17x9 ET 55 used on front of Narrow Body 996?

[pjalexandre]

Hi,

Has anybody tried using the standard 17" rear wheels on the front of the narrow body 996? I was thinking of running 17X9's all around for the track not only for a better footprint upfront but also for being able to rotate tires front to back to maximize the life of the R compounds.

Looking for observations on fittment on this approach.

Thanks much,

-Paul

[lrapoport]

Can a 17x9 ET55 fit the front of a 996? Yes. I run 18x9.0" ET50 with 235/40's in front for race wheels. Would you want to run 17x9.0" wheels on all 4 corners? Not if you want the car to drive correctly or be competitive. You will have way too much grip in the front and way too little in the back. The car will drive very unbalanced. Remember that 60% of our weight is on the rear wheels. On a car like an M3 with a 50/50 weight distribution, this would work. I run 18x11.0" with 295/30's on the rear for reference.