Finally they arrived, well... three of the four did and FedEx still has one in Memphis TN (you have it Jeff? ;-) ). Anywho, will wait to receive the fourth before mounting, but wanted to share a few pics. Decided on the Kinesis K27 17-inch with 8 front and 9 for rear (versus stock 16-inch 7/8). These rims are durable, light weight, and really support the outside more than the typical 5-star. Frankly, did not expect them to look as good as they do. Wanted FUNCTIONALITY over bling factor. Bling means nothing on the track or for performance. The rubber is Mich Pilot PS2 and looks VERY impressive. Basically solid rubber but three grooves, like F1 (sorta). Once the other rim comes will post pics of them mounted. Also, the Kinesis center caps will be replaced by special enamel Ferrari logos (unlike the plastic stock crap). Enjoy the pics
Hey Steve, those will look great!! Cannot wait to see a picture once mounted. Huh huh, he said mounted.
Ok, was impatient and mounted the rears. They look VERY different than the previous rims. Frankly, they seem, well, kinda ugly. With these new rims i have about a full inch of space for brake mods, about an inch of extra rubber under me PER SIDE, and GUESS the handling will be a bit stiffer (but can easily adjust my non-stock tweak shocks accordingly). Also, the tires are now flush with the body and not inset. It is visually very different and need time for it to grow on me. If she handles as i hope she does (heh heh) PIC 1 is a side by side but it really is not fair as the old tire/rim is closer to the camera and leads you to believe it is bigger. In fact it is a 225/50/R16 versus the new 255/40/R17 so there is about 0.1 inch or so difference (see PIC 3 for reference) PIC 2 is a rear view to see how far out she is. Look at all that rubber under me with these 9-inch rims PIC 3 shows graph of tire size difference PIC 4 shows the inner shock clearance and seems there will be no problems with rubbing in ANY direction. FYI weight difference is about 43 lbs for old rims/tires versus 44.5 or so for the new ones according to my scale here. Please keep in mind the rim gained an extra inch and i gained an extra inch of rubber under me. Not too shabby a trade off for the added 1.5 lbs of weight.
No spacers needed for rear and i believe they made them so no spacers for front either. This is the good thing about 'custom' rims
I don't mean to disagree with you Steve, but those new rims blow your old rims away! They look much, much better in my humble opinion. Enjoy the new package, and great choice on tires. Best, Pino
Pino, Many thanks, i guess the change is, well... change. May take me a while to get more accustom to the new look. Fell in love with this design when i saw New England cool dude Dan and his 360CS. As for the rubber, should EASILY blow away the Kumho. The old 16-inch rims will get Blizzak or the like for winter/snow driving.
That is great! I must admit you are a braver soul than I, but I can't think of a better way to shake off the winter blues than that.
Thank you my friend. It is change so please give me time. Perhaps once i can DRIVE the car (Sept 25 as i am leaving for Milan/Maranello/Venice) that will make me happy. This new setup means another 50+ hours of testing and tweaking as she was dialed in for the previous setup. Maybe my deep soul is trying to KEEP me from driving for the moment as i have no drivers license until i get back from Milan (long story, a short 15 day 'in court' driving suspension). i WANT TO DRIVE HER SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO BAD!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Late at night in my sleep she talks to me. "Drive me Steve. Drive me long and hard. Make me all hot." Oh, wait, that was my girlfriend ;-) Seriously, many thanks. Yes, i bet it will take only a drive to love the new setup. Nearly four more inches of rubber under me, and Mich PS2 at that! Maxed out at about 0.85 skid G's previously and hope to get over 0.92 with this new setup. If she can hit 0.95 G skid before letting go i will be in heaven! Keep in mind the suspension IS NOT stock Below are the rims i fell in love with on the 360CS.
Steven - Once you're all done, let's get a close-up with the enamel center caps. I'm thinking of doing some wheel work & replacing my plastic center caps next time I change tires (next year or so), and I'm curious to see how they look. Also, where are you locating the center caps, and about how much? I've seen some advertised in the Prancing Horse newsletter for ~ $400 / set, but don't yet know how they look or whether that's a decent price. Thanks. Looking forward to more pictures. Ken
Steve- your are so busted..you have been scoping out F50's notice the wheels ! Very similar, Are your new wheels growing more on you yet ? Image Unavailable, Please Login
Ken, Will take pics of centers. They were $85 each and should be LEAGUES better then the plastic junk Ferrari uses. i say JUNK because i replaced the centers on the 16-inch Etiole rims and after just a year they look like crap. Some examples of the Kinesis center cap are at http://www.kinesismotorsport.com/ferrari2.htm .
Ok, now with all of them mounted i love them. Just seemed soooo weird with the rears being the new design and the front rims/tires being the old. Kinesis deserves a HUGE kudos as they fit perfectly. i DO NOT mean kind of fit, i do not mean fit pretty good. i DO MEAN perfect as in i turn the steering wheel in full in all directions and it is all perfect. The way the rims fill the tire well is uniform front and rear and is perfect (and as a professional high-end audio reviewer/photojournalist it is VERY RARE i use the 'P' word). As for weight on the new front rims/tires versus the old ones, it was a crapshoot and virtually even. So i gained a full inch of rim diameter and full inch of tread with virtually zero weight gain(!). Enjoy the pics
I didn't notice the front tire size you have listed. What is it? Also, what are the wheel offsets? Can you get shots that show the relationship between the tire edge and the fenders (top, primarily) better? Inquiring minds want to know! Thanks and "enjoythewheels"! LOL
Steven, If you are going to get rid of your old wheels/tires I am interested for my 85 Mondial Cab. I still have metrics. Mike
Don, Auraraptor, and Mike, Tire size front is 225/45/R17 (replaced the old 205/55/R16). Pictures from the top appear at the bottom of this post. It is 'perfect' and is covered when the tires are straight. During turns the rubber will peek out accordingly. Wheel offset is +13 for front and rear. Don, as stated before enamel prancing horse center caps have been ordered and will be here when i get back from Milan/Maranello/Venice This is LEAGUES BETTER than a sticker or the plastic crap Ferrari hocks off to the unsuspecting that go bad within a year or so. Mike, as stated in this thread the old rims will get winter tires (Blizzak or the like) for snow/winter driving.