couple of thoughts on wheels/suspension

[NMTBirdLA]

last weekend i saw a new black bird with 20" rims and low 35 profile tires. it looked GREAT! i can only imagine the handling on this bird. bring it down an inch or two, add some stiffer springs and forget about it!!!

while i'm sure that 20's might seem a bit excessive to many, here in l.a., we tend to put on some big wheels.

but actually, the 20's did not look at all out of place. (keep in mind that with the super low profile, the actual diameter of the tire is not much (if any) bigger than our stock wheels.

i gave my car a closer look and (in my opinion) i would like to see future cars that are lowered by about 2 inches with AT LEAST an 18" tire and lower profile tires. (see j. mays' car) (pardon the spelling.)

before you flame me with "i don't get what the car is all about", realize that this is just my opinion AND ford could easily do these wheel and suspension mods and STILL achieve a VERY comfortable and luxurious ride.

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[TbirdTim]

I spoke with a dealer here in Atlanta yesterday and he told me that his dealership has a black Thunderbird that his dealership is in the process of customizing. They are lowering it 2", adding a supercharger to it and several other things. I told him to call me when they finish it and that I would let everyone in our "Metro Atlanta Thunderbird Group" know about it so that we could come and see it.

 

[RTBRD]

Tim,

If you get a chance to drive it, I would be interested in knowing how much it affects the ride comfort. On my '83 hotrod Stang GT I did all of the above (except supercharger, did nitrous) and even though the handling was greatly improved the ride quality REALLY suffered. On that car it was a didn't care but on the Bird it would be different.

 

[jboriott]

The Ford Custom which made the round at the auto shows this year showed some potential ideas for '03. It was lowered an inch or two. It looked like a rocket sled!!!

The Eibach spring web site makes the case that when you add larger wheels (BTW - the total diameter should never change - would mess the speedo and engineering) the gap in the wheel well actually appears larger.

Given the relatively low cost, I am seriously considering springs. I'll probably wait to see what Ford does to the '03 first.

But I too am very wary of doing anything that would impair the wonderful ride of this car. Would love to hear from anyone who changed springs.

 

[Hayuk!]

last weekend i saw a new black bird with 20" rims and low 35 profile tires. it looked GREAT! i can only imagine the handling on this bird. bring it down an inch or two, add some stiffer springs and forget about it!!!

while i'm sure that 20's might seem a bit excessive to many, here in l.a., we tend to put on some big wheels.

but actually, the 20's did not look at all out of place. (keep in mind that with the super low profile, the actual diameter of the tire is not much (if any) bigger than our stock wheels.

i gave my car a closer look and (in my opinion) i would like to see future cars that are lowered by about 2 inches with AT LEAST an 18" tire and lower profile tires. (see j. mays' car) (pardon the spelling.)

before you flame me with "i don't get what the car is all about", realize that this is just my opinion AND ford could easily do these wheel and suspension mods and STILL achieve a VERY comfortable and luxurious ride.

Wow. This is a vintage post. We do think alike.