20 wheels?? can it be done?

[SlowSVT]

I read somewhere that SVT tested 18" rims on the 03/04 Cobra but found that the car handeled better with 17's. The Cobra R ran 18" though. Can anyone shed some light on this?

[RheacerDave]

You only need wheels big enough to clear calipers.

No matter how light the wheel, any time you move just a few ounces away from hub center, you hurt stopping and going.
Tie a weight to a string about 15 inches long and swing it around.
Now make the string 20 inches long and swing it. Not as easy, huh?
It's all about levers.

[Mirage]

03KingCobra~ I've always said the the Cobra's should come stock with 18's as the 17's seem a bit small. 20's might be overkill, but I do have to admit that the yellow one shown here looks good.

[ausie]

As long as the weight stays the same, and that the overal diameter does not change (with the tires mounted is about 25 inches). The 18 inch wheels with 275/35/18 r were 0.1 inch shorter than the stock 01 wheels with 245/45/17. Don't just consider the wheel itself but look at the entire package wheel and tire. Most of the weight will be in the tire than in the material of the wheel. I think your lever was a bit long (at 15 inches, that would be a 30 inch wheel) if you are dealing with the lever concept, use the radius of the wheel, not the diameter. A good analogy though, however if the wheel and tire combination has the same overall diameter or radius then what? Actually what you need to consider is total weight, and where most of it is located (it better be on the outer portion of the radius, rings have lower inertial mass as compared to solid disks). I do not believe that 20 inch wheels would make much of a difference as long as the overall diameter does not become larger with the tires mounted on them. Believe it or not, since larger wheels require lower profile tires and the overall weight could be less than a 17 inch wheel with a tire that provides the same diameter. However, if you go wider you get more inertial mass which will increase the force necessary to spin it.

Either way you go, there are advantages for larger wheels and or smaller wheels as well as disadvanteges. For street use (and depending on condition of the roads) it probably will not make a difference how big the wheel is unless you live in an area with poor road surfaces like PA. Lower profile tires have less sidewall roll than larger profile tires which increases cornering stability. However, under hard acceleration, and since the sidewall is extremely stiff, they tend to break loose easily as compared to the larger profile tire on a smaller wheel diameter since there is more sidewall flex which will increase the contact patch area. (they don't use those monster sized tires in drag racing just for looks).

For track use, and depending on what type of track it is (drag or road course) it is obvious that the same tires or wheels are not used. But those same tires used for strickly track purposes, would not be good for the street or everyday driving as well as having a very short tread life.

In my opinion, if it looks good and if you like what you see, great!

I still think that wagon is killer. Where can I get one just like it?

[ausie]

One thing to consider when going larger in wheel diameter is inner offset in the rear, 20" may possibly strike the IRS mounting bolt. It may be difficult finding 20" wheels with the correct offset. Just an after thought since I noticed only 1/2 inch to 1 inch clearance with the 18x10 and 285/35 mounted on them.

[edswhite99]

Originally Posted by 03KingCobra

This guy has 19" in the front and 20" in the rear..
http://www.modularfords.com/forums/s...&highlight=CCW

****, that thing looks sweet

[edswhite99]

Anyone know what wheels the yellow stang has on it?

[sssvtcobra]

Those would be ccw's. They are very expensive!!!!! Atleast for wheels anyways. They are nice looking wheels, light, one or three piece, highly polished, but still not worth the $$$ they are asking for them. I'll just stick with my '00R rims. The website is ccwheel.com. Momo wheels have a set of rims that look almost identical, I think they are called momo sports. But I'm not sure if you can get them deep dished, or in our size for that matter.

Jeff

[Davesnake]

Ghetto