Hi all,
New to the forum, so please feel free to initiate me in whatever manner is appropriate here.
I have an '01 V6 that is in desperate need of new wheels. I have 16x8 OEM wheels that are cracked, corroded and totally shot. Trouble is, it seems that these wheels are now very hard to come by for less than $1000 for a set, and that they don't come with a center cap.

The guy at the tire store recommended getting a set of 17" wheels instead, claiming that 17" wheels are easier to find and easier to get tires for.

Here are my questions:
-What performance changes (mileage, handling, braking etc) will I see by sizing up the wheels to 17"? The car is used as a daily commuter, no racing or high performance stuff.

-What depth/offset is best?

-What issues would I come across with instrument calibration? Speedo, odometer, etc. I would likely buy the wheels and take them to the tire store to buy tires and have them balanced. Would they calibrate instruments as well?

TIA

 

so long as the tire hight is the same everything should also stay the same. unless the tires are wider then a loss in mpg will be seen. look here for some ideas. Wheel & Tire FAQ - General Topics - CamaroZ28.Com Message Board

 

I too have a '01 camaro and I and purchased 18" chrome wheels corvette replicas from a company down in florida. The name is oewheelsllc. they have a website. They are completely legit and have great customer realtions. It came with a set of tires too and it was $1000. Dnt know if this is along the lines of what you are looking for but i figured i throw in my 2 cents

 

OE has a fairly long processing period and they only have cheap Nexen tires (no all seasons) for mounting on Vette wheels from what I've seen. I went with Factory Reproductions on eBay and had all season Hankook Ventus tires mounted at balanced at Pep Boys during the 4th Tire free rebate deal. Was riding on new wheels in less than a week.

 

Yea Catmaigne is correct when he says there is a long wait period. I was fortunate enough to get mine within 5 days of ordering them. Long story short, someone ordered the same set I did and then re****ed at that last second. so they already had a set mounted and balanced which they shipped to me right away.

The nexen tires that the wheels were wrapped have held up so far. I only use them in the summer time and they do very well in the rain. There are many options out there you just have to be patient and do some research.

 

I've always been a fan of the ZR1 wheels on our cars, I think they look fantastic on there and can be had for a song.

Going up in wheel size, generally speaking will always have an effect. You're likely talking a heavier wheel and tire package which means some performance will be lost (braking/acceleration) but for the most part, you won't notice them there, unless you catch someone staring 23