New Skins

big-daddy · 09-18-2006, 08:46 AM

I finally replaced all four tires with the Goodrich KDW 2. Since I want to keep the rake stock and not lower the front due to the 3G spoiler, I went with 295 / 35 19 in the front and 295 / 45 20 in the rear. The fronts are the same height (27") as the stock Goodyears, but 2 ' wider, really filling up the fenders. The rears are about an inch taller than stock. They look & feel great and I like having the rim protector bead too. The rears have been on for a couple of months, but just installed the fronts, the driving feel improvement is very noticeable.

XSELER8 · 09-18-2006, 09:15 AM

BFG's - Good choice. I have KDW's on my Mustang. I'd put them on my SSR.

RoadsterJim · 09-18-2006, 10:02 AM

Very good lookin tires.

Focks · 09-18-2006, 11:20 AM

I am getting real close to having new tires put on my twuck, and I love the way they look. Thanks for the pictures. However, next time, could you please warn us that the middle picture was taken n direct sunlight? The glare off of the rims is blinding.

Ricochet · 09-18-2006, 11:31 AM

Aprox. Cost???

big-daddy · 09-18-2006, 11:35 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ricochet

Aprox. Cost???

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/Sizes....ce+T%2FA+KDW+2

Take your pick.

DakotaDocMartin · 09-18-2006, 12:11 PM

I see that the rears are rated for a max. load of 2601 lbs. which is better than the OEM tires. Also, with the V and Y ratings you can go much faster. Are you going to have your limiter reprogrammed to the higher tire ratings? I would. 126mph isn't fast enough for me. 149mph would be nicer.

I saved those into my TireRack Wish List so they are ready to order when I need tires. (I only have 9K on the original tires)

FlashBack · 09-18-2006, 01:06 PM

I have had the KDW2 on for awhile now. Its a remarkable improvement in handling wet and dry and much better steering feedback. I got the smaller smaller front tire, but next time I will go with the 295/35 like you did. I wasn't sure if they woul rub or not and was also concerned thet the wider tire in fron might tend to trammel on certain surfaces. Apparantly not.
Don't forget to get your computer reprogramed for the larger rear or you will be putting excess miles on your odometer and tend to underestimate your speed. The only other downside is that you lose a little rear final gearing. I am not sure if you will notice that tho. If you do, that can be easily more than comphensated for with the 4.10 gears.
Enjoy the new handling!

Purple Penelope · 09-18-2006, 02:21 PM

6.0...Have the same tires as you. The indicated speed and the "actual" speed is about 3 mph different. So when you indicated speed is 70 mph....your going 73.

Just an FYI...

P/P

Peace

FlashBack · 09-18-2006, 04:30 PM

Thanks p/p. I had mine fixed when I did my gears. You are right tho its about 4 to 5%. And I guess that you'll end up with about 5% less odometer miles, which is a good thing

Alex05SSR · 09-18-2006, 08:09 PM

big-daddy:

What I'm going to say is strictly theoretical, but "on paper", the P295/35R19 tire you bought has an uncompressed O.D. of 27.13" with a side wall height of 4.065". The stock OEM Goodyear P255/45R19 has an uncompressed O.D. of 28.04" with a side wall height of 4.518". Thus, the stock tire is 0.91" greater in O.D. than the one you bought, again in theory. What you are is 3.3% undersized.

What CONCERNS me is that you are using a front tire width that is WAY wider than most all tire vendors would recommend for the 8" stock OEM front wheel. In fact, when I was shopping for my custom 20"/22" wheels and tires, most all of the custom chrome 22" wheels were 9-1/2" wide. The tire vendors DID NOT recommend a P295 width tire for a 9-1/2" wide rim, and you're talking an even narrower 8" rim. Thus, I went with a P285 width tire, which is what ALL of them told me was the maximum width that I should go with on a 9-1/2" wide wheel. The P295 tire is 11.614" wide, almost 11-5/8". That is 3-5/8" wider than your front wheel. Remember that the OEM stock rear wheels are 10" wide with the same P295 width tires we are talking about. I am concerned FOR YOU, that you could actually roll a tire off of the rim during extremely hard cornering. But, that's just my $0.02, as well as the $0.02 of a lot of folks who are in the business to know and advise us properly.

As far as the P295/45R20 tire for the rear that you bought, it has an uncompressed O.D. of 30.45" with a side wall height of 5.226". Compare this to the OEM stock Goodyear P295/40R20 which has an uncompressed O.D. of 29.29" with a side wall height of 4.646". Thus, you are almost 4% oversized. The tire vendors will tell you that it's best to stay around 3% maximum oversize or undersize. Here again, it's your call.

Filling up the fender wells is indeed cool, but your safety is the big issue. I would just be careful. Good luck with them.

Alex

FlashBack · 09-19-2006, 01:03 AM

Alex I agree with you. I had forgot the reason why I didn't get the 295 fronts a few months ago. I was a little concerned about the clearance and trammeling issue, but it was the narrow rim that led me to my final decision. This is not a criticisim, Big Daddy, they look great, but definately could be a safety issue. This is well beyond the manufacturers reccomendation, of 10-11.5" rims for this tire and most installers would refuse to put them on due to liability issues. The rears , other than the speedo/odo error are not a safety issue. They look great, and hook up really well.

big-daddy · 09-19-2006, 08:15 PM

for the feedback!
I understand my front wheels to 9", not 8", measured them. I don't drive mine every day, but I don't expect to have the tire break lose from the wheels, they look like a rather good fit to my eye.