I need to get a set of drag tires for the Trans Am. However I dont know what size of wheel to order!

I want a 15 x 9 or a 15 x 10, with a 26-inch tall tire with a 9.7 inch contact patch like the M/T Street Radial. However I dont know what size offset is required to mate it to a standard third-gen axle length.

Same thing with the front wheels: I'd like to find a lighweight wheel that I can fit over 1LE brakes and 12 inch rotors that is 3.5 or 4.5 inch wide. These are supposed to be my Hot Rod Magazine "Drag Week" tires. Thus, they need to be able to have enough road manners for 1500 miles of driving over five days, yet perform well on the track. My 55 pound 17 x 9.5 inch front wheels just dont cut it for sixty-footin'.

Anyone know what the magic formula is on wheels? I'm thinking about getting some M/T wheels or else the Weld Draglite series.

 

M/T Wheels are abosuletly awesome, but pricey.

a 15x10 with 5.5" of backspacing will fit GREAT. fit's the bulge of the tire just about fush with the top of the wheel well, but is still inside the fender.

any 15x3.5 or 15x4 front wheel will fit over those brakes with no problems. fourth gen guys are running them no problem. and last i knew, the small front wheels only came in one backspacing. and they fit fine over ls1 brakes.

you'll be happy with both brands...though Weld is much nicer on the wallet.

 

Thanks for the info, Matt!

I just saw another thread that mentions a 15 x 8.5 inch with 4.5 to 5.5 inches of backspace as an alternative, but I do like the idea of a ten-inch wheel as long as I dont have to roll the fenders.

Now that I have a better clutch, a better driveshaft, and a Moser 12 bolt for 2006, I am hoping to make use of the engine's power for some hard hooking launches. I might even hook up the bottle this year if everything is working good!