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Is widening wheels safe? Is Weldcraft good or what do you recommend?

8K views 13 replies 7 participants last post by  BP95GSX 
#1 ·
I'm considering widening my front black edition wheels to 10.5 so I can run 315 square R888R on my car. Is this a safe option?
 
#2 ·
I wouldn't do it. This isn't some SUV you're taking off-road. Get the wheels with the proper widths and offsets to run the desired tire combo from the get go.

Many of us do not skimp on wheels knowing we take our GTR's deep into triple digit speeds on a regular basis. Wheels need to be strong, lightweight and pose no issues with balancing period. No compromises.
 
#3 ·
How would you make BE wheels 10.5"? What offset? Do you mean you are using rear BE GTR wheels in the front to make them square? If so the offset would be aggressive and the wheel would poke out a lot.

What suspension are you using for this? OEM would clear tire diameter of 28" but with tire size at 315mm you would be way far poking out.

20x10.5" is possible but 285/35-20 is a better choice for fitment and clearance for the fronts. In the rear there is more room. Running square is possible with the GTR for benefit of tire rotation, if that is not a factor then going wider on tire size in the rear is a better option or you will need a wide front fender kit for extra clearance due to the front wheel needing to turn and it being so wide.
 
#5 ·
I have widened my rear OEM DBA wheels to 12". Works perfekt, no issues.
 
#6 · (Edited by Moderator)
How would you make BE wheels 10.5"? What offset? Do you mean you are using rear BE GTR wheels in the front to make them square? If so the offset would be aggressive and the wheel would poke out a lot.

What suspension are you using for this? OEM would clear tire diameter of 28" but with tire size at 315mm you would be way far poking out.

20x10.5" is possible but 285/35-20 is a better choice for fitment and clearance for the fronts. In the rear there is more room. Running square is possible with the GTR for benefit of tire rotation, if that is not a factor then going wider on tire size in the rear is a better option or you will need a wide front fender kit for extra clearance due to the front wheel needing to turn and it being so wide.
Nope, I meant actually widening the front 9.5" wheels to 10.5". Seems like the general consensus is no but I'll tell you what I had in mind. I want to widen them 1" (25.4mm) on the inside of the wheel. I'm currently running a 15mm spacer with 285 section tires, so I know I have at least that 15mm on the inside to widen into - I wonder if there is enough room for the remaining 10mm. I could use a 20mm spacer for a touch of poke I guess also. 315/30/20 being slightly lower diameter than the 285/35/20 I currently have will give slightly more vertical clearance. I know it will be tight but it seems like it could work. Also, I can just tell that 285 isn't going to be enough tire for me so I will keep researching the 315 square option :)
 
#8 ·
Nope, I meant actually widening the front 9.5" wheels to 10.5". Seems like the general consensus is no but I'll tell you what I had in mind. I want to widen them 1" (25.4mm) on the inside of the wheel. I'm currently running a 15mm spacer with 285 section tires, so I know I have at least that 15mm on the inside to widen into - I wonder if there is enough room for the remaining 10mm. I could use a 20mm spacer for a touch of poke I guess also. 315/30/20 being slightly lower diameter than the 285/35/20 I currently have will give slightly more vertical clearance. I know it will be tight but it seems like it could work. Also, I can just tell that 285 isn't going to be enough tire for me so I will keep researching the 315 square option :)
What do you mean by "widening". Altering or modifying a 9.5" wide rim to make it 10.5" or replacing the OEM rim with one that is OEM rear 10.5"?

The problem is the rear OEM wheel offset is too aggressive for the front wheel well given it is also 1" wider.

Simply take off your rear wheel and put it on the front and see how it works. How does it look? Does it rub. With the wide 285/35-20 tire it has little clearance for turning and will poke out 32.7mm more. So you don't want to use any spacer in the front which would make it poke out more.

http://www.willtheyfit.com/index.php?width=255&aspect=40&diameter=20&wheelwidth=9.5&offset=45&width2=285&aspect2=35&wheel_size=20&wheel_width=10-5&offset2=25
 
#9 ·
What do you mean by "widening". Altering or modifying a 9.5" wide rim to make it 10.5" or replacing the OEM rim with one that is OEM rear 10.5"?

The problem is the rear OEM wheel offset is too aggressive for the front wheel well given it is also 1" wider.

Simply take off your rear wheel and put it on the front and see how it works. How does it look? Does it rub. With the wide 285/35-20 tire it has little clearance for turning and will poke out 32.7mm more. So you don't want to use any spacer in the front which would make it poke out more.

http://www.willtheyfit.com/index.php?width=255&aspect=40&diameter=20&wheelwidth=9.5&offset=45&width2=285&aspect2=35&wheel_size=20&wheel_width=10-5&offset2=25
Actually cutting and making the 9.5 wider. But I've already been talked out of it due to safety concerns.
 
#10 ·
Actually cutting and making the 9.5 wider. But I've already been talked out of it due to safety concerns.
OK I checked out weldcraft-

http://www.weldcraftwheels.com/what-we-do/widen/

Ask them what the widened wheels are used for? Only street use and car shows for appearance or for track or drag racing duty.

Naturally welding something that takes lots of stress like wheels isn't going to improve wheel strength and durability. Wheels take a beating and the GTR has lots of power. Stress on the seams is something to consider unless you are doing only street driving.

Even forged wheels can crack and fail so you need to talk to the vendor about expected durability.

It seems Weldcraft can modify the wheel and give you the backspace that will suit your clearance needs so that seems OK for fitment. Not sure if you will have room for a 315mm wide tire on a 10.5" wide rim in front.

see (includes pictures)

https://www.svtperformance.com/forums/threads/wheel-widening-another-happy-weldcraft-customer.696220/

Looks OK for street use. Some searches found that knock off wheels of lesser quality aren't the best to widen and can be rejected.
 
#11 · (Edited by Moderator)
OK I checked out weldcraft-

http://www.weldcraftwheels.com/what-we-do/widen/

Ask them what the widened wheels are used for? Only street use and car shows for appearance or for track or drag racing duty.

Naturally welding something that takes lots of stress like wheels isn't going to improve wheel strength and durability. Wheels take a beating and the GTR has lots of power. Stress on the seams is something to consider unless you are doing only street driving.

Even forged wheels can crack and fail so you need to talk to the vendor about expected durability.

It seems Weldcraft can modify the wheel and give you the backspace that will suit your clearance needs so that seems OK for fitment. Not sure if you will have room for a 315mm wide tire on a 10.5" wide rim in front.

see (includes pictures)

https://www.svtperformance.com/forums/threads/wheel-widening-another-happy-weldcraft-customer.696220/

Looks OK for street use. Some searches found that knock off wheels of lesser quality aren't the best to widen and can be rejected.
It will be for autocross and time attack so I imagine lots of lateral G forces exacerbated by a heavy car on 315 section R compounds. I'll just get some wide TE37's (10.5/12 or something).

I currently have 285 square and 15mm spacer up front and lowered. So some math seems to indicate that 315 should work fine as well. I know it will be tight but is there a reason why 315 won't work? It is slightly lower profile than the 285's which will result in a touch more vertical clearance as well. Doing the math.... The 15mm spacer I have plus the 30mm wider tire I currently have (compared to 255) results in 30mm more poke than stock and it works fine although tight. Removing the spacer and the wider tire works as well so that encroaches 15mm more into the wheel well than stock. So as long as there is another 15mm within the well to accept additional wheel and tire I should be good - I've read that generally there is pretty good clearance within the well. As long as I get wheels with reasonable offset and then user the applicable spacer to fit precisely I should be good to go. Am I missing something?
 
#12 ·
I have 2009 GTR with swift sport springs in front for 1" drop with OEM front wheel and 285/35-20 tire and it barely clears given shock is OEM and soft with some body roll. I would not be able to fit a 315mm wide tire at 28" tire diameter but a bit lower maybe (barely). 15mm wide front spacer would poke out too much for me and I have -3.2 degrees front negative camber.

In general if you can select a wheel that has the correct offset from the start you are better off than using a spacer to make up the difference. However it isn't always possible since off the shelf wheels are more generic in offsets that tend to work and sell for many cars.

You'd need longer wheel studs and open ended lug nuts to accept various wheel spacers unless you use type 2 spacers that offer extention studs to fasten the wheel onto. But those aren't durable for time attack.

Time attack can be very stressful on wheels and tires depending on the course and road surface, you want the strongest but light setup with soft rubber.

For tire size I find that about 26.3" tire diameter is good for fitment in a wide tire size but not less than 25.6". OEM is 28"
 
#13 ·
I have 2009 GTR with swift sport springs in front for 1" drop with OEM front wheel and 285/35-20 tire and it barely clears given shock is OEM and soft with some body roll. I would not be able to fit a 315mm wide tire at 28" tire diameter but a bit lower maybe (barely). 15mm wide front spacer would poke out too much for me and I have -3.2 degrees front negative camber.

In general if you can select a wheel that has the correct offset from the start you are better off than using a spacer to make up the difference. However it isn't always possible since off the shelf wheels are more generic in offsets that tend to work and sell for many cars.

You'd need longer wheel studs and open ended lug nuts to accept various wheel spacers unless you use type 2 spacers that offer extention studs to fasten the wheel onto. But those aren't durable for time attack.

Time attack can be very stressful on wheels and tires depending on the course and road surface, you want the strongest but light setup with soft rubber.

For tire size I find that about 26.3" tire diameter is good for fitment in a wide tire size but not less than 25.6". OEM is 28"
I'm lowered 0.8" in the front and it is tight but works. I guess your extra 0.2" makes a big difference.

How much additional space is there INSIDE the wheel well? I think if I get a good high-offset wheel with the right size spacers to make up the difference I can be close to flush with fender but with the rest of the wheel in the well.
 
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