Do you think I could pull off the 255/35 with 20x9 and a +42 offset?

 

If I am doing the math right, with the +42 offset on a 9" wheel, the inside lip will be at the same spot as the OEM wheels and the outside lip will be 1" further out.



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Finally got a break from the rain...

 

Took some pics of the car in my storage unit, since it was drizzling outside. This setup is definitely wider than stock, and the pics show plenty of clearance with the brake calipers. Like I said, probably could've gotten away with an offset of 45, maybe even 50, but these wheels only had 40. I wanted wheels like these due mainly to ease of cleaning, much faster to wipe down than the stock wheels. They also remind me of the Porsche cookie cutter wheels, and OEM Ferrari Testarossa wheels. Simple design, easy to clean, win-win for me!

 

Got my 20x8.5s and 255/35 Falkens installed today, but it was too dark when done to take any pics. Some lessons learned during this whole process, at least in my particular situation.

One, stock lug nuts won't work on these wheels, so I had to get a set of those splined tuner lugs. No big deal, readily available at the store.

Two, these wheels had to have the tires reverse mounted, meaning they had to be mounted on the back side of the wheels. The installer said the beads won't seat doing it the "normal" way, so mounting them with the rear side of the wheel up did the trick.

Three, although they were able to transfer the TPMS sensors from the stock wheels to the new ones, one of the sensors isn't reading correctly, so the tire pressure light is on. The malfunctioning one is only registering 1 psi, and they said it should reset after driving it for a few miles. If it doesn't, they'll take it out and fix or replace it, since it was working fine before they transferred it.

Four, the offset on these wheels is +40, and I think +45 would've been perfect. These wheels are right at the edge of the fender lip, and I think they could hit should the car bottom out on a pothole or something like that. There is LOTS of room between the calipers and the back of the spokes, so a slightly higher offset could've probably worked as well.

Five, consulting some wheel / tire websites helped a lot in figuring out this wheel and tire combo, this one especially (willtheyfit.com). I input 235/40, 19x8, +55, compared it against 255/35, 20x8.5, +40, and scrutinized the results. The two main data points were listed in the purple box on the left, right above the wheel/tire diagrams: inner rim will be 8.7mm farther away from the suspension, and the outer rim will stick out 21.4mm more. Since the tire is 20mm wider, 10mm on each side of the wheel, that should've been a net distance of 1.3mm closer to the suspension, which is nothing, and sticking 31.4mm farther out, which is a little over an inch. So based on the numbers in the comparison, I figured this 20" setup will work, and so far so good. 'Course I've only driven the car from the tire shop back to my storage unit, but all seems good so far.

And finally, I have to say, this 20" setup does give the car a more beefy look! I'll post up some pics as soon as I can, provided the weather cooperates.

Stay tuned!

 

I went with Team Dynamics 19x8.5 23.4 lbs each. the tires i bought are 27 lbs(firestone firehawk indy 500)... i lost 8lbs a wheel setup, plus added .8" of contact grip.

 

^Well said. Unless I hear differently from someone that's tried it, I'll just save my money and wait until I need new tires before I get lightweight wheels. But boy, there are some pretty options out there!

 

I went down to some OEM 18's but with 245 series tires. I probably only saved 40lbs total (10lbs per corner). Not much difference noticed in getting more power down. I'm thinking the wider tires have decreased my mpgs possibly due to more friction on the road? Not real noticeable though...I'd say do what you think you will like the look of because unless you go like racing lightweight you probably won't notice a diff! Going to go with 225 series for winter and I'm curious to see if that ups MPGs at all.

 

I should have a set of 20x8.5s, 40mm offset, with 255/35 tires installed early this week. I'll post up pics once they're on. Not really concerned about added weight and such. With the 93 octane tune and bigger IC, the car probably won't even notice it, lol!

 

Yeah, I wouldn't worry about it either if I were you. Besides, I've seen studies that show lowering unsprung weight rarely results in a noticeable increase in performance/handling and MPGs. But our cars could be different and respond better to reducing weight. It should be easy and fairly affordable to drop about 25lbs. on all four corners with the right wheel/tire combo. That's nearly 100lbs. of unsprung weight. I would love to hear from anyone that's tried this.

 

^I can't edit my own post? Anyway, they aren't Enkies and they are closer to 24lbs.

 

Any more reviews from any members that have gone with a lighter tire/wheel set up compared to stock? I'm considering shaving some weight off this beast before I tune if anyone is seeing any substantial increase in performance and MPGs by reducing unsprung weight. I'm looking at some 20lbs Enkei wheels at tirerack.com for a decent price.

 

https://www.discounttire.com/buy-wheels/drag-dr-70/p/47776

 

I went to 18's for the ride and unsprung weight. Drag wheels and 235/45-18 Conti's. And I didn't like the look of the stock wheels, much happier now.

 

What's the width and offset of those wheels?

Thanks

 

Just for a comparison, my E92 M3 wheels with tires are right at 50lbs a piece. They are 19X10 and 19X11 with 275/30/19 and 295/30/19 Mich PSS tires. The fronts came in right at 49lbs and the rears are at 51lbs so a 50lb avg. The FFS with a set of light wheels is going to feel so much more athletic.

Dave

 

So fun facts for today. I just weighed one of the stock wheel/tire(good year a/s). 58.9 lbs if any of you guys were wondering.. that's a heavy set up

 

Thats a 33lb. wheel,man that is heavy for only a 19X8" wheel. Goint to a set of 22lb wheels will make the car so much more responsive and athletic.

Dave

 

Im debating on using the Focus ST's for summer use. Since I like to auto X and hit the drag strip, I think these would a better choice over the stock wheels/tires. Plus I think i could get a better deal on good performance tires. I can vouch the Stock set up is very heavy.

 

The Focus ST wheels seem like great option, especially if you can get them at a good price. Hmm it also looks like they maintain the factory offset of....55mm which is awesome because that means you get to keep your suspension geometry correct. I don't know very much about suspension theory, having not studied it in as much detail as I would like, but have heard a few sources warn that a change of offset to the extent of 5mm can negatively affect your scrub radius and the ackermann angle of the car. I have no idea what the acceptable/perceivable threshold is for the fusion but by simple logic a 55mm offset wheel will always be the best in terms of the all around handling and part wear and tear (notably the tires but also steering rack, ball joints, etc. over time)

Tire rack says the FoST wheels come in at 26.0 lbs each. Is that some weight savings right there? I can't seem to find any information about what the stock sport wheels weigh in at.

 

Nice! That's a sharp looking set, the car must be unstoppable with those studs... so long as you don't get stuck scraping up on something with the belly of the car.

What wheel are you running?

And how much front wheel to caliper clearance do you have with those 18" wheels? Do you think any 18" wheel will work? How about a 17" wheel?

 

Thank you. It does run straight and true on the hardpack. With it's low CG and fairly long and wide stance, it's better than any other vehicle i have ever had for slippery roads.
The wheels are Drag DR33. Very inexpensive and the offset leaves about 2" of clearance to the caliper. That's why the side of the car gets dirty so fast. The id of the rim is very close though, about 1/2". I wouldn't get them for year round use, they seem kind of cheaply made.

 

I don't know how "meaty" these look but the sidewall is larger and the wheel is smaller than stock. The OD is about the largest that will fit. 225/50/18 with 45 offset. Snow tires only. Can't wait to put the stock ones back cuz these are studded.