Hello All,

My 86 Corvette coupe (Frankie) looks good with my C6 chrome wheels, but the ride is terrible. I have Goodyear run flats that do not help either. I got a good deal on a used set and although they grip good, they ride hard. If I hit a bump or go over Railroad tracks the car bangs hard and moves sideways a bit. My friggin teeth are shaking out of my head. Lol. I also installed new KYB shocks.The rear is lowered but not the front, because the 19" wheels jacked up the back of the car.

My question: Can anyone tell me if its the run flats or is it the low profile wheels or lowering the back or all? Not much rubber between the road and the rim? My wifes 87 with the 16" wheels and tires have a smoother ride. I might just go back to my original 16" wheels if I cant correct the problem. Thanks.


Joe Flashman

Run-flats do have a rougher ride with their stiffer sidewalls.

I would also venture to say that the small sidewall of the 19 inch wheel/tire combo isn't helping. You could probably do 17 in wheel/tire and be ok. There is a better selection of tires for them.

my $.02

Mike

Hi Guys,

Yes, The sidewalls are stiff on the run flats. There are more choices for tires with a 17" rim. I think I am going to ride on my old tires and wheels this weekend and see the difference. Hey Mike. I like your avitar. I almost forgot about the tires. Lol.



Joe Flash

The C5 and C6 guys will tell you that the runflats make a huge difference in your spinal compression.

and the run flats are noisy.

I'd say combo of not enough sidewall and the runflats, as stated above.

Matthew

Hi Guys,

Thanks for all the replies. I changed out my tires and adapters in 35 minutes. Yanked out that lowering kit too. My car rides like a sporty Cadillac now. It broke my heart to take those wheels off, but it will save my back. And I break it alot at work. I am also not crazy about the hard hitting suspension. Dont forget, we have fiberglass cars. The harder the ride, the more chance of stress cracks on my car. I just got done fixing them and I am not looking foward to restoring another Corvette anytime soon.

I stripped the clear and polished out my original wheels. They look pretty good.Maybe get them Chromed in the future. I do need new tires for them. 255/50/16's. I will post some pictures of the car soon. Take care all.


Joe Flash

Hello All,

Heres a pic of Frankies old shoes.


Joe Flash

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I like the original wheels better than the C6 wheels on your car!!

BFG's make a good tire for these sizes.

Quote:


Thank you. I was never crazy about the original wheels, but I am starting to like them now.Especially after I polished them. Not many tire companies make 255/50/16's anymore. BF Goodrich G-Force Sport is a popular tire for that size. Local tire shop mounted balanced etc. for 610.00. Not bad. There is a tire shop on ebay that has Falken tires for 380.00 free ship, for 4 tires. I did some research on Falken and some people say that Falken tires dont have good tread life and are noisy. Anyone have experience with Falken tires on their Corvete?



Joe

Quote:

What did you use to strip off the clear coat and not damage the aluminum finish underneath? Also, what did you polish with?

Hi Dan,

I used aircraft paint stripper from home depot. Wear gloves, paint it on with a cheap brush. Get the gel type. Remove plastic center caps or they will be toast. Stay away from the painted surface too. You may need two applications. Let it sit for about 10-15 minutes for each coat. You wont hurt the aluminum. After, that you can wash them down with soap and water to get all the clear off.Better yet, clean them with Brown Royal wheel cleaner and prep them wheels for polishing.

I polished my wheels with Malco professional metal polish. It works good and easy to use. It has no grit and wont scratch soft metals. We sell it at our detail supply store. I also used a 3 inch wool buffing kit that we sell at our shop. You can attach it to a drill. Its a wool buff pad that fits perfect in the center and polishes faster and easier than that mothers ball. I polished all 4 wheels in about 40 minutes.
The results were amazing. Take care.


Joe Flash man
www.flashwax.com

Hi Guys,

I have learned a lot about low profile tires and over sized wheels. It seems that the shorter the sidewall the harder the ride. The side wall on the low profile tire is very stiff so it can handle the weight of the vehicle. Also, large wheels will destroy wheel bearings, suspension parts and you may need to upgrade your brakes too. Although I did have runs flats, but my ride would not have improved much unless I went with a 17" tire with a good sidewall.

Frankie got new BF Goodrich 255/50/16's on Friday and a 4 wheel alignment. The car rides and handles like a dream. I can hit a bump and all I feel in a soft bump. Not a bang and the car moves sideways. My fuel mileage and speedometer are also working normal again. I am in the process of sanding my aluminum wheels and polishing them. They are shiny now, but wait till I sand them down and polish the wheels. They will look like chrome. I do like custom mods on the vettes, but I am gonna have to pass on the wheels for now. Take care.



Joe Flashman

Hi All,

Here are some pics of my wet sanded and Polished aluminum wheels. You can see the difference between the non polished clear coated wheel on my wifes red 87 vette. My wifes 87 corvette is all original and the wheels are in good shape. No stripping and polishing for that car. Take care.

Joe Flash

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That's quite a shine! Looks great.

Matthew

Thanks Matt. I could make the wheels a lot smoother, but it is very time consuming. I would have to spend a day on each wheel to really get that smooth chrome look. Good enough for now. Its starting to get real hot down here in Florida. Take care.

PS I found a great website about C4 wheels, wheel adapters, specifications and applications.

http://www.joby.se/corvette/div/corvette_wheels/


Joe Flash