I have a 2012 base. I'm going to put the 17 x 10.5 rims on the back. I've already went to weld's website and got the part number for these. What I want to do is buy 4 of them. 2 with drag radials and put regular tires on the other 2. So even when I'm drag racing all 4 wheels match. My question is. I want to put skinnies on the front. Should I go with the 17 x 5 or 18 x 5? I don't do road courses or curves. Just quarter mile racing. The 17's are cheaper but will the 18's work better? Any idea on which tires to run for regular street driving? Any information you can give me will be much appreciated. Thanks in advance.

 

I have the Weld rims in 11" wide on my '12 GS and have the same question about front skinnies with matching rims.

BIGMAC

 

I went 17" because originally I had bias ply fronts. Since then I put a Radial front. I can't imagine it would look better with the front wheel larger than the rear.

 

What kind of tires are you running on the front? I know you have to use a spacer on the front but I'm assuming the wheels go on with no other issues?

 

I run 17s in back and 18's in front. You need to keep the difference in tire heights similar to stock to avoid issues.
I'm sure 17 fronts will work, just be sure to calculate and pick tires of the correct height.

The front welds required a 5mm spacer.

 

I'm opting to reply to your PM here, since it's better for other people to see and understand. You should be concerned about tires first, before you think about the wheels, since they are what connects your car to the ground. Determining the use is the most important part of picking the correct tire. You certainly don't want knobby tires for road courses or Summer tires for driving in snow and ice. So you need to make up your mind if you want tires for the dragstrip or tires for the street, because those applications are too different to consider using the same tires. You also need to match the rear tires to your power level. If you have less than 550whp, a 275/40 x 17 Hoosier DR on a 9.5" wheel along with a 4.5/26 x 17 M&H on a 5" wheel will give you the lightest combo for the dragstrip, but will be dangerous for driving on the street. I'd only take a bit of rough pavement at speed on the street to throw you out of line enough that AH would kick in to apply the brakes and buckle one or both skinnies under the wheel(s) and cause a crash. For the street, you need wider tires with siping on the front, because they give better lateral grip for turns, crowned roads, damp/wet/poor surface conditions, and especially braking. Skinnies only work on flat dry smooth and straight pavement. MT or Nitto DR's are better for the street if you run higher pressures, since they have stiffer sidewalls and thicker tread with some siping. Be aware that they wear quickly, even without burnouts.

I have race tires/wheels and street tires/wheels. I swap at the track.

 

Thanks for the response Realcanuk. Do the fronts require longer studs in addition to the 5 mm spacer?

 

Thanks for responding HOXXOH. The only reason I sent the PM was because no one had answered my question. Then in one day several people answered..lol..My car is mainly a weekend car that only sees dry weather. I want to be as fast as I can in the quarter mile while still being able to drive the car on occasion. I understand street tires and drag strip tires are very different. If someone is over 550whp. What tire do you recommend then?

 

315/35x17 for the dragstrip. I don't really recommend it for the street, since it requires lower pressure to get a favorable footprint. Back in the 50's and 60's, a fast street car ran 14 second quarters and never approached the speeds of today's cars. The roads aren't any better today, but the cars are so much more powerful and street tires can't handle it. Neither can DR's on the street.

 

Not sure about the base, But on my Grand-sport I did not need any spacers. The front tires are 185/55r17 Made by M&H.

 

In the rear I run M&H drag radials as an every day tire and for well prepped tracks, and Hoosier slicks for badly prepped tracks.

 

The part number on welds website for the 17 x 10.5 wheels I want is 71MP7105B88A. When I google that number several places sell that wheel. All of those places say the bolt pattern is 5 x 4.75. I thought the bolt pattern on my car is 5 x 120mm? I don't want to order the wrong wheels. Is welds chart wrong? What am I not understanding? Thanks for your help.

 

I strongly recommend that you order through Vengance Racing. They will make sure you have the right stuff.

BIGMAC

 

 

4.75" = 120.65mm
There is 2/3 of a MM difference. In other words, it will work. I had 18x11 Welds on a 5th Gen Camaro and ordered them with 4.75 bolt pattern (because they weren't offered in 120mm yet) and had no issues. I also was making 1000whp with a 427 and twin turbos.

 

17x11 rear with 17x4.5 fronts. No spacers, cleared stock brakes on both ends. I did modify the rears to get them to tuck like I wanted, had inside milled to create more backspacing.
305/45R17 rears with 26x6x17 fronts, no issues.

 

If I remember right the fronts will fit with no spacer with base brakes. With the Z51 larger brakes the spacer is needed.

 

Welds website said I would need a 5mm spacer on the front. Not sure if it's true or not but I ordered them anyway. My wheels should be here by Thanksgiving. Then it's time to start buying the expensive performance stuff. SC or nitrous. I'm still debating.

 

I'm using a 5mm spacer. It's perfect with the larger calipers

 

I have a '12 GS with the 17X11 Welds on the rear with M&H 325/45/17 DR's (listed as 28" tall). For now I have the stock tires and rims on the front but want to go to matching front rims and skinnies. The car has not been to the strip yet and has only seen street low speed shakedown cruises. What size front wheel/tire combo do I need to avoid the dreaded TC/ABS gremlins caused by non-stock tire diameter front/rear difference?
Thanks in advance.

BIGMAC