305 wide tires in front on an SN-95

CobraRGuy · Apr 13, 2024

Hi all,

Thanks in advance for any and all responses. Your experience is valuable and appreciated. I had been planning to get a new set of 18x10 wheels for my car and run 295/35-18 tires, then I saw a post where the owner put 305 wide tires in the back of theirs. It sounds like 305 wide in back is not an issue, which is great to know, but I'd (of course) prefer to run 305 wide tires in front as well. I know that I'll need a 10.5" wide wheel to do this.
Has anyone done this without needing to modify the bodywork? I'd love to know people's experience with this including what diameter, width and offset they used to achieve this. I suspect 315+ wide is a no-go without flaring the fenders.

Thanks, CobraRGuy

cobrajeff96 · Apr 13, 2024

You'd be lucky to get 295s on the front of an SN95 without modification. More likely a 275 is probably the max you can get before putting in serious work.

badass98svt · Apr 13, 2024

@white95

white95 · Apr 13, 2024

badass98svt said:
@white95

Can’t speak for 10.5” wheels and 305’s but 11” wheels and 315’s are a no-go without surgery. Observe:

I have forward offset control arms, and my car is quite low. You would also need slim spacers to keep the tires/wheels off the coil over (if you’re running them) That depends on wheel offset and mine are 18x11 +16, for sake of conversation.

In summary, rolling the fenders and flares will be a must for any tire that begin with a 3.

Frank.JD.Perez · Apr 13, 2024

I was running 315s with factory fenders, but i had to unbolt the inner parts in between the door and fender and "flare" out the 2 bolts on the bottom where the side skirt is. A longer bolt and a spacer works for that

CobraRGuy · Apr 14, 2024

Thanks everyone, this is great information. I'm running the original 17x9 +24 Cobra R wheels with 275/40 tires front and rear now with no issues. A local shop has a wheel and tire fitment tool that I'll have them use to make sure I can fit a 295 tire once the car is actually drivable. I'm running coil overs front and rear, so I need to get my car up in the air on some ramps to see how much clearance there is to the strut up front.
I'd prefer not to have different width tires and wheels front and rear, but maybe that's what I should consider.
Thanks again.

Slice · Apr 16, 2024

I don't know. Sometimes when guys push things too far the car ends up looking stupid.

RAU03MACH · Apr 16, 2024

i have to agree a bit
i get it these guys do it for the sport of road track racing.
i would not put anything wide on the front 9 wide is about the max
on the rear 11 12s its fine
i dont want to mess the body of the car up at all

RAU03MACH · Apr 16, 2024

i did put 305/45/17 on the rear of my cobra
very good fit for my car

CobraRGuy · Apr 16, 2024

RAU03MACH said:
i have to agree a bit
i get it these guys do it for the sport of road track racing.
i would not put anything wide on the front 9 wide is about the max
on the rear 11 12s its fine
i dont want to mess the body of the car up at all

Same here, no desire to alter the fenders, but I will be putting a 2000 Cobra R style front bumper on mine for enhanced aerodynamics. I want it to be bolt-on so I can put the original bumper back on whenever I desire. Power is not the issue. This car needs more tire and more down-force.