Seriously need help w/ rims and tires.

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jmc86660

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The 16 inch alloy wheels on my 00 ls just aren't cutting it anymore. I want a set of tires of rims but I am completely clueless. It wouldn't be so bad if money wasn't such an issue, but since I'm strapped for cash it makes being utterly clueless as to what I need even more difficult to cope with.

First off, I would like 19's or 20's - guess I could take 18's. I want chrome, but do not know anymore than that. How should I go about this guys? Look online for a good deal, rims and tires seperate; or try to get a package deal - wheels with tires. Also, is buying used stupid? Wht about actual bricks and mortar places that sell wheels/rims, would I be better off going there? I don't have any idea how to balance them myself so I would need someone else help anyways.

Lastly, what are my set of 4-good condition-stock LS wheels worth. It's a 2000 LS but everything looks perfect. Should I try selling these first for some cash to put in these other rims?

Also, I have a set of BMW, 5 point fat performance tires - I don't even know what their worth, any idea where I might find out? Thanks for the help guys - I really need it.
 
First of all I'd like to add my 2 cents to this wheel situation. The tallest wheel I would go would be a 19" wheel. I currently have 18" OZ racing wheels and the unsprung weight is lower than stock but not by much. What I mean by unsprung weight is the weight of the wheels and tires. This can adversely affect how the LS handles. Anything higher than 19" wheels and tires will not allow the LS to perform and ride like it was designed to do. The heavier the wheels and tires the harder the suspension has to work. Folks with 20" and larger rims can attest to a lot tire rub. Not mention when you hit a pothole that you jar some of your front teeth out.

Now, I'm not saying 20" and larger wheels are terrible. As a matter of fact I've seen some LS's with 20's that look great. However, looking great and ride quality are two different things. You can find 18" to 19" wheels that look great and you still will not sacrifice performance. Remember, the LS was designed to compete with the BMW 5-series. It's a touring sedan so the suspension was developed to be such.

Also, you can not put lowering springs on an LS with 20" or larger rims. It will just rub too much and add just that much more stress on the suspension. Think carefully before you start adding 20" or larger wheels to the LS. It wasn't designed for those.
 
I agree. I would stick with 18 or 19.

As far as buying them seperate or together, most of the time there are sites that have good prices on wheels, and those that have good prices on tires. If you shop hard enough you can get decent prices on each, usually seperate. Now, if you find a set of wheels at a good price and the company/site sells tires, just ask if they can make you a deal on a package. That way they can also mount balance them for you, all you have to do is put them on when they arrive.

For your stock rims, just put them on ebay and see what you can get. I just put my 17" chrome 8 spokes on there and got $217.50 per wheel plus shipping. For 16's off an 00 I wouldn't expect to get that much.

I have a couple links for wheels below, I haven't spent a lot of time on these sites so I'm not really sure how the prices compare, just it will be a starting point for you.

http://www.carxpressions.com/car_wheels.htm
http://superbuytires.com/
http://www.wheelmax.com/index.html
http://1010tires.com/
http://www.tirerack.com/
http://tires.com/
 
Thanks a lot for the help guys, I seriously really do appreciate this. I'm so clueless in the car world, yet I'm trying to upgrade my own. I'm leaning away from 20's just because of the price. I think I'm going to go with the recommendation to only up to 18's. I had a bmw 545i before this, and some handling is already sacrificed with the LS, so I wouldn't want to lose much more.

If anyone else has anything to add it would be greatly appreciated - jmc
 
Does it matter what type of rim or tire I buy? Should it say the tire is made for the LS, or generally is it all the same?
 
I personally don't like wheels that are that open. I don't like being able to see that much of the rotor etc....
 
again theres a;way ebay i looked earlier and theres some good deals going through just in time for spring.
 
jmc86660 said:
Thanks a lot for the help guys, I seriously really do appreciate this. I'm so clueless in the car world, yet I'm trying to upgrade my own. I'm leaning away from 20's just because of the price. I think I'm going to go with the recommendation to only up to 18's. I had a bmw 545i before this, and some handling is already sacrificed with the LS, so I wouldn't want to lose much more.

If anyone else has anything to add it would be greatly appreciated - jmc
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I have 20" and no rub at all. I payed 1800 at a local shop for them with parelli tires. Low profile tires increase handling. But, you will loose a bit of performance, and you will also have a bumpier ride. Don't get me wrong i love my 20"s but you feel the road a bit more.
 
you want to find a wheel close to the stock wheel offset which is 60mm as much as possible. Most aftermarket rims are in the mid 40 to mid 30's range. I have 42mm on mine, i wouldn't go lower than 32mm the result would be that the wheel will stick out from the well.
As far as tires go, i run a 245/40 series on my 18's and have no complaints on ride quality and the performance is awesome.
 
GrayGhost1 said:
First of all I'd like to add my 2 cents to this wheel situation. The tallest wheel I would go would be a 19" wheel. I currently have 18" OZ racing wheels and the unsprung weight is lower than stock but not by much. What I mean by unsprung weight is the weight of the wheels and tires. This can adversely affect how the LS handles. Anything higher than 19" wheels and tires will not allow the LS to perform and ride like it was designed to do. The heavier the wheels and tires the harder the suspension has to work. Folks with 20" and larger rims can attest to a lot tire rub. Not mention when you hit a pothole that you jar some of your front teeth out.

Now, I'm not saying 20" and larger wheels are terrible. As a matter of fact I've seen some LS's with 20's that look great. However, looking great and ride quality are two different things. You can find 18" to 19" wheels that look great and you still will not sacrifice performance. Remember, the LS was designed to compete with the BMW 5-series. It's a touring sedan so the suspension was developed to be such.

Also, you can not put lowering springs on an LS with 20" or larger rims. It will just rub too much and add just that much more stress on the suspension. Think carefully before you start adding 20" or larger wheels to the LS. It wasn't designed for those.
Click to expand...

It is nice to hear someone else say they wouldn't put dubs on their LS. As cool as it is to say you have some dubs on your Lincoln, in the end, it doesn't make that much sense. I agree with you Grayghost1. Personally, I think the LS looks great with 17's or 18's on but when they start getting bigger than that it just doesn't look right........thats just opinion. But the facts don't lie and Grayghost hits it on the head. The ride is less than stellar, the tires are more than expensive, and the handling is affected (and not in a good way). I would say, get some nice 17's or 18's and allow yourself to lower it a little bit. I think a LS looks sleek to begin with and even sleeker with some 17's or 18's that have been lowered a bit. Bigger wheels......to me........just seem to look like "too much" for the car. As for the price of your used wheels.........I wouldn't expect much for the stock 16's, but you might be able to sell them as full size spares to people with those wheels?

PS. Grayghost...........I really like your car. I have a 2000 LS-8 sport that is your color and love it.
 
I have 18 inch Helo Chrome rims on my LS that I put on last week. Just found out I'm getting a company car this week, so I'm selling my LS and getting a sports car for my 2nd car. If your interested in these rims, they have 200 miles on them and are absolutely perfect. Chrome 18" with 40 profile tires. Attached is a pic of the rims. Shoot me an email if your interested. bill_lockey@hotmail.com

Helo Diamond.jpg
 
Looking for $1200 that includes shipping and the tuner lug nuts required. I've got over $1600 in them and I haven't had them on the car for a week, coming off the car tomorrow morning. Anyone interested, shoot me and email and I'll send you a pic of the car with the rims on them. Pic is too big to post on here.
 
The best deal I've been able to find with chrome 18's and a tire is about $1400.

ARgh, so expensive.
 
DLS8K said:
PS. Grayghost...........I really like your car. I have a 2000 LS-8 sport that is your color and love it.
Click to expand...
Thanks! Gotta love that Midnight Grey Metallic!!
 
LSinCT said:
Here they are on the car, adjusted file size.
Click to expand...
Looks sharp! Hate to hear your getting rid of it but getting a company paid car is nice! I like those wheels!
 
Thanks GreyGhost, that is your grill on the front that I bought 2 weeks ago from you. Looks great and really easy to install, selling my old one on ebay now and should get $75 back, not a bad deal at all. The free car is great, now I have to decide on a sports car, thinking Boxster S, but who knows.

JMC, I could be a little flexible in that price, shoot me an email after you discuss, only had the rims on for a week and got a bunch of compliments.
 
LSinCT said:
Thanks GreyGhost, that is your grill on the front that I bought 2 weeks ago from you. Looks great and really easy to install, selling my old one on ebay now and should get $75 back, not a bad deal at all. The free car is great, now I have to decide on a sports car, thinking Boxster S, but who knows.

JMC, I could be a little flexible in that price, shoot me an email after you discuss, only had the rims on for a week and got a bunch of compliments.
Click to expand...

In that price of $1200, are you including the tires?
 
Yeah, they include everything. The tuner lugs are chrome with a special key for all lugs. They are set and ready to go. Tires are Wanli 235/40 ZR 18. They are entry level 18" performance tires. When you get into some name brand tires in 18", your talking $200 per tire. They ride nice though. Here is another pic at a better angle.

Black LS 2.jpg
 
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