Widest wheels and tires?

[SiGNAL Z]

What is the widest wheel and tire we can put on a Z>? I have a 1977 Z.... 2/2.... and i am looking at some wheels. I am planing to get 17x7 or 16x7... but i dont know how wide to go with my tires. I am not planning to run coilovers right now... so all i want to buy are some spacers. How wide should i go?

[v12horse]

Welcome to the forum! I am not an expert on this, but I have seen 225 wide tires on a zed and they seemed to fit well. That was with the stock suspension.

That is awesome that you own a Fairlady Z:). You should post some pics of your car.

-Ben

[Bambikiller240]

The wider you go, the more important it will be to make sure that the wheels have correct offset and backspacing.

[v12horse]

You are right on the dot on this one Carl. I have seen the 16 by 7 Panasports from msa with 225 wide tires and they fit well. What is the offset of those Panasports that they offer? I am thinking it was +11mm, but I am not positive. Signal, for the tires to clear the strut towers, there must be no more than 4 inches of tire back there(Sorry for the jargon. The lack of it).

[Marty Rogan]

If you go with 16's, you probably won't be able to go wider than 205 on the front. You won't have a problem with hitting the spring perch, but you will rub the front fender lip.

When I got my 70Z, it had 225/60/16 on the back which fit and filled up the wheel wells nicely. The front had 205/55/16. This looked really goofy to me. Sort of like a jacked up muscle car from the 70's. If they were all 50 series tires, you might be able to go a little wider, but I haven't tried it. There is a reall trade-off in ride quality between 50 and 60 series tires. It all depends on what you are looking for.

I sold the 16's and bought 15" Panasports. Put on 215/60/15 Yokos. This still required me to roll the front fender lip. They fill up the wheel wells very nicely. Check out my gallery pics. I think anything larger than 15" looks out of place on an early Z, but hey, that's just my opinion.

Marty

[240ZX]

If you are considering 17s, that'll work! I've seen a number of guys who are running 225-45x17 fr & 245-45x17 rear with no rubbing issues. I am running 215-40x17" on 8" wide wheels (fr) and 235-40x17" on 9" wide wheels (rear). However, I've also got sectioned struts w/ coilovers and wheel spacers. I think your choice, 17"x7" wheels, is just fine and you will likely have no problems. Hope this info helps?!!

[SiGNAL Z]

Thanks guys for the welcome... and thanks for the replies. I have read them all and made a decision. I have seen 16x7 panasports on Z's... and they do ussually run the 225/50. I was jsut afraid that these people used coilovers and spacers as a combination. But... i feel that 225's will jsut do. So i will go with that.

But here is one thing maybe you guys cna help me with too. We have all heard about Watanabes. Well... i would rather have those for my Lady than the Panasports. I would like to keep her JDM as much as possible. So... do you guys know any dealers i can buy some Watanabe?

PS. I would post pictures of her... but i dont really know how. I will as soon as i find out how too...

[v12horse]

The only place that I really see watanabe's for sale is on ebay motors. 16'' would be harder to find for a Z, but they are out there. I totally agree with you on keeping the car JDM because a set of Wats would look great on your car. Talk to 26th-Z because I think he knows a guy that sells watanabe wheels.

Ben

[speedyblue]

I had 235's on my Z all around, 14 inch rims though. Just required a little rolling of the rear lip to make it not rub. Nothing too difficult. Just took a lump of wood, a rubber mallet and a few hours.

Looked tough, but was super scarey to drive in the wet. Too much width for the weight of the car.

Scott.

[venom42]

My car has 235's on it on 14in wheels (they were on it when I bought it). They do rub the fender well in the rear, but I was thinking it was due to my struts being fragged. I was hoping that putting new struts on would correct the problem, but from what I am getting from this discussion, I will likely still need to roll the lip. Could someone desribe this process to me?

[Bambikiller240]

Try a Google search on "Rolling Fenders". You'll find lots of discussion of different methods and the drawbacks of each.

[venom42]

Excellent. Thank you. Would doing this decrease the value of the car in the future?