I have recently placed an order for 18" SSR GT2s from Tirerack. I had ordered the staggered sizes, 8.5 fronts and 9.5 rears. I did this because I was thinking that with the ride height my car will be ( Koni Yellows/ RSR Race springs), I didnt want to see any rubbing issues up front. But now that Ive been thinking about it more, the front offset of the 8.5s is 42mm, which in itself may cause some issues. My wheels havent shipped out yet, Im sure I could call and change the order to 4 18x9.5s +50, if you guys think I could do that without rubbing/fitment with the suspension Ill be running? I just want to avoid catching my fender lip. Thanks alot, hopefully I can get some more help while I can still change the order.

 

Well I needed to make a decision when I talked to tire rack this morning, so I ordered the 9.5s all the way around. On Jimlabs wheel calculator it says they should fit, and I know there are guys running 18x10 with 285s up front with the 50mm offset ( although with coilovers), so Im hoping I made the right move. At least now I can rotate tires if need be. I was thinking 265/35r18 all around, unless it would be recommended to drop to a 265/30 for extra clearance? The 265/35 has a diameter of 25.3", which is slightly larger than stock (24.9). The 265/30 has a diameter of 24.3". That appears to be way too short, but wanted to ask before purchasing tires. Thanks

 

Many people run 235/40 18 up front (including myself), which are the same diameter as 265/35 18. While I would definitely roll your front fenders, you should be fine with that fitment. And I'm REALLY jealous, because those are the exact wheels I want to order...

Oh, and check your PM regarding the Konis....

 

Nobody makes a 265/30/18 so its not an option.

The problem of 'catching the fender lip' and pulling it out has less to do with the offset as the distance between the fender lip and the top of the tire. This is related more to how much you lower the car and how tall your tires are over stock.

Pulling the fender lip out only happens when you compress the suspension while turning (like turning into an inclined driveway quickly). The wheel/tire is angled across the fender lip, and the top of the tire tread gets slammed into the fender lip edge. Obviously, if you lower the car and/or have taller tires, the distance between the fender lip and the thread of the tire becomes less, making contact more likely.

The rotation of the tire causes the tread to catch the lip and pull it out. This is why you need to roll the lip up and out of the way - so that the tire tread lip will not grab the edge. After rolling, the tire may still come in contact with the fender edge, but no longer (if you roll it up far enough) have something to grab onto to pull out.

Why does this happen on the the FD, but apparently no other car? I believe it has to do with the fact the fender lip 'semi-circle' is not centered on the axis of the wheel. Its not really visible by the naked eye, but if you should roll your fender lip with a rolling tool (which bolts to the hub, so is therefore centered on the hub axis), it will be obvious that the fender lip edge 'semi-circle is biased to the rear of the car. This places the 10-11 o'clock fender lip edge position closer to the tire, where the lip happens to get pulled out.

FWIW, I have seen a stock wheel/tire, stock suspension FD pull its fender lip before, so I guess if you slam into, while turning, a driveway hard enough, it can happen to any FD. The solution? Have that fender edge rolled up and out of the way (a bat didn't do it for me, I tried that and could not get it up out of the way enough, even though I thought I was good enough - have to use a professional tool), and slow down when you turn into driveways.

 

Thanks for the post.. Ive caught my passenger side fender lip once already with my 255/40r17s up front on a 17x8.5 +43mm wheel, and Im just paranoid about doing it again once I get it fixed. Could you give a quick explination of exactly what to do with the tool? I will be ordering one soon to do this , and dont want to damage my fender.

 

I may still have some pics of my roll job, need to dig for it. Basically you just need to angle the roller so that you slowly work the lip up against the underside of the fender. You'll need to make multiple passes, and you'll see what I mean about the front fender edge not being centered - you'll need to adjust the tool for either half of the fender semi circle.

Keep in mind that your paint (especially if it's the original) will be likely be brittle, and chances are you might crack the paint, especially given how far you need to roll it up. People use heat guns to help soften up the paint. I was doing a repaint anyways, so it wasn't an issue for me. You could try scoring the paint, just along the edge, so that the cracking stays on the underside, then do touch up paint for rust protection. Much harder to do then it is to say though.

 

I purchased the GT2's in 18X9.5 all around and one wheel extra just in case. I have 265/35 in the back and 255/35 up front (Pilot Sport 2's). I also put coilovers on and lowered the car to 25.5 inches ground to fender. At first, the fit up front was close. But as the car was lowered, the movement of the A arms "pulled" the wheel tire in so that it looks to clear easily. I drove around on various road conditions as low as 25" with no problems.

 

what are your alignment specs? Did you get it aligned after lowering? The reason I ask is that lowering the car can give you negative camber that is helping you clear the lip.

 

265/35, not 265/30.

All lowered FD's with aftermarket wheels ought to think about rolling their fenders.

 

That is undoubtably a factor as I have not had it aligned (just put them on this weekend). However, I still think I will have no problem as there is plenty of room.

 

My comment you quoted was in regards to this previous post.

 

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eB...MESE%3AIT&rd=1

going cheap and new

 

Too bad those offsets aren't very good for FDs....and I wouldn't want 17/18 combo anyway.

 

Would anyone have a professional fender rolling tool that I could borrow? I would pay shipping both ways, and throw in a few bucks for the hassle. I decided I dont want to spend the $2-300 on something Ill probably only use once.

 

Tirerack 'lends' (or did, not sure if they do anymore, now that they actually sell it) the tool; you pay for shipping to and from, they refund a $x00 deposit upon return. The wait was mindboggling though - I 'borrowed' it from them twice (don't ask), and both times involved a 3 month waiting list IIRC. Still looking for the pics, I know it's on an old hard drive somewhere

If they don't lend them out any more, or if you can not wait, I would consider buying one, then turning around and selling it here on the forum (or eBay, look there) for a few dollars less. The difference can be chalked up as a 'rental fee'.