996 Tires

[scottiemac]

I have a 1999 C2 Cabriolet with Tiptronic. It has stock 17" wheels and stock size tires (205 fronts and 255 rears).

The rear tires are near the end of their life and I will be replacing them shortly

What is the largest width tire that I can safely fit on the stock rims and within the stock bodywork.

help and comments would be appreciated.

[whs]

I have a 1999 C2 Cabriolet with Tiptronic. It has stock 17" wheels and stock size tires (205 fronts and 255 rears).

The rear tires are near the end of their life and I will be replacing them shortly

What is the largest width tire that I can safely fit on the stock rims and within the stock bodywork.

help and comments would be appreciated.

The best question may be what are trying to accomplish? I just went through this on my 99 C2 Cab and decided to upgrade my wheels while replacing the tires. On the stock wheel (17x9) you aren't going to be able to put on a much wider tire, it will cost more and I don't think you will notice any performance benefits. The size you have is what Porsche recommends for your wheel size. If you really want a wider tire, you need to upgrade your wheels to a wider 18 inch wheel. Others may not agree, but this was the conclusion I drew from my research a few weeks ago. Hope this helps.

Will

[scottiemac]

I have a 1999 C2 Cabriolet with Tiptronic. It has stock 17" wheels and stock size tires (205 fronts and 255 rears).

The rear tires are near the end of their life and I will be replacing them shortly

What is the largest width tire that I can safely fit on the stock rims and within the stock bodywork.

help and comments would be appreciated.

The best question may be what are trying to accomplish? I just went through this on my 99 C2 Cab and decided to upgrade my wheels while replacing the tires. On the stock wheel (17x9) you aren't going to be able to put on a much wider tire, it will cost more and I don't think you will notice any performance benefits. The size you have is what Porsche recommends for your wheel size. If you really want a wider tire, you need to upgrade your wheels to a wider 18 inch wheel. Others may not agree, but this was the conclusion I drew from my research a few weeks ago. Hope this helps.

Will

Thanks Will. I guess the change is mostly for cosmetics on the rear and have heard that if you go to a larger rear it will likely increase understeer so I would also go to a larger front. Just wanted to see if anyone had experience with 235 fronts and a 275 rear on stock rims. I don't really want to go to the expense of new wheels.

Scott

[viper501]

While I have 18's, I did the same basic thing you are suggesting. The stock tire didn't fill up the rim and appeared undersized so I upped the fronts to 235's and the rears to 285's. Handles the same and looks better. Also provides some level of protection for the rim flange.

[whs]

While I have 18's, I did the same basic thing you are suggesting. The stock tire didn't fill up the rim and appeared undersized so I upped the fronts to 235's and the rears to 285's. Handles the same and looks better. Also provides some level of protection for the rim flange.

I guess the only differnece is the 235 - 285 tire package is a Porsche recommended tire package if you have the 18x10 rears. With the stock 17 inch wheels only being 9 inch wheels, you are more limited. Keep in mind even if you go to a 265 rear, you are only increasing the width of the tire by less than 1/2 inch. I went from 255 rears to 295 rears (just over 1 1/2 inches) and you can tell a difference, but it's not like holy cow difference. I think having the taller wheel makes a bigger difference than the wider tire. If you haven't, you might want to read the summer tire TSB. It has lots of good information. Just my 2 cents.

Will

[scottiemac]

While I have 18's, I did the same basic thing you are suggesting. The stock tire didn't fill up the rim and appeared undersized so I upped the fronts to 235's and the rears to 285's. Handles the same and looks better. Also provides some level of protection for the rim flange.

I guess the only differnece is the 235 - 285 tire package is a Porsche recommended tire package if you have the 18x10 rears. With the stock 17 inch wheels only being 9 inch wheels, you are more limited. Keep in mind even if you go to a 265 rear, you are only increasing the width of the tire by less than 1/2 inch. I went from 255 rears to 295 rears (just over 1 1/2 inches) and you can tell a difference, but it's not like holy cow difference. I think having the taller wheel makes a bigger difference than the wider tire. If you haven't, you might want to read the summer tire TSB. It has lots of good information. Just my 2 cents.

Will

Thanks for your comments guys. Much appreciated