Z06 Wheels: I wanted the biggest tires that would fit under the car without modifying the wheel wells or using spacers, and 18" wheels to put them on.  After a lot of research and measuring and measuring I ordered four 18 by 10.5" wide Z06 replicas in 'factory silver', allowing me to re-use the Z28 centre caps.  The result is that many people think these were factory optioned wheels, because they 'look right' and fit the car so well.  The painted finish is the best choice for a daily driver.

I'm a long time Corvette fan, and have always like the 'vette wheel designs (I put 17x9.5" C4 wheels on my '94 Camaro)

• Camaros are nose heavy, so they need wide tires and wheels up front for handling; wider tires at the back look cool, but promote understeer;
• the lighter and better balanced Corvette can benifit from smaller front tires, but on the Camaro it only makes for lighter steering at the expense of handling.
• this is the widest 18" tire and wheel combination will fit the front and back of the Camaro that matches the factory tire height (so the speedometer and driveline gearing are unaffected) and does not use expensive three-piece wheels or spacers
• tires can be rotated front-to-rear
• no chassis or bodywork modifications required
• larger/taller tires would rub too much on the chassis, especially on the front
• different tire heights front-to-rear will falsely trigger the ABS during high speed braking, and confuse the ASR (traction control) system.

The Yokohama AVS dB 275/35/18 tires were chosen for their reasonable price (for the size), high tread wear ratings, and promise of a quiet ride.  They have performed as advertised, and as a bonus, they don't track and pull all over the place on rutted road like some tires I have had (although the suspension alignment with extra caster does help here). 

ABS, ASR, and the speedometer are unaffected as the tires are the same outer diameter as the factory equipment and are the same size front and back.

Z06 wheels, 18" by 10.5" at all four corners

Okay, they've been fixed, so they are not out-of-round any more, but that's not how they were out of the box.  There was a visible wobble that could be seen by just bolting them to the car and spinning them.  The dealer that I bought them from (Performance Wheel Outlet) does not visually inspect them, and allows .030" of movement at the rim (yikes!) so I'm on my own to pay to have them straightened, which has been done.  <click here for the detailed story, and why to look elsewhere for wheels>

But the wheels are on and fit great - even better than I thought. The sidewalls have that 'racecar' look, like the tire/wheel fitment used on Porsches and Vipers. 

Front: I did not have to modify the car to make them fit, but I did check the fit of the wheel on the front spindle (driver's front shown here) before mounting the tires. It's tight. Tape weights are a must for clearance (which should be used anyway as they don't damage the paint like clip on weights).  The tires do rub slightly on the plastic wheel well liner when the wheels are turned sharply, but not enough to hear or feel or damage the tires.

Rear: I have the factory 1LE panhard rod, and the axle is only off 4 mm at the set ride height, and is centered when the axle is on the stops. The tires leave only light rub marks on the inner wheel wells. It is really tight on the rear bump stop, so I need to trim that down sometime soon.

Last edited Saturday, October 11, 2003

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