Need some help on tires for 40th Anniversary

OK so I need to order some tires for my soon t be here 2004 40th Anniversary and right now is on stock tires and rims : 225/40 ZR 18 front and 285/30 ZR 18 rear. I am looking to go maybe a little larger if possible but i don't want to deal with rubbing or rolling fenders (at least not right now so how big can / should you go on a 18" OEM rims? I was thinking 235/40 ZR 18 front and 295/30 ZR 18 rear. I am in South Florida so road is pretty good and car comes with PSM and 030 so should have a 10mm drop factory. I want to keep it simple this go round and just to give it a more filled in look since I have to buy tires anyway. I am sure been asked before but I am just looking for a straight answere from maybe someone who has done similar to thier 40th Anniversary. Thanks

Just keep in mind that rears will wear out in about 1/2 the time as fronts, quicker if your even more overly aggressive. Be sure to check wear pattern of your "soon to be there" 911to make sure you don't need an alignment first. No point tearing through $200-400ea tires because of a bad alignment. As for filing the fenders, I think you would be hard pressed to notice the 10mm difference between the stock tires and the ones you mention. You would likely be hard pressed to notice a performance advantage as well.

Thanks for the input. I agree and part of new tires will be alignment and high speed balancing so not worried there I just keep getting conflicting info. TireRack and Porsche of course are toting the company line that if it's not OEM it won't fit. Or if it does fit then it will more than likely rub. Yet I read many people going way over OEM and saying they have no issues at all? I am new to Porsche but every othre car I ever had I stuffed the tires to the max. I am just trying to figure this out so I can time the car arriveal and the tire arrivals from TireRack at the same time and get it all buttoned up in one day.

You can safely go 235/40/18 front, 305/30/18 rear on the 40AE stock rims. Your speedo will be off by 1.5-2% http://www.miata.net/garage/tirecalc.html What number 40 AE did you get? Pics?

If you are spending other peoples money, or there is way too much more, where ever you get it, go for Michelins or Pirellis upper shelf models. If you want a terrific tire at a fantastic price try the Sumitomo HTRZ ll. If this makes you feel uneasy and you feel the need to spend $500 or more, go for the HTRZ lll. They will wear a bit quicker than the ll s and have a bit higher weight carrying capacity, which really isn't needed for a 911. I'm a former motorcycle roadracer and understand good tires can be more important than anything else. I also sell tires for motorcycles and know price does not accurately reflect what you get in a tire. I've tried 2 sets of the HTRZ lls and feel they are the best kept secret in Ultra High Performance automotive tires.

Thinking of going Hankook V12 performance vs price seem right and some of local guys down here have been pretty happy with. I just want to make sure no rubbing issues in rear or front fender liners on the 40th AE due to 030 option which lowers car. If anyone is running 235/40 ZR 18 front and 295/30 ZR 18 rear on stock rims and can chime in or post a picture that would be awsome.

I ran Micheline PS2 235/40 ZR 18 front and 295/30 ZR 18 rear on stock rims without any rubbing issues on my '04 C2. There would not be a noticeable difference in pics, but do look more aggressive in person.

Did you use the factory offset? Was your car lowered at all?

+1 on the II's

I have the stock size and love my Sumi's. I do not track the car. Just wanted a good tire for daily driving. Have almost 10k miles on this set. Think I paid $600 for the full set. Will get them again.

Yea I have heard nothing but good thinhs about the Hankook V12 and for the price can't be beat. I am not tracking it either. Well, unless driving on I-95 in South Florida counts as tracking

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Factory wheels with factory (stock) offsets. Car was not lowered. I doubt the tires would have rubbed if the car had been lowered.

Sumi III on my 40th too.

What sizes? Did you go with the 235F/295R combo?

I went with stock sizes.

its my foggy memory that says " US M030" does not lower the car.. but it does stiffen it. Only the ROW (rest of world) M030 lowers the car. At least that's how it was on the Boxster, so I figure the same for the 996? Again, you are talking 10mm difference from stock.. that's less than 1/2 inch. Heck, you could find a 10mm difference just between two different brands of the same size! They will be fine. OEM is fine too