Thread: New wheels, want some tire size advice

I get less than 20k out of my Portenza's but they stick like glue so I'm fine with that : ) I do go pretty agressive with my alignment specs too though, so factor that in as well.

IMO any tire rated for longevity (+50k miles) is way too hard and to me there is no compromise. You can do all you want to the suspension, but it's all where the rubber meets the road! So don't skimp out on the rubber! Hard long lasting tires will leave you unhappy in the traction dept., just saying. But it's relative to the style of driving as well. If it's just a milk getter than ok, lol, who am I to judge!

I guess the defining factor is just that it is my daily driver back and forth to work which is a long interstate drive. I really don't need a high performance tire at this moment with the car's use. I used to sell tires so I know a thing or two about longevity versus performance and it really is tough to find a tire that can do both well. The Cooper RS3A I was looking at looked good but only came with a 45 or 40k mile warranty which in reality may have been less. At that rate, I may have a decent tire but I'd be replacing it every year and a half to two years. The other thing I can't stand about tires is the ungodly mark up on the price. I really didn't want to order them on eBay because if there was an issue with one, any money saved on the initial buy could go up in smoke with return shipping and paying to mount and balance another. For now I chose a local retailer to buy from and I'll live with a mediocre tire that will get me back to work everyday. If this were my GTO needing the tires, you can bet Nexens would not be a name mentioned in the conversation. A 10 or 20k max summer performance tire will be no problem here. I still have a couple of things left to address on the car and then hopefully I can avoid putting any money into it for a little bit.

Tires are mounted and balanced. Ford dealer did a good job. Came home and put them on the car and went for a ride. No vibration or steering wheel shake at any speed, car feels solid. It feels very different for the better. Basically besides replacement suspension parts, the rear Addco 22mm bar, the front Dorman 33mm bar, the BMR trailing arms, the ZZP strut tower braces and the 245/45 tires have really woke this car up. Crack the wheel and she is going where you want it to quickly, no lag, no drama. My only disappointment with the car is the front springs... the car sits too high up front. The rear is fine. I need to address this soon. For right now I will live it. I am taking it back to the dealer at 3:00 today for the alignment. I created a photobucket account and will finally toss some pics up shortly. The car looks better, rides better and should have came with this from the factory instead of the puny 16" wheels on it. As an aside for future google searches, the 5x114.3 bolt pattern of the Mustang wheels works fine with the 5x115 pattern of the Grand Prix. I bought a pack of Dorman black lugnuts and used them instead of the stock GP lugnuts and covers. Spun them all on by hand and torqued them to 100 ft lbs. I do not foresee any issues with this .7mm difference. I will be putting 450+ miles a week on the car, all highway. If there is an issue, I will know it. I don't beat the $hit out of the car so I will not be able to attest to burnouts, drifting or any other fun stuff that could stress the studs and lugs.

Alignment done, all green and damn near perfect to stock specs. It is nice having a straight steering wheel and straight tracking car again. Steering and suspension is officially done until I get lowering springs for the front. Need to move back over to the stereo system and then find a left rear door and a trunk lid to mount my 03 LE spoiler on.