Reply to "oversize wheels"

Although it took a long time for it to happen, I have grown accustomed to the ultra-low profile tire/wheel packages on sports cars (they still look ridiculous to me on sedans, SUVs & trucks). My tastes have changed to the point that the 17" tire/wheel combination on my Pantera looks clunky & fat to me.

When I tell other Pantera owners that I would like to upgrade my Pantera to an 18" front / 19" rear tire & wheel package nobody has agreed with my decision.

17" wheel / tire packages have been around since the late 1980s. All of your current sports cars are running wheels 18" and up. The Viper & 'Vette are running the 18" front/19" rear combination I propose for my Pantera. The Saleen S7 & Porsche Carrera GT are running a 19" front/20" rear combination. If memory serves me, the Ferrari Enzo has 19" wheels at all 4 corners. Other Porsche models are equipped with 18" all around or 18"/19" packages.

I think it is fine if somebody's tastes favor the 17" wheel/tire packages (or even the oem 15" wheels), but in terms of leading edge tire performance, the taller wheels are where "its at".

As I have looked over the current tire sizes to choose from for the narrow body Pantera, I have found one very interesting tire. Pirelli manufactures a P-Zero tire in the size 305/30YR19, 26.3" in OD, that weighs ONLY 25 pounds. Mounting that tire on a modular wheel such as a Kodiak, should result in a significantly lighter tire/wheel package than anything any Pantera owner is currently running. This is very significant for those of you that understand the topic. Lower unsprung weight means the tire will follow uneven road better, the car's ride will improve, the car will accelerate faster and fuel economy will improve. Another important aspect for the narrow body Panteras, this tire fits ideally on an 11" wide wheel. And as side benefit to this particular tire, the revolutions per mile are almost identical to the Pantera's oem 215/70VR15 or H60-15 tires, so your speedometer will become accurate again!

cowboy from hell