bluerock

I have a set of Shelby Alcoas and am ready to pull the trigger on tires for them. My question is sidewall height, I was thinking 265/35 front and 275/40 rear. The car is not lowered right now. Don't really want to because the last car I lowered drove like a gravel truck. Granted it was an Eclipse. The guys at Shelby said 255/35 front and up to 305/35 rear if not lowered. I just think with a 35 rear there will be to much gap. Anyone have any pictures of non lowered cars with tires sizes that I might be in need of? I have read a lot of forums with great opinions but most of the guys had lowered cars! Please help. Pictures would be great.

cleangraystang

Its going to be hard to find a mustang guy who has not lowered there car. No matter what tire you put on your car if you do not lower it you will have a gap 265/35 yes gap even bigger gap with 275/40. I have a 2009 GT its lowered and a 2014 Shelby GT 500 and its lowered and they both ride great... Find a good set of springs and lower your car it will ride good and handle great and look really Great.....

JFitz

I run 18x10's with a 45mm offset. 275/40/18s front and back.

Runs fine stock ride height.

I just lowered and the ride is a little more...I guess immediate would be the word. The slop is eliminated from the suspension. Much reduced body roll but the ride isn't harsh. Just stiff. I don't mind it.

proeagles

If the car is not lowered, there will always be a gap. The gap won't change with lower profile tires provided you are plus one on wheel size. The overall diameter will be approximately the same. If you put a lower profile tire on the same size wheel, yes, you will have a larger gap because the diameter will change.

MuscleStangGT05

Maybe it's already been said, but wanted to throw my 2 cents in here, since I spent a full three days figuring this out (also was looking at 18's & 19's).
For 20's:
295/40/20 on the rear fits, but looks too big and drives too big
295/45/20 rubs on the rear and is wayyyy to big
285/30/20 looks dinky on the rear
275/35/20 (.4" overall bigger than stock) or 285/35/20 (.7" bigger than stock) seem to look best IMO

for the front.....just some sort of number that makes it slightly smaller than the rears....245, 255, or 265.

Currently attempting (parts on order) 265/35/20 (.1" bigger than stock) & 275/35/20 (.4" bigger than stock)

I think the rear is lifted 1/4" which should give me the perfect gap. 285/35/20 is .7" bigger than stock, so there'd be less gap in the rear (and they weren't available in the brand I wanted).

18's on the s197 seem to look too small

19's would be perfect, but wheel selection is extremely limited. Seems like most places jump right over it. I found a few I liked, but price tag was not do-able.

Polished lip rims are like a marriage.....great at first, but you have to take care of them or they start to go to crap.

And last....AmericanMuscle has awesome prices on rims.

MuscleStangGT05

this site makes it really easy to compare tire sizes:

http://www.sizemytires.com/calculators/compare

TTSRACINGWORLD

I have the Shelby SuperSnakes on my KITT. I have 9X20 with 255/35R20 on the front and 10X20 with 275/35R20 on the rear with no problems. I'm also looking to see if I can put a 305/35R20 on the rear. My car in not lowered. I called Shelby on Friday and they couldn't answer it for me, I think cause I don't have a real Shelby..........

Nuke

Regardless of the wheel size and sidewall height, replacement tire sizes are typically chosen to maintain the OE tire O.D. in order to preserve the speedometer accuracy (unless you have a tuner and can adjust the tire RPMS) and final gear ratio. If you want your Stang to ride like your previous "gravel truck", then anything over an 18" wheel (and even a number of 18" tires) will give you that ride. But choosing an 18", 19" or 20" tire can still allow you to find one that maintains an equivalent O.D. to that of the OE tire... IF you so chose.

IMO, there are very few Stangs that can pull off anything larger than 19" wheels without looking like a clown car. Taller sidewall may be old school but to me, nothing is sexier than an S197 with a nice set of 15" or 16" wheels plus extra width in back.

jesse1125

I went with a wheel combo listed in my signature. I am old school and remember the days when you put fat tires and air shocks on the rear to give your car a jacked look. That's why I don't mind the gap that goes with the retro look and have no plans to lower my car. That's why I went with 19 inch wheels. Using a tire calculator that you can find online, I went with a tire that came close to my 28" diameter that comes from the stock wheels that came with the car. 18 inch wheels and tires were an inch shorter then the stock tire and 20 inch wheels looked to big for me. The 19 inch wheels look perfect I think the tires are just the right size.

05 Mustang

I'm sure I'm late to the party, but the sizes that go on the Alcoas from Shelby are 255/35/20 up front & 275/35/20 out back. The reason for the 275/35/20 out back is because the Alcoas have a retarded offset (37MM), and the rims pultrude out past the fenders.....running the 275/35/20 pulls the tire back inside the fender. If you are going to lower your car in the future this is the size to run.

Since you're not lowered, and you have no plans on lowering your car, you can run a much wider tire. A 305/35/20 will look good.

**...and FYI, the reason for the retarded offsets on the rear rims is because these rims were made for the Shelby Supersnakes. The Shelby Supersnakes had an option to install rear brake cooling ducts. The rims were designed to allow for clearance required to install the rear brake cooling ducts.....although most owners were disappointed, because this meant running a more narrow tire on a car that had increased horsepower....retarded, I know!**

Here's pictures of my previous Shelby, on Alcoas, running 255/35/20's & 275/35/20's.