rims/tires/suspension

[brabbani]

i decided not to get a body kit for my 02 p5.

do you think i should get new rims and tires THEN lower my p5...or...lower my P5 THEN get new tires and rims

 

[Natey]

If you up-size the rims without lowering the car, it'll sit higher than stock. See?
No drop:

Aaaahhhhh. That's better.

If I could have a "do-over", I'd drop the car first. MrFoggy's car is lowered on stock P5 rims, and it looks pretty mean.

 

[seakrait]

i'd lower the car first with whatever sort of suspension you want in the end... just springs, or coilovers, or adjustable coilovers...

that in turn determines what kind of wheels/tires you can get. there are more choices in size in the wheels/tires than there are with suspension height (unless you go with the adjustables of course)

and of course, research and knowing what you want is key.

however, if you want a particular wheel/tire combo, you'd have to find a suspension setup that would accomodate the wheel/tire and look good on the car (ie: not too much of a fender gap).....

 

[brabbani]

im confused

 

[Iconoclast]

lowering offers less turbulant air flowing over and under the car as well!(2thumbs)

 

[tonkabui]

basically, just lower the car first, then get rims later. the stockies don't look bad lowered. it'll just look more bad ass with rims. but if you get rims without lowering it, the car will look funny. like nate's suv look. heh heh.

 

[IainK]

If you lower the car first, you might find your new wheels scrub on the guards, leaving you with a "scrubber".

Best to look for wheels first, then suspension.

You'll need to work out rolling diameters first to keep your speedometer reading correctly, and make sure the wheels wont scrub, overload wheel bearings or stop heat escaping stock brakes.

You want form over function or a good-handling car?

 

[traitorhound]

the SUV look is pretty cool. . ..j/k. . yea get the drop first

 

[seakrait]

okay okay... this is the simpler way.

basically, find a wheel/tire combo that you like that is about the same rolling diameter as the stock wheels/tires. (don't forget that our wheel wells don't like to accept too fat of a tire.)

195/50/16 = 195mm(50%) + 16"/2 = diameter
9.75cm + 20cm = 29.75cm

decide how much of a wheel gap you want and lower the car onto it... (most sport lowering springs lower the car around 1.5".)


but what i had suggested above though was to first decide what kind of ride you want (firm - race springs or supple - sport springs)... lower you car with the springs and the stock rollers and see how much space you have left.

that way, you can figure out the maximum wheel size that you can fit into the wheel wells. if the tires start to rub, switch to lower profile tires to give you just a bit more clearance (ie: go from 205/50 to 205/45).... etc.