ok guys i've been thinking about something...i've noticed on most cars that the rims with an offset (deeper rims) are on the rear and the rims with no offset are in the front. then i looked at my GTA. for some reason, GM put the deeper rims on the front and the zero offset in the rear. does anyone have a clue why they did this? is this bad? i was thinking, if it's possible, to just switch the rear tires to the front and the front tires to the rear. can this be done? do i need spacers?

 

I believe they have different off sets to them is so they can fit a 8 inch rim and clear the steering componits, or something ike that. As for switching them from front to rear it can't be done.

 

when i bought my GTA someone had rotated the left side wheels. so i had the rear right wheel on the front right...this was bad. the steering rubbed the lip of the rim on the inside...made a nice big groove in my honey combs . i switched them and it was fine. DONT ROTATE THE WHEELS!

oh and also...stock GTA wheels are 245's. doesnt 245mm = 9.5 inches?

 

yes, 245mm does work out to be 9.8 inches, but the rims aren't that wide so there must be something that you aren't accounting for. The rims are 8".

I figured this out because 300mm = 12 inches. Hence, 25mm per inch. 245mm / 25 = 9.8inch.

GTA rims are 16x8". Don't forget that the stock 245mm tires on GTA rims stick out a bit beyond the lip of the rim.

 

25.4mm per inch actually.

245mm would refer to the section width, which is not the tread width. Tread width is a different measurement.

 

Fine, be that way.:lala:

Didn't know there were 304.8mm per 12"

 

i always just use 2.5cm per inch...easier that way if i dont have a calculator

 

Seriously, do some searches. This is something you can find more information on than you would ever want.

But to give it a quick overview:

Front 16x8 thirdgen rims have a 0mm offset - as in the mounting surface of the rim is exactly in the middle of the wheel. Rears have a 12mm or 14mm (I think.... been a while since I needed to know) offset - as in the mounting surface is moved out from the middle towards the outside of the wheel. This brings the wheel in tighter to the car when mounted. There are many things at play here like rear axle width and front track width of the suspension. The rims are not designed to be interchangable front to rear and if you have directional tires, you are screwed - no rotating. You can run a front wheel on the rear but it will just make the tire stick out farther and make the car look quite gay.