Basic Rim / tire Question.

[JohnD1079]

Im pretty new here :ugh:, but What I dont get is why I see many wide rims like 9, 9.5, 10, etc. with thin tires like 225, 235, 245, etc.. It seems like you guys are trying to get away with the thinnest tire possible.

Why is that? BC its cheaper? So it can clear the fender wells? I dont get why you guys would put on such a small contact patch when you can put on such a bigger one.

On my honda alloys it was i think 15x6.5 and i wanted to put on 205, and was even gonna try 215.

Im just kinda confused here, especially since a bunch of guys have some expensive wheels, and with a fatter tire you can get a little more protection with wider tires.

[Brian]

its for DA LOOK

[louisdaboois]

once you get to the point of tucking lug nuts, you'll understand sir.

[got boost??]

wheel fitment. getting flush with least rubbing posible. most honda guys dont know what having flush wheels is. look in the wheel fitment whore thread and you will learn

[JohnD1079]

I dont want this to turn into a Honda bashing thread. Both honda and nissans are great cars.

I understand the flush part, but wouldnt you want to be able to get flush with the most amount of rubber?

[louisdaboois]

nah yo, when you have wider wheels and lower offsets, bigger tires are a no no

[Brian]

rim lip rubbin the fender lip.


POW!

[sxe]

I dont want this to turn into a Honda bashing thread. Both honda and nissans are great cars.

I understand the flush part, but wouldnt you want to be able to get flush with the most amount of rubber?

Thats very true, Nissans are great cars :D

but my 240 would definitely not look good with muddin' tires.

[nismo racer]

i agree with got boost, go look in the wheel fitment whore thread and then it will all make sense

[SHIFT_*grind*]

A lot of these guys drift and want the sidewalls to be as stiff as they can be. Stretched tires = less flex in the tire, and cleaner breakaway. And yeah, it's about the look as well.

For any car, you don't want the tire to be wider than the wheel it's on unless you like having a metric asston of sidewall flex every time you turn a corner. Or if you're drag racing.

[INeedNewTires]

wow i must say i'm suprized with the answers so far... thought most zilvians knew why the stretched tire origonated?

Well, a stretched tire slides easier than a bulging tire.... So for drifting, the stiffer the sidewall (i.e. more stretched) the less it is likely to distort to Grip the car so it will allow it to slide. Thats also why pro's use good or stickier compound but stretch the shit out of em. Most ametures with little power or a KA will try and find shitty junkyard tires cause they slide easier, but with pro-level drifting they want a good gripping-but stretched-tire in case they go over the limit so they can recover instead of hitting a wall...

[got boost??]

wow i must say i'm suprized with the answers so far... thought most zilvians knew why the stretched tire origonated?

Well, a stretched tire slides easier than a bulging tire.... So for drifting, the stiffer the sidewall (i.e. more stretched) the less it is likely to distort to Grip the car so it will allow it to slide. Thats also why pro's use good or stickier compound but stretch the shit out of em. Most ametures with little power or a KA will try and find shitty junkyard tires cause they slide easier, but with pro-level drifting they want a good gripping-but stretched-tire in case they go over the limit so they can recover instead of hitting a wall...

idk why i didnt mention that

[SHIFT_*grind*]

wow i must say i'm suprized with the answers so far... thought most zilvians knew why the stretched tire origonated?

I said that! :mad:

No one pays attention to me :(


edit: oh shit, 1000th post! finally.

[INeedNewTires]

I said that! :mad:

No one pays attention to me :(

Sorry bro didnt refresh the page before i typed my rant... you get 2 points as well mmmkay?

[JohnD1079]

So does it or dosent it have anything to do with the tire rubbing against the wheel well/fender.

I want motegi touge wheels. The 18 x 9 probably, But im not gonna drift my s14. What size would you guys get.

[derek_s13]

it DOES have to do with rubbing issues and superawesome fitment.
especially nowadays when good fitment is in every zilvia thread, so there's no excuses when you don't have it.

but it ALSO stiffens the sidewalls of your tires.

i think recently, it's the general style a stretch carries with it. dig it.

EDIT: if you're looking for stretch examples, there's an "extreme tire stretch thread"
http://www.zilvia.net/f/showthread.php?t=136032

and then (duh) the "wheel fitment whore" thread
http://www.zilvia.net/f/showthread.php?t=129865

[INeedNewTires]

So does it or dosent it have anything to do with the tire rubbing against the wheel well/fender.

That depends on the offset, and your fenders (roll, pull, etc)

I want motegi touge wheels. The 18 x 9 probably, But im not gonna drift my s14. What size would you guys get.

that depends on the offset, and your fenders......

What ARE you going to do with your S14? if your gonna show it off, your in the wrong forum, if your gonna daily it, then who cares, buy a cheap all season tire, if your gonna drag it, then you need the widest slicks you can fit....

in other words, the more info you give us, the more info you can expect to receive on this forum.

[racepar1]

For any car, you don't want the tire to be wider than the wheel it's on unless you like having a metric asston of sidewall flex every time you turn a corner. Or if you're drag racing.

I have said it before, sidewall flex is not necessarily bad for grip. Look at scca GT 2-4 cars. SUPER bulging RACE tires, and race tires have more sidewall flex to begin with. If the sidewall has the ability to flex then rather than breaking traction it will flex, which keeps the contact surface in contact and produces more grip. It does make the car feel more vague on initial turn in though, but on a race car the chasis is so responsive to begin with that the sidewall flex really just takes the edge off, which isn't necessarily bad.

Now on the the OP's question. There are a few reasons for tire stretch.

1: wheel fitment- stretched tires allow you to run lower offset wheels without rubbing on the fenders

2: sidewall flex- Stretched tires have less sidewall flex. For drifting this is a good thing because it makes the tire breakaway easier. This allows you to use stickier tires that are harder to break grip. Sticky tires are actually good for drifting because they make the rear end more stable, which allows higher angles. Beginning drifters try to reduce rear grip, advanced drifters try to increase rear grip.

3: looks- A lot of people think that super stretched tires look dope. I personally do not agree, in fact I STRONGLY disagree. If YOU think that stretch looks cool then you need to be aware of the downsides. It is much easier to blow a bead on an extremely stretched tire, which is dangerous if you push it too far (too thin of a tire on too wide of a wheel). Stretch is also BAD for grip as it makes the tire break grip easier. If you have any aspirations of doing track events and autocross events then DON'T runstretched tires. The bottom line is that you have to decide if you like it or not, not me.

[ant_s13]

as people have stated, it is horses for courses. i have reasonable stretch (235/40 on 10.5 rear & going 225/35 on 9.5 front) to clear my fenders, but i dont drift my car and if i do in future itll be pretty amateur so not very high speed. i went wide wheels cause i wanted to do something different/outrageous here in Perth (australia..) not so much for practicality/great grip.

these days tyres are quite good and dont necesarily need stretching to strengthen the sidewalls, plus it can make the rear more snappy and less grippy in some instances when drifting at high speeds. but it depends on your car setup and driving style. That said as people say, when you have a stretched sidewall, you can effectively match the shape of a guard/flared guard, to the shape of the tyre, hence allowing very tight clearance. you can also acheive a look where the tyre wall is flush with the arch, and the edge of the rim is protruding for very flush look.

as you say it can lead to rim damage and such but people that go that way probably would prefer hell flush rims with some gutter rash than sunken/not so flush rims in mint condition with balloony/straight edged chunky tyres.

[JohnD1079]

Yea, ive been looking in through those threads some more and get the purpose of it some more.

I personally think it looks like shit. But thats my opinion, andy ou can have yours. I go my s14 before i even knew what drifting was. So this was before everyone hopped on the bandwagon. I do not want to drift it.

Plans for it, is to just be my weekend/nice day car. Appearance, suspension and then supra swap will be coming in that order, but not anytime soon, hopefully after the 240 craze is out. Ive always digged the motegi touge rims. Still have to find out the offset and such to figure out what I'll need to make it fit.

[thejapino]

Ok, here's your cliffnotes:

1. reduces sidewall flex (better response/feel)
2. for fitment (wheel lip barely touches properly rolled/pulled fender, no rub)
3. smaller tires are a bit cheaper!

There you go, like others have said, go to the fitment thread and the extreme stretch thread.

[thejapino]

I got my s14 before i even knew what drifting was. So this was before everyone hopped on the bandwagon. I do not want to drift it.

You're 18 and you're telling us that you got the car before everyone hopped on the drifting bandwagon?

Did you pick up your car when you were like 9? HAHA

[JohnD1079]

You're 18 and you're telling us that you got the car before everyone hopped on the drifting bandwagon?

Did you pick up your car when you were like 9? HAHA

No, i was actually 15 almost 16 when i told the guy i would buy it. the year after i paid for it.

I bought and wanted it soley for the looks.

[Brian]

If I hear that people with KA engines want to use cheap used junkyard tires, I'm going to quit drifting.

Knock it off.

used junkyard tires are the WORST

[CrimsonRockett]

If I hear that people with KA engines want to use cheap used junkyard tires, I'm going to quit drifting.

Knock it off.

used junkyard tires are the WORST

Definitely.

If you can't afford to wrap some Feddies on 17's($50ish a tire), you're definitely poor.

Shit, 15's are even cheaper.

[Stayka]

wow i must say i'm suprized with the answers so far... thought most zilvians knew why the stretched tire origonated?

Well, a stretched tire slides easier than a bulging tire.... So for drifting, the stiffer the sidewall (i.e. more stretched) the less it is likely to distort to Grip the car so it will allow it to slide. Thats also why pro's use good or stickier compound but stretch the shit out of em. Most ametures with little power or a KA will try and find shitty junkyard tires cause they slide easier, but with pro-level drifting they want a good gripping-but stretched-tire in case they go over the limit so they can recover instead of hitting a wall...

I know I'm reviving a year old thread.

But I'm pretty sure stretching tires originated in Germany and originally had nothing to do with drifting or looks. It stemmed from legalities limiting tire width.

I was using the search function to see if I could find 205s on a 9.5" rim. LOL is anyone running this?

:ughug:

What's the thinnest I can go on a 8.5 and 9.5 rim?

[Phlip]

An argument was narrowly avoided in this thread's first existence, and I appreciate that having taken place.
However
Now, when one factors in an otherwise-unneeded 14+ month-old bump and a topic that normally goes down in flames, I am not expecting this to end pretty, so I am going to close this.