Ed@Demonspeed

Guys,

I have a 2008 cup. Looking to do something with the rear fenders that I can sneak some 325's on to it.

What can I do. I am getting some wider front fenders that will be a bit wider than the 997.2 fronts, They are rounded, so I do not think that they will look good with the gen 1 997 R rear flares and the Gen 2 quarters are just so HUGE. Plus you would need to change everything to do that.

Is there any other option for flares that is out there that I have not already looked at. I know the 997.2 used the GT3RS rear quarters, which is wider than the 997.1, but again, I would be into replacing the entire quarter.


Thanks

Ed

cid042

If you do not want the R ones... On a cup S, you can fit 31/71 tires, but a whole panel replacement as you stated...

except building some custom ones, I do not see a good solution.

bmwtye

When u say R are you talking about the 2010 gt3r hybrid rear flares or the 2007 rsr rear flares?

analogmike

When Grand-Am went to the bigger tires in '10 (?) many shops cut and pounded out the stock fender flares. Mine came out like this:

THJR

what size wheel/tire combo on that one? I too am on a quest to get more rubber under a stock bodied 7.1 Cup... I've got my angle grinder/cut off wheel and fender roller ready to go!

Ed@Demonspeed

Yes, this is about what I am looking for. Another Rennlister had advised to go with stretching the existing fenders. This is what I will aim for.

Do you have a picture of the rear to show how the rear bumper cover was managed.

Thanks

Ed

dogger15

I thinks it's safe to assume that in 2010 the GA teams were modifying 7.2 Cup rear quarters. I'm not sure you could stretch a 7.1 Cup rear quarter to house a pair of 325s.

My 7.1 has GA/Cup S rear quarters that have been stretched and radiused and a pair of 315s fills the space with no room to spare. The wheels are 3 1/2" outer and 9" inner:



I spent some time researching ways to mount wider tires and the consensus was to swap the existing rear quarters and mount modified 7.2 Cup panels along with a new rear cover since the 7.1 rear cover wouldn't fit.
Here's a picture of a 2014 Grand Ammer with that setup:



Probably a good idea to consult a professional body specialist to see what they say can be done with what you have before you decide.

Ed@Demonspeed

So 2 years ago, we were running Hoosier 315/680 18's in the rear of our 2008 at stock ride height without modifying the fenders or inner fenders wells at all.

In the front we were running the 275's using the 997.2 flares.

Last year when we went to the International GT, who had a tire size limit for the car type and class you were running, so we went back to the narrow body and the 305 / 245 setup. In the middle of the year as I prepared for the NASA championships (don't ask me how that went) we went back to the wide setup with Pirelli tires, so 315/680-18 and 265/680-18 (I liked the 265 better than the 275).

All of that said. I am really only looking to pick up a 1/2" to 3/4" more room to get me where I want to go.

The way we got there was first we changed the wheel inner from the 8.5" to the 9". Then we used a set of the Demon Speed upper dog links which are adjustable and we put the tire as far to the inside of the wheel well without it rubbing on the inside. We did not need to change it a lot, so we are not majorly messing with the suspension arm length. We are not the only ones setup this way in Ohio, but we were the first.

The setup works, we have a couple track records to prove it.

Next year we are going to a 4.0, so looking for more rubber to the road. We are going to work towards getting the 325's in the rear and looking to try to fit 305's in the front. If not the 305's then certainly the 295's. Trying to get as much as we can to a square setup. Planning on getting the wheels to 11's and 12's vs the 12's and 13's on the GT3R

Thanks

Ed

dogger15

I forgot about the ride height difference. At stock Cup ride height, there will be a bigger gap between the tire and fender lip. You might be able to stretch the existing metal a bit along with a re-radius of the lip to provide enough to get by. Again, probably best to discuss this with a body specialist.

I was researching fitting wider tires to go along with a 4.0L upgrade as well. Initially, I wanted to perform the year over year mods the Grand Am teams did as the rules allowed. 3.8L to 4.0L, RSR gearbox, etc., but after a spending reality check I discovered I would have as much money invested in a 10 year old car as would cost me to buy a 1.1 3R.

Now I think I’ll go with what I have as is and upgrade to a 3R down the road.

Ed@Demonspeed

I too am faced with this dilemma. We have a 4.0L from one of the cars we have brought in to part out. Low hours. Our engine is having temperature issues that we can not trace to anything reasonable. No other issues with the engine.

So, we are going to put the 4.0L in our car and set the 3.6L aside for the time being (or sell it as a rebuildable engine)

Adding rubber just kind of goes along with the additional Hp of the 4.0.

However, we are close to wanting to change out to a 991 cup. Demon Speed needs to in order to continue our path of making parts for cup cars, so the 991 is just the next logical step.

So, knowing that maybe we are a season from going 991, how much do we do to the 997.1 to make it less of a standard 991. And, can we afford to keep the 997 when we go 991. After all, the price of the 997.1's is pretty low these days, so there might not be any sense in putting it up for sale. Considering that, I might as well have my fun. Either way, if we keep it or sell it I do not think I will be harming the resale much since it is already low.

One of our quarters already needs to be repaired, so our thought is to have some reshaping done since it already needs to be repaired.

Thanks

Ed