Wide wheels front and back

[Wreck It Ralph]

Gabe was working on his car this weekend and they put wide wheels on the front to test traction. He said the car handled better. Anyone have experience using wide wheels on all four corners? Pros? Cons?

[TopNotch]

I have aftermarket wheels on both my 88 Fieros, with the same tires front and rear. I did this mainly so I could rotate tires, but I have no handling problems with either car.

[Wreck It Ralph]

You got another pair of black wide rims?

[Fierofool]

The 84-87 had the same width rims front and rear.  The 88 GT and Formula (V6's) had a narrower rim on front to compensate for the wider center to center of the hubs.  The base coupe with 14's had the same offset front and rear and the same rim width as all previous years with 14s. 

I don't know that I noticed any difference in handling in the 88 Duke when I swapped from the original 14's to 15 inch Estrella wheels with the same offset.  Of course, the car was mostly out as a club loaner car so I seldom ever got to drive it. 

On the early years, running 88 narrower rims and the tucked-in offset of the wheel could cause the car to oversteer, giving the rear more tendency to swing around on any turns.  It brings it closer to a tricycle effect.   

We had several leftover black lace wheels from the 2 88's (Warrior Project and Fastback Formula) that were taken to the barn.  Also, NoMad (Fastback Formula) said that he has upgraded and had the full set available and Marc Weldon may also have some. 

[TopNotch]

You got another pair of black wide rims?

I have two sets of 88 GT/Formula wheels. One set is in the barn, and belongs to the club. The other set came off my white car. I don't think it would be a good idea to separate the sets and let someone take only the wider rear wheels.

[scottb]

It's an 86 with 88 wheels on it. I think the biggest issue is the narrow wheels and the wrong offset is making the front track width smaller than the rear track. Of course it's in a bad need of an alignment

[GTRS Fiero]

Gabe was working on his car this weekend and they put wide wheels on the front to test traction. He said the car handled better. Anyone have experience using wide wheels on all four corners? Pros? Cons?

Generally, the front of the Fiero is so light, that there is no benefit from wider front tires.  In fact, the wider front tires make steering more difficult.

[scottb]

Gabe was working on his car this weekend and they put wide wheels on the front to test traction. He said the car handled better. Anyone have experience using wide wheels on all four corners? Pros? Cons?

Generally, the front of the Fiero is so light, that there is no benefit from wider front tires.  In fact, the wider front tires make steering more difficult.

 Not the issue

[GTRS Fiero]

The question was pros and cons of wider front tires or not.  I answered at least 1 question.

[scottb]

The question was pros and cons of wider front tires or not.  I answered at least 1 question.

You are correct, that was my mistake....... speaking of increased steering effort, I think it's minimal for what we are talking about here. The only time that I have noticed an increase in steering effort is when getting into or out of parking spaces. In my opinion wider tires give you a better road feel

I was thinking about the issue of how that car drives. While riding in it I was puckered up tight to pass a diamond.

[GTRS Fiero]

Road feel, certainly.  The rear tires on my Firehawk were 14" wide, and the fronts were 12" wide.  There were suspension upgrades, as well, but the feel was completely different from my HO Camaro, which had tires probably half those widths.  My brother bought the HO from me, and put wider tires/wheels on it.  The rear got squirrely in the snow, spun more easily in the dry, and the steering effort increased.  Note that these vehicles had power steering.

My son's friend has a Mustang for the drag strip.  Power steering.  He has 18" tires/wheels in the rear, and 4" tires/wheels in the front.  The car is street legal (when not on slicks), but can't corner worth a darn.

Of course, at anything greater than 5 MPH, the steering effort is negligible.

One of the things that changes with wider tires is the pivot point.  Fieroguru would be rolling his eyes at me, about now.  Anyway, when the wheels stick out further from that pivot point, steering effort is increased, and handling falls off.  Almost all of those old cars on 22" wheels that stick out and make the car sit high ride terribly, ruin the suspension and steering, and are actually unsafe for everyone around them.

[Fierofool]

Some specs that should be considered on the 88 compared to prior years.  Speaking to 86 and up GT's and Formulas only.

Prior years had the same width rims front and rear.  They had the same stance front and rear for 86 and 87.  Only the front tires were 1 size narrower.  Maybe a total of 1/2 inch.

Stock tires on the GT and Formula were 205/60/15 front and 215/60/15 rear.  The 88 GT and Formula actually had a wider stance on front than rear, based on center to center of the rotors.  They also had a narrower rim on the front.  I think it was about 1.5 inches narrower, and I expect to be corrected on that.  That narrower rim with the same size tires as was mounted on the wider 86 and 87 front rims makes the tire balloon out and ride on the center of the tread when inflated to the same pressure.  So, because of the wider track at the front, the offset was increased to bring the tire back in to the same center point over the rotor, giving it the same front track as the rear. 

A wider tire will certainly lose traction in rain or snow as compared to a very thin tire.  It runs on top rather than cutting down into the rain or snow.  Wider tires also tend to bobble more on imperfections in the roadway but a wider tire of the same aspect ratio can make for a much smoother ride.     

[GTRS Fiero]

The dish on the '88 front vs rear is about 1" different.  I was going to provide details, but for an upcoming article.

[scottb]

 giving it the same front track as the rear. 
   

I'm not sure about that. I am not an engineer, but that disputes everything that I have been taught. I was told that you want the front track wider so that the back tires will follow the front tires.  Makes the car more predictable, especially in the curves

[GTRS Fiero]

Yes.  The wider front track was done on wagons, even.  If you follow a Ford van, for example, the wider front track is very obvious.

On my Fiero, I measured the front and rear.
Front (as measured from the outsides of each tire): 68.5"
Rear (as measured from the outsides of each tire): 69.5"

That was unexpected.

Looking down the door panel on each side, the tires on each side are flush with the door panel just below the beltline trim.