Every 6 months or so I get the urge to do something new to the car. The earlier thread about body kits has brought me down a path where I'm thinking about putting some wider tires on the car. But I have 285's / 235's on 18" wheels now and I don't think I'd be able to go any wider without some kind of kit, fender flares, etc. I notice the guys that race 928's seem to have monstrous wheels / tires on their cars, what are the best options and what kind of money do you think I'd be looking at? I wouldn't be interested in anything that looks "bolted on" but some of them seem to be very smooth and natural to the car. Or, would your advice be to just wait til the urge passes and keep the car original...?

 

Stop now.

 

For the rear you can use Louis Otts flares, they definitely do not look bolt on, you can see them on John Veninger's race car.

For the front you may need to go with custom work to avoid the bold on look. Both Don Hanson & Mark Andersons' race cars have very nice custom front fenders.

I wouldn't disagree with Randy though. I am a fan of function over form and bigger wheels/tires should be because of a specific need. Now if you add mega hp to the car first, like SC/Turbo/Stroker, then the wheel/tires might make more sense.

I have the bolt-on look on my race car to house 335/30x18s front & rear. I went that route to be prepared for the higher hp I intended, and hope to get to in this lifetime (build in progress for years now...).

 

if its just wider tyres your after you can get some custom wheels with the right offset for the 928 and carry a nice 9" rim in the front. ive got 996 turbo twist wheels on my car, ive got 10" rims on the front that have come from a C4s rear.

 

You already have a car which understeers adding more rear tire will only make it worse so now you have to modify the front fenders. That means painting all 4 corners might as well do the doors roof and hood so it matches. Paint alone (for a street car) is approx 5 K minimum , custom wheels three piece is around $4,000-5,000 a set 9.5 inch fronts 11 rears plus the actual body work , tires are $1,200-1,500... it is a big chunk of change for a somewhat wider tread contact patch which in honor of Ed Ruiz also becomes a shorter contact patch ! The actual amount of rubber on the road is not directly proportional to the increased width.

 

But it looks cool Jim.

 

wow! you talked me out of it, I'll take Randy's advice and Stop Now. My wife will be thrilled, thanks for the sharing your thoughts & knowledge.

 

i think the 275s you can fit without fender mods and up to a 305 rear tire on an 11" rear rim, is very large and i what i use on my race car. the rear become critical to have the correct offset, and a slight rolling with a baseball bat is all that is required, but it must be done carefully, or you will end up with a duck billed fender.

scot here has the same wheels as I do (9.5" and 11s with 275s and 305 tires)

i dont think you would need anything larger, unless you are racing with 500rwhp! (or liked the look of the flared GTS better, which is understandable)

MK

 

An '89 GT should be left stock.

But a '90GT- Louie and his Monster, the flares are awsome.

 

Perhaps review the " law of diminishing returns " .

 

Don't mod an '89 GT...
Custom 18s like mine might be the way to go. I have a lot of grip with 265s all around.

 

Schwing!

 

Driving fast on a track is completely different than zipping around on the street or back-roads...

 

I'm a wide guy too, but Jim has me taking out a second mortgage if I want to do this...!

I think I'm gonna keep what I got for the moment.

 

Gary seeing as you others suggest not modifying the GT maybe you would feel better about trading sharks and modifying an S4??