Time for some new shoes

[FordDude]

So I am doing my 3k oil change and part of my routine when I do that is to rotate my tires. Oh they are off so might as well clean and polish the rims, :roll but I digress. I am at 22K now on my 07 and the tires are on the wear bars. So I need to start looking for some new shoes. The size that I really want does not really exist. Right now from the factory it has 235 50 R18 with 18 x 8.5 rims. I want a 265 45 R18 which is only 0.48% different from stock. A 255 45 R18 is more common and is 0.81% different from stock. When I start looking into the 275 sizes they are again available, but too big for my rim size. Just wondering if anyone else has eighteens on their S197 and what size did you change to.

fd

 

[joesgt281]

I'm partial to the staggered look that I have on my 08 Shelby.
The stock GT500 wheels I have are 9.5" front and back. The stock tires are 285/40 and 255/45.
I currently have Nitto 305 x 40 x18 DR's on the back and stock on the front.
I realize this doesn't help you with your specific rims, but if you like the looks of these, they are getting very easy to find and cheap.

 

[Norm Peterson]

I am at 22K now on my 07 and the tires are on the wear bars.

That sounds unreasonably low for 400-ish treadwear tires. Is the wear even?

So I need to start looking for some new shoes. The size that I really want does not really exist. Right now from the factory it has 235 50 R18 with 18 x 8.5 rims. I want a 265 45 R18 which is only 0.48% different from stock. A 255 45 R18 is more common and is 0.81% different from stock.

Stop worrying about such minor differences in diameter. From new to wear-bar worn, you'll lose about 2% of diameter, and nobody ever even thinks about that.

FWIW, my "3-season" setup is 255/45's on 18 x 9.5 GT500 wheels on all four corners (I'm into hard cornering, not appearance). The original 235/50's and 18 x 8.5's go back on for the winter.


Norm

 

[FordDude]

I have done some more research on the net since I made my post here. I found a set of Continental Extreme Contact DW 275/45ZR18. What I like about these tires are the size, rim width range: 8.5 to 10, overall diameter: 27.7 and revs per mile: 750, traction AA and temperature A. Down side is the price: 227 from just tires, treadwear is fair at 340. I mention revs per mile because the factory shoes are 759 revs per mile and also overall diameter is .5 inch bigger.

fd

 

[Norm Peterson]

Used to be that a 340 treadwear tire was at the hard-compound, high-mileage end of the spectrum.

All of the tires that I've bought for the cars that are primarily driven by me since treadwear numbers were molded into the sidewalls have been in the 200 to 220 range. I've looked a bit higher on the treadwear scale for all-seasons for cars that my wife normally drives, but even those have to satisfy performance well ahead of tread life. My point is that about once per set of tires you'll need every bit of grip that they can give, at which time it will be a little late to be wishing you'd bought better grip instead of longer life.

I've also found that on average, I can get about 12,500 miles or a few more per 100 treadwear, driving pretty hard but keeping the inflation and the alignment in happy places.

There has been some recent talk about the age effect on tires, even if not mounted. So if you're only running up a few thousand miles a year, you'd probably age out a 500+ TW tire long before you'd wear it out.


Norm