marco246
December 14th, 2010, 07:51 PM
Aloha!
I have owned Unique FIA #9125 for a few months now and need to replace the front tires, which are 10 years old according to the DOT sidewall markings. Before doing so I thought I'd ask whether a front rake is designed into the car's stance, and if so, how much. There certainly appears to be a rake to the car now, but that may be simply a function of smaller diameter tires on the front than on the rear.
The car has 16-inch wheels shod with 245/45s up front and 255/50s in the rear. The radius of the front wheel/tire combination is 12.3" and the rear 13.0". So the delta is 0.7", that is the car sits 0.7" lower at the front hubs than at the rear. The rake looks like it is greater than just 0.7", although my eyes might be playing tricks on me, as visually the front wheel/tire combo does not fill the wheel well adequately. So the question is: if the wheel/tire combos were the same on all four corners, would the car sit lower in the front than in the rear?
Interestingly, the former owner told me that the original set up when he bought the car new (as a kit), was 225/60 front and 255/60 rear on 15-inch wheels. The radii front and rear respectively were 12.8" and 13.5", the delta being 0.7" again, but with the car sitting 0.5" higher all around.
As for which front tire size I'll buy, there are three reasonable options: 225/55R16, 225/50R16, and 245/50R16. I'm leaning towards the 225/55s, which would provide a delta of only 0.1" compared to the rear 255/50s. They'll give my oil pan a bit more clearance and visually should fill out the wheel well a little better.
I welcome any info and observations you may have.
There may be some readers thinking, "Dude. You've got way too much time on your hands." That would be true--I'm happily retired.
Cheers,
Mark
I have owned Unique FIA #9125 for a few months now and need to replace the front tires, which are 10 years old according to the DOT sidewall markings. Before doing so I thought I'd ask whether a front rake is designed into the car's stance, and if so, how much. There certainly appears to be a rake to the car now, but that may be simply a function of smaller diameter tires on the front than on the rear.
The car has 16-inch wheels shod with 245/45s up front and 255/50s in the rear. The radius of the front wheel/tire combination is 12.3" and the rear 13.0". So the delta is 0.7", that is the car sits 0.7" lower at the front hubs than at the rear. The rake looks like it is greater than just 0.7", although my eyes might be playing tricks on me, as visually the front wheel/tire combo does not fill the wheel well adequately. So the question is: if the wheel/tire combos were the same on all four corners, would the car sit lower in the front than in the rear?
Interestingly, the former owner told me that the original set up when he bought the car new (as a kit), was 225/60 front and 255/60 rear on 15-inch wheels. The radii front and rear respectively were 12.8" and 13.5", the delta being 0.7" again, but with the car sitting 0.5" higher all around.
As for which front tire size I'll buy, there are three reasonable options: 225/55R16, 225/50R16, and 245/50R16. I'm leaning towards the 225/55s, which would provide a delta of only 0.1" compared to the rear 255/50s. They'll give my oil pan a bit more clearance and visually should fill out the wheel well a little better.
I welcome any info and observations you may have.
There may be some readers thinking, "Dude. You've got way too much time on your hands." That would be true--I'm happily retired.
Cheers,
Mark