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Why? Assume GM defines offsets to properly load wheel bearings and for handiling.
I laugh every time I pass the kid up the street who has wheels/tires on his new truck that sick out ~4 inches from the spats! Where did anyone think that was “a great look?”
Believe the issue is using "Concave Wheels" so tires stick out from the car. Versus "Old School" where tires are within the body, loading the wheel bearings properly and handling as the car/Jeep/Truck was designed. Could be wrong and maybe folks are looking for something else???
My Street Rod has concave back wheels but the offset is proper for the 13 inch wide wheels/420 section tires in a tubbed chassis. My S10 OEM wheels were concave but again have the tires inside the body and wheel bearing loads and handling as GM designed.
See a lot of vehicles with tires "sticking out" around here. The white truck pic is similar to my neighbors son! Assume he thinks It looks good. I think it's hilarious!
Corvette Wheels with Proper Offset and tires inside fenders or Spats (where needed)
The age of the average Corvette owner is showing itself.
Most European cars easily take a low offset wheel to create a concave look all while sitting in the wheel well. It is a far better look than the flat face of most Corvette wheels.
It has zero to do with sticking out of the wheel well.
I'm surprised that the C8 won't because of tire chains. European sold cars are required to take tire chains so the tires usually sit inward more than they would on a US car where there is no requirement.
That gives European cars more room to push the wheel out further than on US cars. Since the C8 is being sold in RHD I wonder what they are doing unless the requirement is based on volume.
^^^ Glad to hear it has "nothing to do about having the wheels stick out like the 'young folks' around here!" Guess when I heard someone was gong to get concave wheels for the Corvette "assumed" the tires were going to stick out! Don't quite see how you can make that offset not!
It's not my age that is the issue wanting to have wheels/tires placed where the company designed them to be located. (BTW, this "76 years young" guy exercises 7 days a week and on back day part of my routine is 3 sets of 10 pull-ups! I have my own gym but when I travel and use the hotel facility, chuckle hearing young folks say- look at that guy!)
As noted, my street rod, that has a set-back 502 cid BB and 53% of its weight on 16.5 section width Mickey Thomson tires has "Deep Dish" wheels BUT the offset doesn't overload the bearings. My S10 truck, (that had the sport suspension package, i.e. quick steering, HD shocks, springs, sway bar, posi) came from GM 3 inches lower with aluminum wheels that were also recessed but again the bearing loading and handling were as GM designed (actually a bit better as I added polyurethane bushings and better tires.)
Not too many Vettes using chains! Guess in winter folks in Colorado etc can't travel on some high passes! Driven a lot in Europe and never had tire chains! Wasn't in the alps!
Corvettes have always used Positive off set wheels (Wheel's center face is outboard of center-line of rims width, less rim showing. Negative offset, more rim showing, wheels face is inboard of rims center-line aka like below, one car has 2 1/2 in flared fenders, the other stock.)
About all wheel manufactures can do to try an show more rim is to try and concave bottom of spoke design inboard to show a little more exposed rim, like that of car in the 2nd picture.
THe car below had to be Flared 2 1/2" with Aftermarket chassis with C4 suspension to do show that much rim on front and rear to do that, Car below it also has 2 1/2" inch flared fenders, same chassis, but C6 suspension so there is less exposed rim on it. Body's outboard, an it's suspension and/or frame inboard limiting factors. It is what it is.
Concavity, lower or higher offset, my God. Only one guy gets it half right. I was hoping that the Tech section would be of a higher standard than the General Discussion section, but no such luck. Why do Vettes have a positive offset?
I was under the impression that the positive offset was just a bu product of packaging. You can fit longer suspension arms under the car while still having an appropriate tire width under the wheel well. I think the idea is that longer suspension arms allow for better mechanical advantage on the coil over system. I know that on sport bikes the goal is to have as long of a swing arm as possible while having a short wheel base due to being able to have a longer suspension travel at the wheel hub but having as short of a suspension stroke on the shock.
I'm probably wrong but that has always been my understanding.
I'm just going to with the base wheel with the idea I'll just replace them.
Are we ever going to get a lower offset wheel this time around on the base car?
No. Based on the recent "leaked data" , the fronts will be 245/35/19 x 8.5 +52 and the rears will be 305/30/20 x 11 +64
No modern sports or muscle car that has a tire wider than a yugo will have a low ( relative, below +25) positive offset. None of them will have a negative offset. It is not conducive to bearing loading nor handling. Shoot, my impala LTZ has a 245 wheel and a +42 offset
Designer Imagines A Corvette That Looks More Like a Corvette Than the Corvette
Slideshow: A Jaguar designer's personal project imagines what a modern front-engined Corvette might look like if Chevrolet revisited the golden age of the Stingray.
Will we finally get low offset wheels?
Guess when I heard someone was gong to get concave wheels for the Corvette "assumed" the tires were going to stick out! Don't quite see how you can make that offset not!
