[2SS Capt]

Originally Posted by whitelt1

I see. The extra traction makes sense in dry conditions, but wouldn't I be sacrificing wet traction going with a 285 square set up instead of a 285 rear and something less in the front? It is an interesting setup nonetheless and it would definitely be great to be able to rotate my tires so I don't have to worry too much about uneven wear.

Like others said, your choice of tire will play a much bigger factor in wet traction than tire width, the tread pattern is what will do the water displacement...

[whitelt1]

Originally Posted by 2SS Capt

Like others said, your choice of tire will play a much bigger factor in wet traction than tire width, the tread pattern is what will do the water displacement...

Ah okay. Excuse my previous skepticism. Now only problem I face now is finding good wheels. I have the current OEM 5 spoke wheels in black (as previously stated 245 all around currently 20x8.5) and I love the look of the wheels but I don't see those exact ones in that size (285 all around 20x10).

Anyone have suggestions for wheels that would best match?

[BatMobileLT1]

Originally Posted by whitelt1

Ah okay. Excuse my previous skepticism. Now only problem I face now is finding good wheels. I have the current OEM 5 spoke wheels in black (as previously stated 245 all around currently 20x8.5) and I love the look of the wheels but I don't see those exact ones in that size (285 all around 20x10).

Anyone have suggestions for wheels that would best match?

The SS 1LE front wheel (20 x 10) would work well and look great if you go with 285 square setup.

For square vs staggered, in case you are interested in more info here was my post on that:

Originally Posted by BatMobileLT1

I went through exactly the same desire to get wider tires on my LT1 and also would have preferred to stay with a square setup for tire rotations.

However, when I did some google research it seems there are some pretty good reasons why it makes sense to have wider tires in the rear on the V8 Camaros (hence why all SS and above models are staggered) to:
1) Rear tires need wider to have more grip to put the power down on launch as you noted
2) There are some advantages in steering,.. to not make front's wider than needed
3) Having the fronts narrower biases car for some understeer - easier to control than oversteer

So with that and figuring that going w/TireRack and Chevy Camaro recommended sizes was a good thing, I decided can't go wrong with upgrading to go with the SS front & rear wheel sizes and staggered tire sizes (245/40/20 + 275/35/20) and just deal with the cost of more rear tire replacements. I've been very happy with this upgrade so far - feels great to know you have that extra width on the rear tires especially for 1st gear launches. And it also saved me some money to only have to get wider rear wheels.

I later even saw a post on another camaro6 thread that Camaro engineering said that they tested various tire size combinations and found staggered was the fastest around a race track before they selected it. So it was nice to know the staggered OEM sizes may not just be to dumb it down to keep it safer at the limit...
Hope that is helpful input whichever way you decide to go!

Both choices are fine w/plus and minuses, just pick the one that works best for you.

[CalgaryZL1]

If you’re not concerned about rotation, I would stay with stock in the front and go as fat as possible in the back because this ain’t no front wheel drive and steering handling is most important in my opinion

[whitelt1]

I've heard tire rubbing is an issue to be concerned about when it comes to bigger wheels and tires. I've heard many bringing up being an issue specifically with cars with magnetic ride control which the LT1 does not have. Is this something for me to worry about? Anyone know the truth to this?

[arpad_m]

Originally Posted by whitelt1

I've heard tire rubbing is an issue to be concerned about when it comes to bigger wheels and tires. I've heard many bringing up being an issue specifically with cars with magnetic ride control which the LT1 does not have. Is this something for me to worry about? Anyone know the truth to this?

Of course there are limits to how far you can go, but if you check out all standard Camaro wheel/tire sizes and offsets, those are definitely safe. You could "stretch" even a little bit further, but with all due respect, the power of an LT1 does not really justify going beyond what was good enough for a stock ZL1 or ZL1 1LE. Your chassis is exactly the same as everyone else's, and you share the suspension with non-MRC SS cars.

See this excellent page for sizing reference and hints: https://www.wheel-size.com/size/chevrolet/camaro/2023/

[BatMobileLT1]

It sounds like you want wider rear wheels/tires with minimal impact/changes/worry.
If so, its a very easy choice - just keep your front wheels and 245 tire size and get the wider SS 9.5" wheels and SS rear 275/35/20 tire size that is almost exactly same tire diameter as the 245/4020.
And upgrade the tires to on of the top two high performance summers or high performance all-seasons and you will have great traction/setup.
This is what I went with and works great!
If yours is a daily driver, I don't think you really need to go wider (where you will have somewhat larger changes in overall tire diameters) unless you want it for looks.

[whitelt1]

Originally Posted by BatMobileLT1

It sounds like you want wider rear wheels/tires with minimal impact/changes/worry.
If so, its a very easy choice - just keep your front wheels and 245 tire size and get the wider SS 9.5" wheels and SS rear 275/35/20 tire size that is almost exactly same tire diameter as the 245/4020.
And upgrade the tires to on of the top two high performance summers or high performance all-seasons and you will have great traction/setup.
This is what I went with and works great!
If yours is a daily driver, I don't think you really need to go wider (where you will have somewhat larger changes in overall tire diameters) unless you want it for looks.

You're right as it is my daily driver. I'm going to have to find good wheels because I cannot just buy used SS wheels as my local tire shop that I trust will not install anything unless they are brand new for liability reasons.

[BatMobileLT1]

Originally Posted by whitelt1

You're right as it is my daily driver. I'm going to have to find good wheels because I cannot just buy used SS wheels as my local tire shop that I trust will not install anything unless they are brand new for liability reasons.

I was similarly not sure I wanted used ones, https://midwestwheelandtire.com/
has good selection of OEM wheels - search 2021 for full list.

[Msquared]

For someone living in South FL, there is absolutely no good reason to go with any all-season, including the EC DWS. The best option on cars like ours is a good "three-season" tire like the Continental ExtremeContact Sport 02 or the Michelin Pilot Sport 4S. Both of these will be vastly better on any dry road, and they area also faster than their all-season counterparts on wet roads. That is, they have more grip in the wet than any all-season ever thought of having. They are so good in the wet that many autocrossers and track drivers use them as rain tires where street tires are required by the rules. The only situation where all-seasons are a better option is in very cold (like in the mid/low 20s) and ice/snow, and this will obviously never be an issue in S FL.

[Msquared]

Originally Posted by whitelt1

You're right as it is my daily driver. I'm going to have to find good wheels because I cannot just buy used SS wheels as my local tire shop that I trust will not install anything unless they are brand new for liability reasons.

So they'll happily sell and install tires on someone's car that comes in on OE wheels that are obviously used (because the car was driven there), but they won't mount other used OE wheels on the same car? You need a better tire shop!

[whitelt1]

Originally Posted by Msquared

So they'll happily sell and install tires on someone's car that comes in on OE wheels that are obviously used (because the car was driven there), but they won't mount other used OE wheels on the same car? You need a better tire shop!

Yes, that's 100% correct. They got bought out by another company a year ago and the company that bought them out made these policies as well as no longer accepting deliveries directly from tire rack. Though the same people still work there and they have built a good reputation due to their care and quality of work. It's hard to just to find another one that replaces them.

[whitelt1]

Originally Posted by Msquared

For someone living in South FL, there is absolutely no good reason to go with any all-season, including the EC DWS. The best option on cars like ours is a good "three-season" tire like the Continental ExtremeContact Sport 02 or the Michelin Pilot Sport 4S. Both of these will be vastly better on any dry road, and they area also faster than their all-season counterparts on wet roads. That is, they have more grip in the wet than any all-season ever thought of having. They are so good in the wet that many autocrossers and track drivers use them as rain tires where street tires are required by the rules. The only situation where all-seasons are a better option is in very cold (like in the mid/low 20s) and ice/snow, and this will obviously never be an issue in S FL.

I prefer all seasons because they have better tread wear. I don't need the best performing tire ever because I don't plan on tracking (nor can I when many tracks ban convertibles without aftermarket rollbars). Technically it is not recommended to run summer tires below 40F which we do rarely get to a couple times a year during a cold front (not that temps of 35F are gonna be catastrophic for the tire, but I thought worthy of pointy out)



I understand that summer tires will outperform all seasons in many ways, but I like to stick with all seasons for the better tread wear ratings. I also know people driving sports cars here in S. Florida swapping their summer tires for all seasons after their summer tires wear out enough.

[BatMobileLT1]

Originally Posted by whitelt1

Yes, that's 100% correct. They got bought out by another company a year ago and the company that bought them out made these policies as well as no longer accepting deliveries directly from tire rack. Though the same people still work there and they have built a good reputation due to their care and quality of work. It's hard to just to find another one that replaces them.

I don't think it should be that hard - maybe just try your dealer' service department?
My dealer installed my 4 DWS06+tires including onto the two on the new OEM 9.5" rims from midwestwheelandtire.com but I doubt they would have noticed or cared if I they were SS OEM rear wheel takeoffs I bought from another owner instead.