Larger tires on 2002 SS
11-28-2018, 08:11 PM
#1
Larger tires on 2002 SS My recently acquired 2002 SS has 275/40 ZR17's on it. I'd like to get a tire with a taller sidewall to get a bit better ride.
How big can I go without clearance issues?
How big can I go without clearance issues?
11-28-2018, 08:28 PM
#2
No idea, not very much in front before it will start hitting the wheel liner. I don't think you can make it tall enough that it will dramatically improve your ride quality. Maybe 16" wheel will fit over stock brakes. Anyway, these cars ride quality isn't so great. You would be better off getting better shocks than trying to fix your ride quality with the tires. If the ride is really bad you could have worn out bushings etc.
11-29-2018, 02:04 PM
#3
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As mentioned above, you'd really need to go with a smaller diameter wheel to get a significantly taller sidewall to fit on all four corners. The base 16x8" wheel will absolutely fit on your SS (the brakes are exactly the same between SS and Z28 - there was no brake upgrade for the SS cars), and the applicable factory tire size of 245/50/16 does in fact offer a "softer" ride than the 275/40/17 size on the SS/WS6/Firehawk cars with 17x9" wheels.
Having said that, you could also put 285/40/17 tires on your current wheels. This is a marginally taller sidewall, and it will definitely fit in the rear - but there may be issues up front (contact with the wheel well liner during turns, as mentioned above). Some folks have been able to use this size up front with no issues, but not all examples of these cars are exactly the same (some will rub, some won't).
The best option is a shock change, as mentioned above. This will have a much greater impact than a marginal bump in tire size to a 285/40.
Having said that, you could also put 285/40/17 tires on your current wheels. This is a marginally taller sidewall, and it will definitely fit in the rear - but there may be issues up front (contact with the wheel well liner during turns, as mentioned above). Some folks have been able to use this size up front with no issues, but not all examples of these cars are exactly the same (some will rub, some won't).
The best option is a shock change, as mentioned above. This will have a much greater impact than a marginal bump in tire size to a 285/40.
