17 and 18 inch stagger

BOOMER23 · 12-21-2005, 08:24 PM

Hey guys, Ive been ready to throw some sticky tires on the back of my cobra for a while now and am wanting to put something fat on the back preferrably at least a 305 or so and so Im in the market for some AFS 10.5 to fit em on and was thinking, I never see anybody do a 17 in the front and 18 in the back stagger. Is there a reason im not seeing for this. Will she ride funny or anything, I just love the look of the rear wheelwell with some H&Rs and a set of 18s, so help me out and if anyone has this setup lemme know, and as usual pics would be great too. Thanks guys

Ashton

InfamousSVT · 12-21-2005, 09:24 PM

You can do it, but I would suggest doing it on all four corners (18")

Some people have had great results with a sticky tire and the 18" wheels with eliminating wheel hop.

Others will say that with the smaller wheels and thicker side wall tires you will get more grip.

It's basically your preference on which way to go.

blk04cobra1 · 12-21-2005, 10:59 PM

Just like Infamous said, it's really up to you...If it were me, I'd just buy a pair of 18x10.5's to match your stock 17's...if you like that, you know you'll like 18's all the way around....plus you can have a second set of rims to ride around on

ausie · 12-28-2005, 02:00 PM

18 inch wheels will not eliminate wheel hop. On a wet surface I may get that occasionally. And in some cases I can even get that on dry pavement. There may be some slight advantage of having 18 inch with lower profile tires on them when it comes to cornering stability due to less sidewall roll which will give you a slight increase in G's you can pull in a turn. But there are some good tires for the 17 inch wheels that will have less sidewall roll too and perform just as well.
It all depends on what your intentions and expectations of the performance you are after. What you may gain with the 18 inch wheel you also loose something too. Ride comfort to some degree. Lower profile tires require higher air pressure and result in a hard ride. That might be fine for high speed stability but when it comes to the straight line drag strip you will be at a disadvantage. With a smaller wheel and low air pressure you will gain more contact patch area than you would with a larger wheel and lower profile tire. Actually what you suggested may even be a good thing. 18 up front with 17's in the rear. You may loose some neutral ballance with that combination on the street or road coarse but you will not notice at the strip. Actually that is what I was considering when I get my set of sticky tires would be to go with the 17 inch wheel. I would only use them on track days and return back to the 18 inch wheels for the rest of the time. I think you would be better off it you decide to have different wheel sizes would be to put the 18 inch up front and leave the 17 in the rear. Going the other way, you may loose more than you gain in stability or grip.

12-21-2005, 08:24 PM	#1
BOOMER23 Registered User Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: Rural Hall, NC Posts: 89	17 and 18 inch stagger Hey guys, Ive been ready to throw some sticky tires on the back of my cobra for a while now and am wanting to put something fat on the back preferrably at least a 305 or so and so Im in the market for some AFS 10.5 to fit em on and was thinking, I never see anybody do a 17 in the front and 18 in the back stagger. Is there a reason im not seeing for this. Will she ride funny or anything, I just love the look of the rear wheelwell with some H&Rs and a set of 18s, so help me out and if anyone has this setup lemme know, and as usual pics would be great too. Thanks guys Ashton __________________ 484 rwhp, 497 rwtq Steeda Catback MRT SS catted H-pipe JLT custom flame CAI MGW shifter *Billetflow 2.76 pulley w/ 4 piece idlers

12-21-2005, 09:24 PM	#2
InfamousSVT Registered User Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: Gastonia, NC Posts: 1,960	You can do it, but I would suggest doing it on all four corners (18") Some people have had great results with a sticky tire and the 18" wheels with eliminating wheel hop. Others will say that with the smaller wheels and thicker side wall tires you will get more grip. It's basically your preference on which way to go. __________________ 1994 Black on Black SVT Coupe 2004 SVT Cobra Competition Orange - SOLD 1979 Ghia Coupe - SOLD 1994 Chevy S-10 - DailyDriver

12-21-2005, 10:59 PM	#3
blk04cobra1 Registered User Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: Charlotte, NC Posts: 1,374	Just like Infamous said, it's really up to you...If it were me, I'd just buy a pair of 18x10.5's to match your stock 17's...if you like that, you know you'll like 18's all the way around....plus you can have a second set of rims to ride around on __________________ 2004 Cobra HP Twin 67's 785rwhp on 9lbs of boost

12-28-2005, 02:00 PM	#4
ausie Don't let the dog drive Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: Kinston, NC Posts: 1,883	18 inch wheels will not eliminate wheel hop. On a wet surface I may get that occasionally. And in some cases I can even get that on dry pavement. There may be some slight advantage of having 18 inch with lower profile tires on them when it comes to cornering stability due to less sidewall roll which will give you a slight increase in G's you can pull in a turn. But there are some good tires for the 17 inch wheels that will have less sidewall roll too and perform just as well. It all depends on what your intentions and expectations of the performance you are after. What you may gain with the 18 inch wheel you also loose something too. Ride comfort to some degree. Lower profile tires require higher air pressure and result in a hard ride. That might be fine for high speed stability but when it comes to the straight line drag strip you will be at a disadvantage. With a smaller wheel and low air pressure you will gain more contact patch area than you would with a larger wheel and lower profile tire. Actually what you suggested may even be a good thing. 18 up front with 17's in the rear. You may loose some neutral ballance with that combination on the street or road coarse but you will not notice at the strip. Actually that is what I was considering when I get my set of sticky tires would be to go with the 17 inch wheel. I would only use them on track days and return back to the 18 inch wheels for the rest of the time. I think you would be better off it you decide to have different wheel sizes would be to put the 18 inch up front and leave the 17 in the rear. Going the other way, you may loose more than you gain in stability or grip. __________________ 2004 SVT Cobra, Silver, February 2004 SVT Build # 2485 out of 3768 SLP Loudmouth Cat-back UPR double lock firewall adjuster UPR GMS extreme double hook quadrant Wheels: Ford SVT 10th anniv. wheels (track duty) SVE 10th anniv. style 17x9F, 10x10.5R BBS RK Plasma 18x8.5F, 18x10R (retired) (retired) 2001 black SVT Cobra, October 2001 missed but not forgotten Last edited by ausie; 12-28-2005 at 02:04 PM. Reason: add more to post,

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