Couple things first
@morty muerte. The OE wheels are 7” wide and have an awful offset of 55 not 35. The wheels most people go with are 8” wide and as you said an offset of 45. So when you compare the two the aftermarket wheel ‘pokes’ out essentially an inch more. When you lift an independent suspension vehicle you can expect the radius of the LCA to actually pull the wheel in further. This is only slightly at 2” of lift on a Subaru but still worth mentioning when factoring how wheels ‘fit’. I have a good buddy with the same setup as Brucey and he’s mostly rub free but those wheels are far from flush if you know what I mean. It’s also a common misconception that lifting has anything to do with fitting larger tires because it simply isn’t true on this wagon.
There’s a sweet spot in the wheel wells when it comes to rubbing and it’s obviously right where the engineers put the wheels from the factory. The further you poke them out the closer the tire gets when turning. There are plenty of people on who are basically rub free with 245/65’s but not all tires are the same as the size would suggest. For example my G015’s apparently have a wider cross section than comparably sized K02’s. I can’t speak for the tires you chose but any problem you have can be fixed with a heat gun, perhaps a slight trim, and by removing splash guards or flaps.
Wawa, you are the man! Thank you for the thorough reply.
So, i mis spoke the offset is 55. Not 35, you are absolutely right. I always think 35 because i associate the smaller number pulling the wheel into the wheel well, not pushing out, its a brain teaser for me. Thanks for pointing that out.
And yes, i'm aware that lifting doesn't allow for larger tires. I appreciate you stating it, because i do see a lot of confusion about that on forums. A wheel well is a wheel well. Not going to get bigger unless you start chopping. I just wanted to give a general background of the plan for the vehicle.
That said,
the idea that as you lift independent suspension the wheels suck in further is something i completely overlooked. I will factor this into my plan.
Perhaps 1" spacers are a cheap solution for this?
I have 3 more questions for you since you obviously know your stuff.
1.
As you stated, the stock alloy wheel is 7" wide where a motegi 118 is 8" wide.
This is another detail i overlooked, but it also surprises me because of the following...
How does Brucy wear 245/65r17 Ko2's on his 7" alloys, which is the same size tire a lot of folks run on the Motegi 118.
Is it because there is a certain amount of latitude with tires? If so, i was unaware of this.
I'm also asking because i just ordered a set of 245/65r17 Hankooks... and now i'm worried they won't fit. haha.
2.
Aside from aesthetics, is there anything that bad about the wheel not being flush from a performance stand point?
I get that a wider stance is always more stable and better wheel base, but i also wonder if less damage would be done to the side of the car when "wheeling" since the tires would be completely within the wheel well as opposed to kicking up rocks and grit along the side of the vehicle.
3.
Lastly,
part of why i decided to go with stock wheels is i'm keeping the budget for this build very low. Mainly because the reason i went with a used outback rather than a 4runner, was i didn't want to break the bank, wanted the Subaru reliability (and simplicity) and i really don't want to start creeping up in the overall investment on this vehicle. Just looking for some low cost fun and function.
So i ask you as a subaru wheeler.
Given that i really don't care that much about aesthetics, what do you think gives more performance bang for the buck...
King Springs, which has been in my plan since day 1 to add to the 2" ADF spacer lift, or skipping the springs and going with some proper wheels like the motegi or sparco terra in the name of a wider tire contact point.
And if you're curious about vehicle use its as follows...
- 90% daily driver in Los Angeles (vehicle empty) (it has 2" hitch installed already and it wears a Yamaha Mega Warrior up top always)
- 7% local mountain bike trail head use (vehicle with hitch mounted 1-up bike tray on back + bike) - estimated load 50lbs total
- 3% off road adventure vehicle (standard camp gear, some tools, spare tire on roof, ground tent, 6 gallons of water, my lady) - estimated 120lbs (+ lady)
and sometimes i have the bike along for the adventure too which would make it 170lbs in the rear of the vehicle.
Thank you again for all the fantastic knowledge!
