Rims Question

[KellyC]

will 18x8 rims with 45 offset fit a 2003 elantra gt?

if not woul tib struts help
?

i need an asap please

thanks
Kelly

oh yeah and the tires would be 215/35zr18's

[SWortham]

I doubt it... it would be really hard to get 8" wide wheels to fit.

[2GTS]

215's would fit on an 8" wide rim? I would think you'd need a wider tire for those rims and yes I do agree 8" width will probably be too wide even with Tib struts

[felixr]

welcome to the forum by the way kelly

[XTRAWLD]

I couldn't fit 7.5 with a 42 on the car, don't know if 8's would go. 18's....you sure you wanna do that??

[SWortham]

"215's would fit on an 8" wide rim?"

Yeah, 215/35/18's will typically fit 7" - 8.5" wide wheels.

One way you might be able to do it is by getting something like Quest coilovers since they are pretty small in diameter. You could do that and then roll the lip in the wheel well too -- giving you more room on either side of the wheel. I don't know off hand what offset you would need to make that work though. And I would tend to think that you'd still have rubbing problems.

[silet]

If you have the GT stock alloys, an 18"X8" at 45 mm will add 3/4" on both sides. Which is 3/4" to the strut and 3/4" to the fender lip. I don't think we have that kind of room...

[KellyC]

their actually 42mm offset..
make a difference?

[silet]

Not really, 3 mm less to the strut and 3 mm closer to the lip based on the 3/4 " I mentioned above. Which means you'll most likely rub the fender. Some 17"X7" at 42 mm have rubbing or are very close. These will have an additional 1/2" to the fender!!!

[KellyC]

so is there anything i can do that will allow the clearance these are super nice rims and i know they'll look mint but they only come in 18x8

[seraph0503]

my wheels are 18x7.5 +42 offset with 215's and fit fine

[KellyC]

whats your offset?

[silet]

I have stock alloys 15"X6.5" at 45 mm with 205/60. I have less than 1" clearance to the fender. The 8" wide wheel with 42mm would put it almost at the end of the fender lip, because it's 1.5" wider. The strut side does not have much room either, so the tire may rub the bottom of the spring perch. I have very little clearance there!!!

[SWortham]

The strut side does not have much room either, so the tire may rub the bottom of the spring perch. I have very little clearance there!!!

This is true. KellyC, if you're determined to make these wheels work then check out my above post. Elantra2.001 was able to fit 225/45/17 tires on his car due to the extra room you get with the Quest coilovers. But if you're not willing to get coilovers, I don't think it will be possible.

I looked at the offset calculator (http://toy4two.home.mindspring.com/offset.html) to compare clearance to my wheels. And I think the 45mm offset is just about right though. My wheels extend about as far as you can go w/o having to roll the lip. And those wheels will extend 8mm farther, so you'll definitely have to roll the lip of the wheel well to gain back that 8mm.

And then you'll be 18mm closer to the strut than my wheels... which is an area where I have about 5mm of room. So that's 13mm of extra clearance that you should hope the coilovers will provide.

[KellyC]

well i guess thats out of the question then....

they were gonna be these oneshttp://i24.ebayimg.com/03/i/01/a4/69/6c_1_b.JPG

[silet]

It's gets even worse. I made a mistake, my rims are 15"X6" 45 mm!!! That's 2" wider...

[seraph0503]

18x7.5 fit fine with 215's tho. trust me. no problems with em. offset is +42 . i'm about to put them back on the car actually when my new center rings get here.

[watson80]

I have 18x7.5 on 215/35/18 45mm offset. No rubbing at all at anytime. Thats what you need to do for 18s!

[Robit_28]

I am getting 18x8's with 215/35/18 tyres installed next week so I will let you know how I go. According to the calculator, my rims would be 3mm closer to the strut than watson80's and 9mm closer to the guard. Do you have that room in there watson80?

Anyway, will keep you posted.