Another tire question
 

Looks like I started some controversy regarding my last post (Tire Size question). This is a different question on the same subject (tires).

I talked to my brother's buddy this past weekend and told him that I'm getting new tires for my 'Stang (2002). I mentioned that I like to get 275/40s all the way around. He said to do the following: Get 245s for the fronts and 275s for the rears. This guy has been drag racing for 10 years and road racing for 12 years so I think he's a pretty good source for information.

So, my question:

How should I set my tires up?
a) Get 275s (or the max. width) on all 4 tires or...
b) Get 245s in the front and 275s in the rear

What are the advantages and disadvantages of each?

Plus, what's a good yet INEXPENSIVE tire? I've seen pretty good reviews on the Kumhos or Sumitomos (reviews.stangnet.com).

Thanks!

Are we talking about putting these tires on an 8" wide rim? If so, 275s are going to wear the middle out because they are too wide.
I have 245s up front and 275s out back on my car, but they are on 17x8 in front and 17x9.5 in back.

If you get 245 for the front and 275 for the rear you probably wouldn't want to rotate them and i don't think you put anything bigger than a 255 on a 17x8 rim. If it does rain to much were you live nitto 555 are awsome they just suck in the rain, their not that bad as long as you don't do anything stupid( which i do all the time, kinda fun too).

Bri:

I am putting 245's on the front and 285's on the back with my new rims (they are 10.5" wide in the back).

I think 275's with 245's is a very nice choice as long as your rims are wide enough. With a 17X9 rim, you should be fine. Check with someone like Tirerack...call them. Give them the offset and the width of the rim and they will tell you what tire size you can use.

You can not rotate this setup in the traditional sense, but you can switch them from side to side. If you go with directional treads, you will have to have them removed from the rims when rotating.

When replacing the tires, you do not have to go with all four at the same time. With this setup, you will replace your rear tires about twice as often as the fronts. In the end, you will not go through any more rubber as the fronts last longer than usual.

I would recomend these tires:

Sumi's HTRZII ($103)
Yokos ES100 ($113)
Kumho Ecsta 712 ($90)

(I may have the actual model numbers screwed up). The prices listed are about what TireRack sells them for in the 245/45/17. The 275/40/17 cost a little more.

I have the Sumi's now and will be going with Kumhos for my setup because they are the only one of the three that makes a 285/40/17.

All of these tires are great in the rain for a performance tire. Wider tires will hydro plane more than a thinner tire...period. So keep that in mind. But, having the 275's in the back is a little safer than in the front.

I love the off-set look! I think your brother's buddy is right.

One other note, you will get better grip in the back in theory with a wider tire on dry pavement. Your car will be less prone to sliding the rear out in a hard turn. I think this is a good thing.

I think this is a better arrangement than 18's. When you use 18 inch wheels, you must go with a thiner tire in order to keep the circum the same. These means that the side walls take on more load and is is harder to get a wider tire and still keep the ride safe.

No matter what, always be sure that an tire expert has approved your selection to insure that th etire is designed to handle the load of the car (if you are doing anything really wierd).

Good Luck!

Thanks guys for all of the great replies and information..

Unfortunately, the rim size is a 17x8 so I think 245 is the widest I could go but I might be able to squeeze a 255 on it.
According to www.tires.com, they have the plus sizes and say that a 17x8 rim can handle 275s.

I was looking at the Sumi's and Kuhmo's. So far, I like the Kuhmo's Ecsta MX.

I don't want to spend the extra dough for a 17x9 rim so I think it might be ideal for me to just get 245s (or 255s) all around.

Thanks all!!!

I had Dunlop SP8000 255/40-17s on a 17x8 before and they fit well. Just enough extra width to protect the rim from the curb when you're parallel parking, but not enough to effect looks or tire wear.

No they wont
a 275 tire on a 8in rim is just fine it will not wear anymore then a 245 would the only 275 tire I would not run is a bfg on a 8in rim due to there tires run bigger then most