18's on my satellite

[macdrekc]

Hello everyone, I have a question about what offsets are working for people on their B's. I cant seem to find a definitive answer on the proper offset for a full set of 18's either standard or staggered fitment. Im looking at 18x9 all the way around but would rather go with 18x8 front and 18x9.5 or 10 in the rear. with a 265 front and 295 rear roughly... any suggestions on what et i should be looking for? any help would be greatly appreciated. My old Sat needs alot of love and some new shoes!

 

[FatJack]

Would like to know this also. I have heard as much as 5.5 inside offset. 4.5 seems more common though.

 

[macdrekc]

Is that for front, rear, both? I know that offset changes depending on the rim width so if you run 8 up front and 10 in the rear you wont necessarily be able to use the same backspace. Im still working to understand backspace, all I have dealt with is offset.

 

[macdrekc]

Most rim manufacturers measure in offset these days. and after looking at conversion charts for a 10in wheel with a 4.5 or 5.5 backspace it would have an offset of -26 to 0...kinda hard to find rims with those offsets. My 240sx has 18x9.5 +25 in the rear and they are pretty deep dish....Unless Im doing this wrong (completely possible) -26 let alone 0 offset would be ridiculous

 

[Jonnyuma]

Straight edge, plumb-bob, tape measure, and a cruddy old jacket to keep you warm while you roll around on the floor taking measurements.
Don't guess. Don't take other people's word for it. Asking around is fine, it can give you a basic idea of what you're looking for. But with the sizes you're looking at you need to be exact. 18s are freakin' expensive, rarely returnable, and look horrible if not fit perfectly.
I spent several hours measuring for my rim/tire combo, and I'm only using 15"s & 16"s. When you get done measuring, order your combo and mount em....it'll look like they were tailor-made for your car...because they WERE. Also figure in a decent sidewall height. You may be running a different aspect ratio front to rear because of the differences in width.
Best of luck.

 

[macdrekc]

Thanks for the help Jonny, I was really just tryin to see what other people were running, Cant take measurements right now because the Army has me in California for training support and my Sat is back in Georgia. will definitely be taking measurements when i get home and post what I find, and what ends up going on it.

 

[coloradodave]

Check out: tirerack.com Their site will answer all your questions about back spacing, offset, etc. Thanks for your service, soldier.

 

[macdrekc]

Thanks for the support Dave, I mean that from the bottom of my heart. I love being a soldier as much as I love cars. Tirerack is usually where I start when I'm looking for new rims but their "what fits" is geared to what fits easily. I spent a couple hours reading about backspacing and how it relates to offset and have it pretty much figured out, google is the universal tool. I did run across this though. Seems like the best bet to get a perfect fitment.

http://tunertools.com/proddetail.asp?prod=PCY-01201

 

[67 B-body]

You probably wont find much information regarding "what others have found" when speeking of 18" plus wheels on an old muscle car. Most of us would'nt dream of doing that..... Now if you ask what 15" wheel were using,,,,, that will give you pages of responces... It's just a classic muscle car thing, and those big wheel low profile sidewall combos are meant to be on something else,,,, anything else,,,, just not a classic Muscle Car "Mopar".
Anyhow, if it's your decision to put those big wheels on, you'll have to realy measure closely to determin what will fit! Wheel houses taper towards the center making them more narrow towards the top, and you have to watch backspacing so you don't wind up with the sidewall sticking into your leaf springs. Also when asking, you might want to include the year of your car. My Satellite "1967" wont fit the same wheel as a later 60's or 70's Satellite. Good luck!!

 

[macdrekc]

I own a 70 Satellite and I'm really not into the "donk" if that's what your thinking. But these cars look great with 18's (imo) which I know "old heads" usually don"t like (my dad said the same thing). None of those 3 spoke junkers or flashy walmart rim garbage. I really like the pro-touring look, the stance of these cars with some well chosen 18's is just awesome. Im looking more at 5 or 10 spokers or some meshies, lightweight and well built not the garbage they sell at most rim shops these days. Everything I plan for this car is to accentuate the muscle look, not be atrocious or obnoxious. I see too many muscle cars go to waste to even dream of defiling my own. Different strokes for different folks, but like you I have a deep love of classic mopars.

 

[Highcountry]

There are a lot of 'placebo' wheels out there to watch for! Intended for trailer and show, but not for driving at any speed. They are not DOT approved and are dangerous to operate in normal driving conditions.