[Tigers] Thoughts on 7" front wheels

[genepadgett at comcast.net]

I personally like 15 inch wheels with 205/50 tires on 7 inch rims. That is the setup I have for my "street tire class" autocross tires. They give a very nice ride in conjunction with my 450 lb. front springs. My regular street wheels are 16 inch wheels with 7 inch rims with 205/45 tires in the front and 215/40 tires on the back. The result is a bit on the harsh ride side. 

The issue with 7 inch rims on the front is to have the correct backspace. You need a backspace of 4.75 inches to get the wheel and tire to fit reasonably well inside or equal to the outer fender line and still have the wheel clear the suspension control arms at full deflection. Given the width of the 205 tire, you will have to trim off about 1/4 inch of the lower edge of the front valence where it curves back a bit toward the wheel opening for clearance at full steering lock. Many people have done that and the trimming is really not noticeable to any significant degree. I did not have to do any other wheel well or fender lip modification. 

While you are not predisposed to 6 inch rims and narrower tires on the front, keep in mind wider front tires result in a noticeably heavier steering effort especially at low speed. 

Gene 

----- Original Message -----
From: MWood24020 at aol.com 
To: tigers at autox.team.net 
Sent: Saturday, February 2, 2013 8:33:04 PM 
Subject: [Tigers] Thoughts on 7" front wheels 

I'm about to buy some new wheels for my Tiger. Because of the lack of 
quality off the shelf wheels for our cars, I'm leaning towards 15" diameter 
Panasports. While kind of "belly button" wheels, they are very well made and 
reasonable cost. 

The usual 6" front/7" rear fitment has limited appeal, primarily because 
of the handling compromises that result. I'd like to run 7' all around with 
equal size tires. 

Anyone have direct experience with the 7's and clearances? My valence is 
near stock, we did do some basic smoothing, prior to the car going to paint. 
How large a tire might fit? (I could see running as small as 195/50-15 at 
all four corners). 

Thanks for any thoughts! 
Mike Wood 
_______________________________________________ 

tigers at autox.team.net 

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