about to buy some new front tires on my Z and was thinking about going with the same size as the rear which is 245 45 18. First question, can they be rotated front to rear, and will the same size tire front to rear cause a problem with the tcs?
Thanks in advance !

 

Do you have a staggered set of rims ? Are the rims you currently have same size front and rear ? many tires are directional, so you have to keep them on the same side of the car. If you are running stock wheels I'd just get the same size. There's a lot of variables in choosing tires. I have no 350z experience, but many guys run staggered sets, with wider rims and wheels on the rear, if done properly you can get a really nice look with the wheel wells filled up with all the rubber you can squeeze in there.

 

yes the rims are the same size 18x8. I also noticed that the old tires seemed to be worn more on the inside , is this a common problem on z's or just a simple alignment problem?

 

Most likely an alignment issue, you might be out of adjustment or possibly a worn bushing is allowing you to go out of spec. A good alignment shop should be able to tell you which it is. if your tires are uni-directional, then the obvious call would be go same tire all around, I believe it's normal rotational practice to go opposite corners, like moving the drivers rear tire to the passenger front. Depending on your driving habits and the expense of the tires, it might benefit you to rotate tires on a regular basis, to get the maximum out of them. 17's 18's and larger Tires can be very expensive, so you really want to get every last ounce of safe rubber off them before you get new ones.

 

I hope they can be rotated front to rear. I owned a g-35 coupe before the Z, with the 19 inch rays, which were staggered, and loved the car, but the tires didn't last very long at all , got expensive buying tires constantly. Plus I wanted a convertible, so I made the trade. Gonna go with the sumitomo htrIII 's. Anybody had any experience with those?

 

Well ordered new tires and after much, much, thinking and deliberation I decided to go back with the factory size tires, 225 45 18 . Not that much difference between it and the 245 s and didn't want to take a chance and screw up the tcs or cause problems. Got them at tire rack for 108 each plus shipping, not bad !
Thanks for your help!!

 

Ya, your probably doing the best think sticking with stock sizes front and rear, 245's might have cleared in front, but its hard to say, I;m sure someone has figured out the largest safe combo to go on front. Good price too, I was going to suggest Tirerack, I use the site a lot to shop for tire's, yet to buy any from them. Just need to find a local installer, which I think they have a way of suggesting / recommending local people. The rears on my z31 cost me $ 335 installed buying them at a local tire shop, when I looked up online, found them for less than $70 each, so buying tires at a tire shop is way over priced for what little service you really get.... free flat repairs, wow not really free when you do the math.

 

Yeah, I have used tire rack a couple times along with discount tire, which actually has a store fairly close to me but they didn't carry the sumitomo tires that I wanted. Have gotten very quick service from tire rack , usually 2 days and they are here. Then carry them to a local tire shop and pay them a fee (more than normal I'm sure cause I didn't buy the tires from them, but that's ok) to mount and balance them.
Thanks for your help!

 

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