Tires and Wheels

[del]

I'm going to upgrade my tires and wheels to something with a more sporty, modern look. I was originally thinking I would go with 15" but lately I've been wanting to go a little larger. Would be great to see some examples of what folks have done with their wheels and tires in that regard. Attached Images

[Joe Johnston]

I've seen some Mustangs with 17" mag style wheels (think old style looking satin black 5 spoke Keystones) which I think looked great. A bigger wheel and tire width to fill the opening, but still looking period correct on the car. A subtle change that didn't look out of place at all.

[dgs]

Here's my '60 with 17" x 8", zero offset, Boyd Coddington Junkyard Dogs and 235/55R17 Pirelli P-Zero Nero tires. I think a 17"-18" size with a more "meaty" tire are a nice fit for these cars. Modern, but they don't look out of place like I feel the real low profile "rubber band" tires do. And they fill the wheel wells nicely.

If you go 15" or 16", make sure your tires are tall enough. The original 14" bias tres were 27.5"-28" tall. Even my 17's are 1/2"-1" smaller in diameter than the originals. To small and they don't fill the wheel wells well and the car sits too low.





More pics here and here.

[Tbird1044]

Tires and Rims

When I had the larger tires/rims on my car, I could never get them off unless I used a jack on the bumper to lift the car and let the differential drop to clear the wheel well. Just something to think about.
Overall, the look of the wider tires on these cars is nice.
I'm pretty sure my friend has 16's on the front and 17's on the rear.
Nyles

[Dakota Boy]

15" Ansens

[Tbird1044]

Hey Greg. I just noticed, those rear wheel wells sure aren't factory. That's one way to get those big tires to fit.
Nyles

[RustyNCa]

Our 58 with 17"

I'm going to upgrade my tires and wheels to something with a more sporty, modern look. I was originally thinking I would go with 15" but lately I've been wanting to go a little larger. Would be great to see some examples of what folks have done with their wheels and tires in that regard. Attached Images

I really need to get better photos of her. Running Mustang 17x8 rims with 235 up front and 275 in the rear.

[dgs]

When I had the larger tires/rims on my car, I could never get them off unless I used a jack on the bumper to lift the car and let the differential drop to clear the wheel well. Just something to think about.

Yeah, getting the rears off of mine are a bit of a pain, but manageable. I jack at the forward spring mounts and let the axle drop.

I'm pretty sure my friend has 16's on the front and 17's on the rear.

If you're referring to the image you attached, that looks like they are more likely 17s and 18s. That front looks to o big to be 16"

[Joe Johnston]

Running Mustang 17x8 rims with 235 up front and 275 in the rear.

I've seen some Mustangs with 17" mag style wheels (think old style looking satin black 5 spoke Keystones) which I think looked great.

That's it!

[dgs]

Keep in mind with newer Mustang take-offs you'll likely need spacers as I think they have some positive offset. I think Rusty runs spacers on his.

[RustyNCa]

Keep in mind with newer Mustang take-offs you'll likely need spacers as I think they have some positive offset. I think Rusty runs spacers on his.

Yep, forgot about that, lots of offset to them, but was only an issue up front. The backs clear fine without spacers, but are a pain to take off the car. The drums keeps the wheels from coming off the car. You have to jack the car up, set her on stands, unbolt the passenger shock at the bottom and then lower the axle, then they will come off. Now, I don't know, it might not be as big a problem on a 59 or 60 with the leaf spring rear end?

But, I think when I finally convert the rear to disc that problem will go away.

[del]

Thanks for all of your replies and photos! They all look great. This info will be a big help once I get down to the nitty-gritty. I haven't yet decided for sure on the style of wheel I'm going to go with...lots of choices out there.

[dgs]

... You have to jack the car up, set her on stands, unbolt the passenger shock at the bottom and then lower the axle, then they will come off. Now, I don't know, it might not be as big a problem on a 59 or 60 with the leaf spring rear end? ...

I don't have that much trouble with my '60. It takes a few contortions, but no need to unbolt shocks or anything. I just got to get it up high enough that I can still slide the wheel under the axle (face down) and pivot it up over the drum. At least I think that's how I do it, haven't had 'em off in a while.

[Rock&Roll Firebird]

Just made a quick 5 min photoshop idea of my future hot rod wheel config... The wheels are U.S. Wheel 26 type with white lettered tires. Finally planning to have 2 sets of wheels - the second will be the wire wheels with full white-walls. I love those wheels, just a little costy...

[RustyNCa]

I don't have that much trouble with my '60. It takes a few contortions, but no need to unbolt shocks or anything. I just got to get it up high enough that I can still slide the wheel under the axle (face down) and pivot it up over the drum. At least I think that's how I do it, haven't had 'em off in a while.

Yeah, I was thinking the rear would articulate better on the leafs. I would guess those control arms on the 58 tend to bind it up more. I know when I mounted them up on our 65, they went on easy as can be, no work at all.