NB Tire size combos / Wheel offset / Spacers thread...

For narrow-body 996's... Please share your thoughts on what combo's you think works best and for what purpose. There are a ton of threads out there discussing tires, sizes, spacers, but I find they have incomplete information... If possible, include: Wheel diameter, width and offset. F&R Tire size (xxx/yy-zz). F&R Spacers, if any. F&R Note any major suspension changes inc. ride height, sway bars. Note if you rolled the fenders. Comment on your usage (competition only, occasional track days, daily driver)

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To start off, I've seen these suggestions for narrow body 996's, OEM size wheels, stock or moderately lowered suspensions... Wheels: 8x18 RO 50 (front, oem size/offset) 10x10 RO 65 (rear, oem size/offset) Tires: 225/40-18, 285/30-18 (oem.) 245/35-18, 295/30-18 (Suggested to put a bit more tire on the car, reduce understeer, and fill the wheel wells a bit more.) 245/35-18, 285/30-18 (even better under/oversteer balance) 235/40-18, 295/30-18 (oem GT3 MKI sizing) Spacers: 7mm F and 14mm R for oem size tires? 7mm F and 7mm R for the other combos?

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A combo I'm leaning towards this for the next setup on my 2004 996 C2: Front: Tires: 235/40-18 (Hankook V12 Evo) Wheels: 8x18 RO 50 (Porsche Carrera II lightweight) Spacers: +7mm (giving an effective RO 43) Rear: Tires: 295/30-18 (Hankook V12 Evo) Wheels: 10x18 RO 65 (Porsche Carrera II lightweight) Spacers: none

I like where this thread is going. I have also been wondering the same.

Ok, I am on the same boat, with the following caveat: I am leaning to get Contis DWS, as i drive a lot over icy roads in winter and car is a daily driver - and no I don't want to deal with winter tires, etc. If I get the tires at start of snow season, the "S" will be new. At the end of the snow season, the D and W will be there. Next year, all over again. I am doing this as a preventive measure as I have to drive 40 miles each way of mountain roads to get our of here. In winter, even on a good day with no snow on the roads, it is likely that I catch one of two patches of ice from runoff. Just for that, I am getting the DWS. I have seen to many accidents because those patches, in this road. There are some other alternative with stiffer walls but there are worse on the snow. And I discard the Blizzacks too much of a compromise for what I need them. I wonder if I should stay with OEM narrow sizes, for 18x8ET50-18x10ET65 or going to a GT3 size will be not much worse in winter (mainly worried about sliding on light snow/slush or ice) Car is a 99 NB.

Et65 for the rear is too far in IMO for 10" width. You'll want to take it down to 53-55mm rear for a more flush look without rubbing or rolling the fenders. Also some 245 tires for the front will rub the front shocks unless you have coilovers.

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As far as I know, 996-362-140-03 Size: 10Jx 18 ET65 for the rears of a 99 work. is an '02 NB wheel. 99 NB twists have the same size as well. WB cars carry 11" x ET45 which is indeed to wide. ET65 is correct. Quote:

I was really hoping to avoid partial info like this in this thread... Quote: With what offsets? C2 or C4? 245/35-18's seem to be the go-to size for the performance crowd, and I've never heard any mention of them not working with stock/M030/X74 suspensions. Quote: For looks or clearance? With what width tires? Since 65 is the stock offset, I'm assuming you are talking just about looks? Quote: Again, with what width tires? I'd love to know for sure that a 295/30-18 with a 10x18 ET 65 wheel and 10mm worth of spacer (to get to your suggested 55) will fit without rolling fenders... Seems to me if a 283/30 is offset exactly to flush/fill/clear, than a 295/30 would need 5mm more offset?

What partial info? It's not like I've tried every single 245 tire. I'm not going to do any more work on your behalf but if you search, you'll come across certain tires that have had rubbing issues with non CO suspension. The 52-55mm was more for looks for 285-295 tire. Also going strictly by tire size when dealing with spacers to the very edge of fitment can be tricky since some tires can have a wider "contact patch" between various brands/models so one tire might not rub while another will. If you're going for looks! your best bet is to measure your wheel/tire combo with a t square or improvised tool similar to it and buy spacers based on your measurements. If not, just go with the stock configuration and call it a day. No need to make it harder than it is.

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Quote: Hello Alpine, i tried to PM you but it wont allow me at the moment. Im looking to add the following to my car and i wanted to see if you could validate. I have a: 2001 Porsche 911 Carrera 4 Cabriolet Stock Suspension, but will be putting on H&R Sport Lowering Springs soon (which will lower 1" all around) I have spoke with ModBargains and they say that 19x11 ET52 will stick out on the rear. Can anyone tell me whats the maximum width and offset 19" wheel i can stick on the rear without the wheel sticking out. Thanks,

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Quote: Alex, I'm afraid 19x11 et52mm is the spec for widebody cars so you might rub regardless of the tire size unless you are willing to run stretched narrower tires along with rolled fenders and aggressive camber. IMHO this would be too much trouble than just starting out with the correct offset wheel to begin with. For example, 19x11 et65 would be more compatible with the narrow bodies and with that, you could run 295 rear tires comfortably without doing anything else or encountering any issues.

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Quote: Thank you for the info, I'm trying to find a wheel that is 9.5, 10, or 10.5 in the rear with ET 55 + offset... because i think that those will fit fine in the rear. I dont like super wide tires because they kill your gas milege and plus i have a Carrera 4 so i dont need super wide rear tires. Any ideas on where to get wheels besides ModBargains.com and ECS Tuning? Thanks

I fully understand and I'm glad you don't have the VW/Audi crowd mentality of super wide rim/tire fad. Et55 would definitely work on 9.5-10" rims for nb. Your tire size could be anywhere from 265-285 on that combo. Dunno your budget for wheels but I found Enkei nt03 and Victor Innsbruck wheels to be the two top lightweight bang for buck wheels but not everyone likes those designs. With either, you will notice a performance increase in acceleration, response, and braking due to the lower rotating mass over stock wheels(5-7lb savings per corner on the avg for rears). In my case I also gained 2mpg as well as the wheels that came on my car were close to 30lbs for rear compared to ~22lbs for the BBS. You can google porsche wheels for several retailers or look through the sponsors here. Tirerack also has a decent selection.

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Quote: awesome thank you! I notice that you also have the pre-facelift 996. I cant really tell from your headlights, but are they refinished? Do you have more pics of your car that i can look at? link or email is fine. [email removed]

2001 NB C2. I'm running 19". Fronts 19X8.5 / Rears 19X11. Tires are 235/35/19 and 275/30/19. The current tires are Goodyear F1's and appear more stretched the the Kumho's that came with the car. I'm thinking of stepping up to 295/30/19 in back. The front are maxed, the car has PSS9's and does not rub any of the suspension, but barely touches the front wheel well plastic on a fully cranked turn....has not been an issue at all. The car is lowered about an inch. The alignment is stock and no rubbing occurs in back. Rear offset is 65, since it is not rubbing. I don't know if the 295's will rub? Any ideas on this?

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Quote: Thanks for the info, very helpful. 3 quick questions, before I order my wheels this week. 1. What's the offset of the wheels in the front? 2. What kind of springs are you running. 3. What are some popular wheels on a 2001 996?

Hi Alex, I hope I'll be helpful: 1. 53mm in front. And I mean they barely touch the plastic when cranked completely to one side. In fact, if the tire wears down by 2mm, they won't. They are fairly new F1's. 2. The springs are Bilstein PSS9 coil overs. This car was slammed when I bought it / about 2" lower than stock. I raised it 1" as it drives better and doesn't scrape things or hit the bump stops. 3. Check out Tire Rack and search out Damon from there too. He has a lot of Porsche knowledge. He can help with rim sizes, offsets and tires too. Google images and check out what you want. Here are a couple photos of my car and rims. I love the set up and like lips on them. 1" in front, 2.5" in back. I don't like spokes that stick out as the tend to grab curbs and that is no good. I also like polished alum on the lips as you can grind, sand and re polish to bring them back to perfect condition. My friend is running 18" Champions. His do not lip much, but they do look nice. See photo. The photo of it in front of the white barn are from when it was slammed. It does show the lips pretty well. Good luck and hope I was somewhat helpful. Chris

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Quote: This is exactly what I'm looking for, thank you!! I noticed your headlight covers, where did you get these? Cost? Thanks

Alex, they were on when I bought them. For two pieces of plastic, they are expensive. But, if you go to ebay, you can find cheaper knock offs that are probably as good. Sorry I was not more help on these, but they do give it a newer model look that I like / unique. They are techart and cost about $700.

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Quote: I'm getting pretty eager to make a decision on wheels. I thought I would throw this out there: If you we're to buy wheels again (for a car you will drive 8,000 - 15,000 miles a year) would you buy 19" or 20" On a 2001 Carrera 4 Cabriolet with 1" drop all around Thx,

19". 20 too much for those cars. Looks funny and drives bad. 18" drives better but 19" ok.

I second what Tarzancoe says. 19" is as big as I'd go on a 996. They look good, fill the hole completely and if you can get a set with the weight within a couple pounds of the OE rims you'll be good. That is what I am running. 18's would be good for a daily driver on bad roads, but I only drive mine on dry days and have another vehicle. Offset is the most important as you don't want rubbing. With a 1" drop, either of these sizes would be a good choice. Good luck! Let us know what you decide to do.

From a personal and business standpoint and experience, gotta agree with you. Porsche 996 looks best with up to 19" in size. And I love the oldschool approach with a fat lip, multispoke or mesh ... that would be the best way to go.

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Quote: Great thanks! I'm thinking the 808 series by Wheel Dynamics

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Quote: With your experience, what do you think about 19" on the front and 20" on the. Rear? I've seen it done on Maseratti and corvettes all the time. Thx,