I have 16" rims on my car that came with 245/50/16 nittos
I want the fronts to be a little skinnier so there's less rolling resistance, however I also want the car to handle pretty good so I can take it autocrossing once in a while sort of a drag racing/road racing compromise...
my plan was to go with a 205/40/16 in the front with the 245/50/16 in the back to give it a little bit of an aggressive front rake...
My question is will this sidewall difference adversely affect the cars handling?
also... is it better to have a larger sidewall or smaller sidewall on the frontwhen drag racing (I know a larger sidewall is def better on the back)? if i need more sidewall for drag racing then id go with a 205/50/16 in the front instead of the 40 series... any thoughts or experiences would be greatly appreciated
ps please dont say "just run slicks at the track" i am fully aware that running skinnys and slicks for drag racing would be the best thing to do but my wallet cant afford 2 sets of rims and tires at this time... maybe on down the rd but not now

 

First, let me say I have no idea how it's going to handle, BUT here are a few things to consider. A 205/40-16 is going to have a significantly smaller contact patch than the stock 245/50-16. While it may feel more responsive since the sidewalls will be shorter and stiffer, you may ultimately have less grip just because there's less rubber on the road.

It's gonna depend a heck of a lot on the tire, too. A 205/40-16 Proxes T1-R might end up "handling" a lot better than an el cheapo Sears/Pep Boys 245.

 

A 205 is way too narrow to fit your 8" wheel. Stick with a 245. About the skinniest you could safely run would be a 225 & a tire skinny isn't going to help you mpg as much as they'll hurt your handling.

Here everybody is trying to wider & your the only one (except the drag racing guys for the track) trying to go narrower.....

 

And it's not just cornering ability you'd be sacrificing. Remember that the majority of the braking is done by the front wheels. A significantly smaller contact patch in the front is the last thing you want! On a drag car that's track-only, this isn't a big deal. But on a street/road-race car, you want good braking capability.

 

ok i gotcha, i was just trying to go fast at the drag strip and still be able to corner well, btw my car originally came with 215/65/r15 so i figured a good(not pepboys) 205/40/16 would be about the same tread width with less rolling resistance and better responsiveness, but now that you mention it i think i will go with the 225 for the braking power. if you went from 215/65/15s to 225/40/16s im pretty sure you would THINK it handled better lol . anyway... Is it better to have more sidewall or less on the front when DRAG RACING??? i know that i need alot of tread width and a little sidewall for autocrossing, but im trying to find a decent compromise, and i really dont think ill be winning any trophys any time soon so if there is a little performance difference between the 225 and the 245 up front, then id go with the 225 for less rolling resistance. also... Will there be any adverse affect from having a smaller sidewall up front?? thank you

 

I'm not a drag racer, but I'd guess that for drag racing, front sidewall height would make little difference. I know you say you're trying to compromise, but if you do what you're suggesting, I think your car will be compromised! If you hope to have any decent cornering ability, you don't want to go narrower. IMHO what you gain in decreased rolling resistance will be trivial compared to what you'll lose. By today's standards, even the 245/50/16s are considered narrow! You mentioned going from the 215 your car came with to 225s. That's only 10mm wider, and you probably wouldn't notice much improvement in cornering. Going from 225 to 245 is 20mm, nearly an inch, and that you'd notice in the seat of your pants when take a curve. Going from the original 215 to 245 would be a dramatic difference. I agree with Stephen. You should stick with the 245 tires. We're trying to tell you that you're putting way too much emphasis on rolling resistance, while not putting nearly enough on handling. If you do what you propose, you'll have a car that's only suited for going in a straight line. If dragging is all you plan to do, that's fine. But if you have any thoughts of taking a corner with any speed, you need to optimize the car more for handling and compromise a little on the drag performance. It's good that you're thinking through the details, but it sounds like maybe you're overthinking just a little.

 

Running that narrow of a tire would do nothing to your handling but make it worse... You have amazing driving roads up your way that you should be taking full advantage of... Wider is better my friend...

Side Note- How do you have a 5.7 LG4?????????

 

5.7 LG4 is the stock LG4 engine management (carb computer distributor) with a 5.7L longblock swapped in... so "5.7 LG4"

 

thanks for all the thoughts on tires guys i will take your recomendations and go with 245... but what about the sidewall? should it be uniform all the way around ? should i go with 40s in the back also? or 50s all around? and honestly ive been beatin the mess out of this thing on the roads around here every summer for 3 years, if penndot would get rid of all these potholes itd be much more enjoyable, but ive been doin it on 215/65/15s... so to me anything wider is gonna be an improvement, i figure if i can drive the 215s on the edge ill be alot more comfortable when i go wider lol

side note: maybe i was overthinking it

 

Short sidewalls + potholes + high speed = bent wheel

Just go slower or the potholes. There is more good road, than potholes (in most areas, unlike a 2 block stretch between me & my post Office)

 

i dont really plan on street driving too much anyway anymore trying to keep the miles off... but NEPA= potholes everywhere