.
03-29-2018, 08:17 PM
#7
Pro
Thread Starter
Mildly, but the DRs are made to flex, and a sticky compound. They are drag tires. You are not going to get best of both worlds.
Depends on which 17s, some will just cup and you lose traction. Others won't flex much at all. I much rather run a sticky 18-19 for traction/handling than a hard/non DR 17 to help with traction.
Depends on which 17s, some will just cup and you lose traction. Others won't flex much at all. I much rather run a sticky 18-19 for traction/handling than a hard/non DR 17 to help with traction.