17's on a 69/70 Mustang

[wantahertzdonut]

Anyone have a picture of a 1969/1970 Mustang with 17's on it? It's the size I'm going for but I want to make sure they don't look too big and gaudy before I order. Doesn't matter if it's a fastback, coupe, or convertible but a fastback would be preferable.

Thanks!

[HHStang]

do a search on Stangnet.com. A bunch of 69/70 guys posted their pics.

[CarlC]

http://www.vintagewheelworks.com/gallery17s.html

[DarkBuddha]

Check out some of these from the Mustangs NW show this summer:

http://img291.imageshack.us/gal.php?g=dsc000260um.jpg

[DarkBuddha]

BTW, here are a few more...

My car:



Also, check out some of the pics here (from my website): http://groups.msn.com/DBsMustang/othercoolmustangs.msnw

[4MuscleMachines]

BTW, here are a few more..
Also, check out some of the pics here (from my website): http://groups.msn.com/DBsMustang/othercoolmustangs.msnw

Nice collection of pics you have there! BTW, nice choice on wheels.

[wantahertzdonut]

BTW, here are a few more...

My car:

What size tire are you running and how much have you lowered your car?

And thanks to everyone else for the leads.

[MBD]

Anyone have a picture of a 1969/1970 Mustang with 17's on it? It's the size I'm going for but I want to make sure they don't look too big and gaudy before I order. Doesn't matter if it's a fastback, coupe, or convertible but a fastback would be preferable.

When it comes to tires and wheels, many of the Mustang guys are coming to the party after the punch bowl has been refilled three times.

Gaudy no, new Jags, Audis, Infinitis, BMWs...are coming from the factory with 19 and 20 inch rims. Not to get carried away, I personally think 18s are right for our cars or even 18s in the rear with 17s in the front if you want a little rake to the car.

The hot look for one group where I live is crappy cars with chrome 20 or 22s with a big sticker on the side of the car stating the rim diameter. Now that's gaudy.

[DarkBuddha]

What size tire are you running and how much have you lowered your car?

Glad you dig the pics... I'm still in the midst of resolving the final ride height on my Mach. In the pics it's lowered about 2.5" from stock in front, and 3" lower in the rear, but I didn't do any testing for interference. Anyway, it still doesn't look quite right to me, especially in the rear, because of the small sidewall height on the 245/45s, so I've been looking at going with 255/50s all the way around to increase it. Or maybe I'll just get 275/45s for the rear, which will give a nice footprint and sidewall, plus add a bit of rake back after lowering the rear.

[MBD]

Or maybe I'll just get 275/45s for the rear, which will give a nice footprint and sidewall, plus add a bit of rake back after lowering the rear.

Now you're talking!

[DarkBuddha]

When it comes to tires and wheels, many of the Mustang guys are coming to the party after the punch bowl has been refilled three times.

Gaudy no, new Jags, Audis, Infinitis, BMWs...are coming from the factory with 19 and 20 inch rims. Not to get carried away, I personally think 18s are right for our cars or even 18s in the rear with 17s in the front if you want a little rake to the car.

The hot look for one group where I live is crappy cars with chrome 20 or 22s with a big sticker on the side of the car stating the rim diameter. Now that's gaudy.

I think there is a balance to keep in choosing wheels sizes. I think 18"s are definitely the max for a tasteful size on pre-'71 Mustangs, and even then I think it's boarderline. The trick is to get a decent amount of sidewall on the wheel as well. This ain't so easy on Mustangs since the wheelwells are generally pretty small and won't accomodate large widths, and therefor can't get bigger sidewall height without going to a larger sidewall ratio, which can be problematic for larger diameter wheels.

I also think that some cars just don't have the right fender sculpting to make very large diameter wheels (18" and up) look quite right. Newer cars benefit from especially well sculpted wheelwells that embrace larger diameter wheels better. These newer cars have more rounded shape to the wheelwells with high fender lines and deep rocker and front/rear facias. Bigger wheels just "fit" better in that frame.

[wantahertzdonut]

I think there is a balance to keep in choosing wheels sizes. I think 18"s are definitely the max for a tasteful size on pre-'71 Mustangs, and even then I think it's boarderline. The trick is to get a decent amount of sidewall on the wheel as well. This ain't so easy on Mustangs since the wheelwells are generally pretty small and won't accomodate large widths, and therefor can't get bigger sidewall height without going to a larger sidewall ratio, which can be problematic for larger diameter wheels.

I also think that some cars just don't have the right fender sculpting to make very large diameter wheels (18" and up) look quite right. Newer cars benefit from especially well sculpted wheelwells that embrace larger diameter wheels better. These newer cars have more rounded shape to the wheelwells with high fender lines and deep rocker and front/rear facias. Bigger wheels just "fit" better in that frame.

Well put. However my taste is simply more toward tires that don't look like rubberbands. On a small car 19's start to resemble those ghetto hooptymobiles you see rolling around with lift kits to fit 22-26" rims. I don't like that look at all.

Another thing is 18's tend to be considerably more expensive for both the rims AND tires. Consider I like driving hard and doing the occational burnout, I'll take $200/tire over $300 a tire any day.

The biggest reason of all however, is I live in the rust belt. And up here we have really, really big potholes and they're everywhere. Little tires on big rims get bent around here, ALL the time. And considering they're more expensive, it's just not worth it. Unlike a lot of people, I drive the hell out of my car so this is a major issue.

I could go on for hours why I don't want 18's!

[kmcanally]

To a point the stance and ride height play into the asthetics of the large dia wheel/low profile combinations...they do not look good when there is a lot of space between the top of the tire and the fender. Also remember that the sidewall height is a function of the tire width (the aspect ratio), therefore a 295/35 tire will have a taller side wall than a 275/35. I recently changed the rears on my 68 coupe from a 275/40-17 to a 295/35-18 and the difference in sidewall is only about .25". Considering that the 69/70 cars have even bigger wheel wells you should be able to easily fit a 295 tire with the only mod being rolled/flattened return flanges on the fender lips. The only real wheel well space challenged Mustangs are the 65/66 models, all other models are just as roomy as a stock welled 1st gen Camaro.