HI all

Wasn't real sure how to word the topic header without writing a longer sentence!.......lol... Anyways, if you have drove a fiero with 17 inch rims, or 18's, would you please take some time to tell me about the ride quality of the 2? Basically, I am lookin for a 17's vs. 18's ride quality, comfort n such... Also, if you happen to know what size tire you have or usta have that would be even better.....

After seeing 18's on the back of MinnGreenGT's car I thought they looked a weeeee bit big for a fiero, then there is 88fierocoupe who has 17 inch wheels, and I thought they fit the fiero, "Like a glove"...

Any insight would be helpfull!

Thanx all, for your time!!

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Me, I sell engines, the cars are for free, I need something to crate the engines in....
Enzo Ferrari....

Today they are called garage's, yesterday, they were stable's! Eric Jacobsen....

my car started out with a 16 x 7 front and 17 x 7 rear combo and it drove like a slotcar.
a lot less side wall flex than the stock tires and a way better look.
I am waiting on my new wheels from BonSpeed now.
my new set will be 19 x 8 front and 20 x 10.5 rear but I have a widebody on the car now
here is a pic of the car with the first set on it. I hope it helps.

I can't give you input on the ride quality of 17's vs 18's on a FIERO, but I can give you input on various 17's on other cars and the ride quality.

First, the suspension will have a big impact on how harsh the ride quality is. Stock suspension will soften some of the harshness that will come with the shorter sidewalls. Aftermarket suspension typically is stiffer and shorter than stock, so you lose a lot of the cushion that goes along with the stock suspension.

Second, the sidewall height will also play a part, but not a very big one since the difference between a 40 series and 45 series 17" tire is going to be minimal at best (when all else is equal) on a Fiero spec'd size.

My wife's Mini Cooper has factory 17" rims and by far the shortest sidewall I have personally seen on a factory equipped car AND that I have driven. The suspension on the car is very tight and the sidewalls are super short and you know it when you hit abrupt bumps in the road. Not quite bone jarring, but definitely isn't something that would be good for the car if you hit those kind of bumps all the time. You would rattle something loose over time for sure.
I believe the Mini has: 215/40/17's

My 96 Cobra that I just sold had lowering springs and factory 17" wheels and tires. This car drove VERY similar to the Mini in the ride quality dept. It did not take the bumps well at all. Again, something that would take its toll on the vehicle over time and with the downgraded ride quality, the enjoyment of driving the car was downgraded slightly.
96 Cobra had: 265/40/17's

The 2003 Cobra that I sold a couple years ago had stock springs and stock 17" wheels and tires. This one had much better ride quality and was noticeably smoother over bumps. You still noticed when you hit something in the road (bump, dip, pot-hole, etc), but you weren't stopping to see if you last the rear-end or transmission.
03 Cobra had: 275/40/17's

FWIW, I would like to upgrade the rims on my Fiero and I also feel that 18" looks a little too big for the Fiero. The right rims and tires in 16" or 17" seem to be more at home in my opinion. 17's will ride a little more harsh than 16's, but I think the 17's look better. The sacrifice in ride quality is all personal preference.

A Fiero with 17" rims and tires keeping the same overall (or really close) tire height would need to have 215/45/17's.
Stock 195/70/14 tires have a TOTAL sidewall height of ~10.75 inches
215/45/17 tires have a TOTAL sidewall height of ~ 7.62 inches
Overall tire height is almost identical. This is just an illustration to show how much less tire and subsequent cushion there will be with 17" tires.

In the end, I think I will probably still end up swapping on 17" rims and tires just for the improved overall look of the car. The stock wheels on these cars really "date" them.

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86 GT - Red, Auto, 3.4 V6
88 5.0 Mustang

"Don't even consider keeping up with the Joneses!! They're broke!" - Dave Ramsey

ive ridden in fiero's or owned fiero's with 13" rims clear upto 18" rims.

while the larger rims look excellent, the best ride quality and handling combo ive ever had the luxury of trying was a 16x7 front with 16x8 rear, they rode and handled excellent, had a larger rim quality without the expensive tires.

currently i have:

1984 t-top 3800 n/a with 18x7.5 rims on it, lowered 1.5" all around 225/45/18 up front with 235/50/18 rear, even lowered with these larger tires the car looks like its setting at stock height.
1987GT 17x7 with 225/45/17 front/rear 3.4L 5 speed lowered front/rear 1.5"
1988 coupe 15x7 stock GT rims 215/60/15 front 225/60/15 rear stock 2.5L auto
1988 coupe 17x7.5 with 225/45/17 front 245/45/17 rear 3.4L 4 speed
1988 coupe 17x7.5 with 215/45/17 front and 245/45/17 rear 2.3L high output quad4 5 speed

if i could buy new rims for all my fiero's id get the 16x7 and 16x8 combo front/rear and run 225/50/16's up front and 245/50/16 rear

low profile with a decent ride.

the 17's arent horrible, if i had it to do over again id run 225/45/17's up front on all my car's and 225/50/17's on the rear just to have a softer ride.

this is just my opinion, take it as that.

none of my car's are track driven so high performance isnt necessary, all daily drivers basically

matthew

If you keep the overall diameter the same, tall tires and smaller rims will always ride better than big rims with low profile tires. For cornering the opposit is true. You have to find a happy medium you can live with. My Magnum with stock size 18 inch wheels rides like a caddy and my friends with 22s has a much harsher ride. My Ferrari kit seemed like a good balance of the two with 16x8s and 225/60 tires.

When I got my 86 SE, it had the factory 14"s and 134000 miles of worn suspension parts. I upgraded to poly bushings, 1.5" lowering springs in the front and coil-overs in the back from West Coast Fiero's, new KYB shocks and struts, and 17" wheels and BFG G-Force tires ( don't ask me what size, cause I don't remember without looking ). I will say that the ride quality did stiffen up quite a bit, but I don't think it's too bad at all. I've had it on a couple of long road trips and haven't been uncomfortable at all in it. I'm glad I did all of those things cause the car definitely handles a million times better than before. I'm the fiero on the cover of the 2008 Fiero Store parts catalog and calendar. I'd post some photos, but haven't had any luck doing that. I'm also on FieroDomain.com as "Digitalman" if you want to see my photos.

18s too big for the rear?

I beg to differ




I have a set of 18 x 8.5 I need to install, I want to put 245/40s in the back and keep the 215/35s in the front until I can get the the matching set. I also worry about the ride quality, because its going to be totally opposite of the old struts I have in.

At the moment I am rolling on 225/40/18 front and 255/40/18 and my friend told me that he did not see any significant change in ride quality from the stock. Me, I felt it rode just a tad stiffer but nothing to be concern about. The car was also lowered with a spring rate of (don't quote me on this...just don't remember) 350 front and 400 rear.

And yes, that is my Red GT Fiero above.......

This is how my car looked like when I was rolling on 225/40/17 front and 255/40/18 rear:


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http://members.cardomain.com/koolflip

[This message has been edited by kooljess (edited 10-09-2008).]

Because the low profile tires require more air pressure than stock tires, you'll feel bumps more with 17" or 18" wheels, but other than that, the car will handle fine. And you can get some really nice tires in the low profile sizes. I have Cooper Zeon tires, and when I do the curves fast (like on Run For The Hills), they stick like glue.

I think whether or not the 18's look too big depends on the wheel itself. I have 17" fronts and 18" rears and the rears don't look big at all, while the fronts look a little small. However, my friend has 18's all around and they look a little too big all around.
I couldn't find a good side picture of his car, but here is his silver car next to mine and you can see how much bigger his front wheels look, despite only being a 1 inch difference.


Ride quality depends most on the sidewall profile you go with, I originally went with a 205/45 in front and a 245/40 in the rear... it felt fine, a little harsher on bumps but it was more than made up for in turns. Next set I decided I wanted to go lower so I switched to a 205/40 and 255/35... it's a little too harsh now. This is with cut springs, KYB shocks/struts, and all new (rubber) suspension.

Overall, for a car you drive often I would say 17's are a better choice (especially on a pre 88 where 18's are likely to hit in the front).

quote Originally posted by pumpkincarriage: ...(especially on a pre 88 where 18's are likely to hit in the front).

Whoa! I didn't know that! Is that a fact? I have 215-35-18 to be put in the front with a 1.5" lowering spring... I was more concerned with the rear as it real close to the spring (I have the 1" lowering for the back).

quote Originally posted by pswayne: Because the low profile tires require more air pressure than stock tires, you'll feel bumps more with 17" or 18" wheels, but other than that, the car will handle fine. And you can get some really nice tires in the low profile sizes. I have Cooper Zeon tires, and when I do the curves fast (like on Run For The Hills), they stick like glue.

Actually its because low profile tires have much stiffer & shorter sidewalls and therefore transmit more vibration/shock etc.

quote Originally posted by HC: Whoa! I didn't know that! Is that a fact? I have 215-35-18 to be put in the front with a 1.5" lowering spring... I was more concerned with the rear as it real close to the spring (I have the 1" lowering for the back).

How wide of a wheel are you using? My friends silver car (an 86) and mine (an 88) both have 8 inch wide front wheels and our cars are lowered about the same amount when turning the steering wheel his fronts hit much sooner than mine do. I can't give and exact amount, but mine hit at full lock to lock, his hit before the steering that point. I have heard similar things from other Fiero owners as well, so I assume it is a fact rather than a coincidence.

I don't know anything about the rears on a pre 88, the silver car has spacers so there is no issue.

Have had both and now have only 18s on both cars. I think both look great and way better than stock size. On ride it will depend on suspension mods. I just drove a stock 86 the other day and wow! did I forget how a stock car rides. Seemed like a 70s Cadillac to me. But then my cars are both very low. If you want soft keep it stock.

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Red: TPI V8 + 6-Speed Yellow: Nitrous 3.4 + 4 speed Auto
304rwHP/366rwTQ

Have had both on the TAZ. No big difference for me between the two in ride quality. I don't go looking for potholes and the quality of the roads in Ontario is pretty good.

I had 240/40 18 on 8" rims all around and ended swapping to 225/35 up front and 245/40 on the back. I had issues with rubbing the top of the fender with the 240/40 up front with RCC Coilovers. I have about two fingers clearance now and no more rubbing. I could have adjusted the front coils - but they are hard to get to and the different sized rubber looks good.

Will edit and post a pic later....

I guess I'll find out when I get them installed... I'll let you know.

Edit: I am going to leave the 215-35-18s in the front and get 245-40-18s in the back. I believe the rims are 8.5 wide.

[This message has been edited by HC (edited 10-13-2008).]