Staggered or square stance..

[Juice]

I've run my share of staggered combos, and it was mostly about the look at the time. I did go to the dragstrip on occasion. With doing HPDE's, I've come to prefer the square look with wide ass tires all around. Being able to rotate is a huge bonus to maximize tire life.

I really like the look of 275's but I'm going down to 255's for the next track tire set. I'm changing size for aesthetic reasons, but from what has been posted in this thread, it will also improve the feel of the car.

Function or appearance, I've moved to the "function" crowd.

 

[Sky Render]

Tread depth affects hydroplaning much more than tire width.

 

[Jeff Rosen]

Shopping for wheels.
I still have stock 245' s

I m thinking 255/285 or 275/275

I want to hear your opinions..

Sent from my SM-G930W8 using Tapatalk

I had

Shopping for wheels.
I still have stock 245' s

I m thinking 255/285 or 275/275

I want to hear your opinions..

Sent from my SM-G930W8 using Tapatalk

have a full set of niche 20 inch with 275 45 r20 on rear and 245/45r20 on front. Went back to square set up with original wheels. Contact me if interested at 215-760-8593. Practically new.

 

[OX1]

A 255ish tire in the front is bad enough pulling in ruts and truck grooves.
I wanted a 295 min rear, no way I was putting that tire up front.

Plus I like the deeper dish look on rear rim, compared to front.

 

[bujeezus]

what spring set up are you running?

I'm running the H&R Supersports.

 

[Norm Peterson]

A 255ish tire in the front is bad enough pulling in ruts and truck grooves.

I think it might be your tire choice or possibly your alignment settings. Neither of the setups pictured in post #24 do much 'pulling' at all even near the truck stops here in NJ. I haven't run tires narrower than 255 or wheels narrower than 9.5" on the Mustang in several years. Winters included.

I did briefly consider NT05's . . . until I saw Nitto's own video that showed a car running them cornering with way bigger slip angles than it should have ever needed. That told me it was really a tire for the drifters rather than anybody who wants steering precision to go with their hard cornering. Not long after I saw that video Nitto pulled it from their site.


Yeah, it would take a little effort to make 295's work up front. Still more effort if you want them to perform/behave as good as the size/appearance would suggest they should be doing.


Norm

 

[stevbd]

There are lots of variables here but I think the following generally is true, all other things being equal:

Staggered with a narrower front tire should have slightly less tramlining, less likely to hydroplane, progressive understeer/push at the limit, maybe slightly better fuel economy? Looks cool too.

Squared will have better front grip, more neutral handling, can rotate tires. Has the advantage of adding grip to the end that needs it rather than taking grip away from the end with too much.

I run 275/40/18 on 18x9.5 with 35 mm offset and it is a good Goldilocks type "all rounder" setup. Tramlining is perfectly acceptable to me with MPSS tires. Would like wider tires for track days though.

 

[desert cowboy]

With the drop using the Peddars coil over setup, 255/40R 19x8.5 with 35o/s is as wide as I can go without fouling the fenders at the front. This maintains my optimum ride height for best handling/ride balance - 1in drop but adjustable. The Roush slotted rotors also seem to be marginally thicker than OEM which doesn’t help with fender clearance. The rears are on 295/35R 20x10 with 45o/s. 295 is tight whereas previous 285 was better. Rear has a 1-1/2in (approx) drop and is as low as I can go without ruining the ride and is centered with an adj panhard. Dampeners are all adjustable which helps a lot with the ride.
Mine is 100% road car and daily driver. I like the staggered look so this setup suits me though it does preclude proper tire rotation. Rear end never lets go but, I have had the front scrambling occasionally.

 

[eolson]

I've had the 255/45-18, 285/40-18 set up for years, going thicker in the rear than the 285's adds tire height, which slows the gear ratio down further, so I always felt that negated any grip advantage of the thicker tires as opposed to the 285's. Michelin finally made an ultra high performance all season set in the above set up, so I'm very happy with those most of the year here in the midwest, and then I run Nitto 555 summer tires in this size from late May- Early october. Erik

 

[06 T-RED S/C GT]

I've had the 255/45-18, 285/40-18 set up for years, going thicker in the rear than the 285's adds tire height, which slows the gear ratio down further, so I always felt that negated any grip advantage of the thicker tires as opposed to the 285's. Michelin finally made an ultra high performance all season set in the above set up, so I'm very happy with those most of the year here in the midwest, and then I run Nitto 555 summer tires in this size from late May- Early october. Erik

So how well do the 255/45/18's clear up front ? IIRC most recommend running 255/40/18 - 275/40/18 in the front.. Supposedly running anything above a 40 series sidewall on 18-19 inch tires will not provide enough clearance in the front due to the taller sidewall of 45/18 series tires

 

[Pentalab]

So how well do the 255/45/18's clear up front ? IIRC most recommend running 255/40/18 - 275/40/18 in the front.. Supposedly running anything above a 40 series sidewall on 18-19 inch tires will not provide enough clearance in the front due to the taller sidewall of 45/18 series tires

A 255-45-18 is a non issue. It's 27.03" in diameter. Clears anything, even with a much lowered front end.

A 255-45-19 is 28.03" in diameter, it might be an issue if lowered a bunch in the front, like 1.5 to 2"

A 285-40-18 is 26.97" diameter, and will easily fit the front or back, oem ride height, or lowered a bunch.

 

[Pentalab]

There are lots of variables here but I think the following generally is true, all other things being equal:

Staggered with a narrower front tire should have slightly less tramlining, less likely to hydroplane, progressive understeer/push at the limit, maybe slightly better fuel economy? Looks cool too.

Squared will have better front grip, more neutral handling, can rotate tires. Has the advantage of adding grip to the end that needs it rather than taking grip away from the end with too much.

I run 275/40/18 on 18x9.5 with 35 mm offset and it is a good Goldilocks type "all rounder" setup. Tram lining is perfectly acceptable to me with MPSS tires. Would like wider tires for track days though.

I tried a 275-40-18 on 18 x10 for the rears..and a 255-45-18 on 18 x 9 for the fronts, no tram lining, handled good. Then swapped the rears to slightly bigger 285-40-18 on same 18 x 10.
Then swapped the 255 fronts for 275-40-18 on same 18 x 9 rims..... bad move, handling was real sluggish, un responsive,, but still no tram lining. Then swapped the 275-40-18 fronts to wider 18 x 10 rims... problem with handling solved at last, and still no tram lining.

I only experienced tram lining one or twice since 2011, and both times the road in question was trashed, with longitudinal grooves in it for several hundred feet.

The story I got was ford uses a tiny bit of toe-in... to alleviate tram lining.

 

[fast Ed]

So how well do the 255/45/18's clear up front ? IIRC most recommend running 255/40/18 - 275/40/18 in the front.. Supposedly running anything above a 40 series sidewall on 18-19 inch tires will not provide enough clearance in the front due to the taller sidewall of 45/18 series tires

That's a generalization ... the calculation for the overall diameter is also affected by the section width. The sidewall height is the section width multiplied by the aspect ratio (profile such as 40 or 45) expressed as a percentage. So 255 X 0.45 works out very close to the same number as 285 x 0.40 for example. 255/45R18 is fine as mentioned, that was the OEM GT-500 front size. If you were trying 275 or 285/45R18, that would be too tall and would likely rub.

 

[fourdegrees11]

View attachment 66195 With the drop using the Peddars coil over setup, 255/40R 19x8.5 with 35o/s is as wide as I can go without fouling the fenders at the front. This maintains my optimum ride height for best handling/ride balance - 1in drop but adjustable. The Roush slotted rotors also seem to be marginally thicker than OEM which doesn’t help with fender clearance. The rears are on 295/35R 20x10 with 45o/s. 295 is tight whereas previous 285 was better. Rear has a 1-1/2in (approx) drop and is as low as I can go without ruining the ride and is centered with an adj panhard. Dampeners are all adjustable which helps a lot with the ride.
Mine is 100% road car and daily driver. I like the staggered look so this setup suits me though it does preclude proper tire rotation. Rear end never lets go but, I have had the front scrambling occasionally.

Yeah I dont think this is accurate at all unless your wheels have a completely jacked offset. For example I have a 1.5" front, 2" rear drop with 285/35r19 front, and 305/35r19 rear tires. Zero issues/rubbing/etc. Your rear tires are a little tall though

 

[06 T-RED S/C GT]

I tried a 275-40-18 on 18 x10 for the rears..and a 255-45-18 on 18 x 9 for the fronts, no tram lining, handled good. Then swapped the rears to slightly bigger 285-40-18 on same 18 x 10.
Then swapped the 255 fronts for 275-40-18 on same 18 x 9 rims..... bad move, handling was real sluggish, un responsive,, but still no tram lining. Then swapped the 275-40-18 fronts to wider 18 x 10 rims... problem with handling solved at last, and still no tram lining.

I only experienced tram lining one or twice since 2011, and both times the road in question was trashed, with longitudinal grooves in it for several hundred feet.

The story I got was ford uses a tiny bit of toe-in... to alleviate tram lining.

You can get by running a 275 width tire on a 9 inch rim, but just as you said they'll cause sluggish and unresponsive handling issues.. According to specs, 275 tires are best recommended for 9.5-10" wheel sizes for best optimal handling and performance.. Despite what the spec charts say by including 9" wheels as the minimum size requirement, I still wouldn't recommend mounting "275" width tires on anything less than a 9.5" rim IMHO..

That's a generalization ... the calculation for the overall diameter is also affected by the section width. The sidewall height is the section width multiplied by the aspect ratio (profile such as 40 or 45) expressed as a percentage. So 255 X 0.45 works out very close to the same number as 285 x 0.40 for example. 255/45R18 is fine as mentioned, that was the OEM GT-500 front size. If you were trying 275 or 285/45R18, that would be too tall and would likely rub.

Glad you also brought up trying out 275-285/4518 as an example, as that was going to be my next question.. Anyhow I'm currently running 275/35/20's on 20x9.5" wheels as a square setup, but I'm looking into switching to either 275/45/18's or 285/40/18's on 18x9.5" wheels also in a square setup and my reason is wanting a taller sidewall tire over my current 275/35/20" setup.. So my question is would either 275/45/18 or 285/40/18's be considered as too tall and likely rub and if so would you then recommend either 275/40/18" - 285/35/18" as a taller sidewall for best clearance

 

[Pentalab]

A 285-45-18 ends up being 28.1 in diameter, imo, that's too tall.
A 275-45-18 ends up being a little shorter, 27.74, which is still pretty big in diameter.
Not only too tall, but the sidewalls end up being huge on both of em.

Next spring, I will shift my 285-40-18 rears (26.97 tall)...to the front. Then replace the rears with 305-35-19's, ( 27.4 tall) on new 19 x 10 rims..(et48). 3mm spacer used on the fronts... so the et45 effectively becomes et42. ( 18 x 10 et45 front rims). Loads of thread engagement, even with a 3mm spacer, since front oem studs are longer than the rear oem studs.

 

[Norm Peterson]

So how well do the 255/45/18's clear up front ? IIRC most recommend running 255/40/18 - 275/40/18 in the front.. Supposedly running anything above a 40 series sidewall on 18-19 inch tires will not provide enough clearance in the front due to the taller sidewall of 45/18 series tires

255/45-18 mounted on 18 x 9.5" x +45-ish offset wheels was what Ford installed as OE regular production up front on the 2007 - 2009 GT500.

There's plenty of room laterally. Keep in mind that the top of the tire cambers inward a little as the wheel & tire is bumped upward.

Norm

 

[06 T-RED S/C GT]

A 285-45-18 ends up being 28.1 in diameter, imo, that's too tall.
A 275-45-18 ends up being a little shorter, 27.74, which is still pretty big in diameter.
Not only too tall, but the sidewalls end up being huge on both of em.

Next spring, I will shift my 285-40-18 rears (26.97 tall)...to the front. Then replace the rears with 305-35-19's, ( 27.4 tall) on new 19 x 10 rims..(et48). 3mm spacer used on the fronts... so the et45 effectively becomes et42. ( 18 x 10 et45 front rims). Loads of thread engagement, even with a 3mm spacer, since front oem studs are longer than the rear oem studs.

So in other words, you can run 285/40/18 (26.97 tall) as a square setup on 18x9.5 rims and still have enough clearance space on both front and rear or would you recommend 275/40/18 for a square setup instead ?

255/45-18 mounted on 18 x 9.5" x +45-ish offset wheels was what Ford installed as OE regular production up front on the 2007 - 2009 GT500.

There's plenty of room laterally. Keep in mind that the top of the tire cambers inward a little as the wheel & tire is bumped upward.

Norm

You would think by mounting 255/45 diameter tires on 9.5" rims would stretch from not being wide enough, unless it's 255/35/18 - 255/40/18 that require between 18x8.5" - 18x9" maximum width..

However 255/45/18's were indeed what Ford installed on 18x9.5" wheels as OEM production up front on the 2007-2009 GT500 in which you are spot on.. Therefore it would appear that 255/45/18" tires are wide enough to be mounted on 18x9.5" diameter wheels, where as a 255/35/18 -255/40/18 more than likely wouldn't be recommended for 9.5" diameter size wheels

 

[Gabe]

So in other words, you can run 285/40/18 (26.97 tall) as a square setup on 18x9.5 rims and still have enough clearance space on both front and rear or would you recommend 275/40/18 for a square setup instead ?

Yes.
I run 285/40/18 front tires on my GT500 rims and I will actually switch to a 285/40/18 rear drag radial when time comes, since my 305/40/18's I'm currently running, don't really put down that 305 width anyway, because the sidewall is bulging.

You would think by mounting 255/45 diameter tires on 9.5" rims would stretch from not being wide enough, unless it's 255/35/18 - 255/40/18 that require between 18x8.5" - 18x9" maximum width..

However 255/45/18's were indeed what Ford installed on 18x9.5" wheels as OEM production up front on the 2007-2009 GT500 in which you are spot on.. Therefore it would appear that 255/45/18" tires are wide enough to be mounted on 18x9.5" diameter wheels, where as a 255/35/18 -255/40/18 more than likely wouldn't be recommended for 9.5" diameter size wheels

The 255/45/18 tires on the 18x9.5 rims DO have a slight stretch to them, but being as they're front tires, that's actually desired a bit, for handling purposes. Definitely don't want any sidewall bulge on the front, or you'll end up with very squishy handling

 

[Gabe]

And yes, a 275/40/18 square will work great on the 18x9.5 GT500 rims too.
I had that size on mine when I first got them: