Town Car tire and rim sizes

[BuzzHaze]

Hi, I'm new to the forum but have had a few Lincolns. I currently own a 93 Mark VIII and just bought a 2000 Town Car (Cartier) I am really loving the Town Car. It's very cushy...haha.

I was wondering if I can go with a 17 or 18" tire & rim on the Towncar without it rubbing or losing the ride comfort. I have been browsing the forum and found the Goodyear Assurance comfort touring tire would be a great choice for the Town car but since I have to get new rims (the ones on the 2000 Cartier are beat up) I thought I might be able to consider a 17" or 18". The stock size is 16, I assume.

A few questions, Will the rims from an MKZ or a Zepher fit a towncar? They are generally 17-18". There seems to be a lot of used MKZ rims for sale, but not many towncar rims. I noticed that some Town Car's have 17"s from the factory.

I'm in Ottawa Canada so we do get a lot of ice and snow during winter. I'm wondering if there is a good looking rim out there that can handle the weather without looking like crap after a few years. Is there an aftermarket wheel company that carry good options for our Towncars? I am not looking for flashy or bling....just a nice classy wheel for my black Towncar.

Thanks for any advice and I look forward to reading more. Here's a shot of my current cars. Yes, the Mustang is plated and insured for the street but it's a drag car. No, I'm not a cop haha

 

[Town]

The 1998 thru 2002 Town Cars use a 16" wheel with approx 6 mm offset, while the 2003 and up use a 17" wheel with a 54mm or 56mm (on my car) offset (like a FWD car). The reason for the different offset is the greater length of the front control arms and the rear axle is wider. I think your car will accommodate 17" wheels, but would need spacers to use the 2003 and up wheels, which is not a great idea. A 17" wheel with a 6mm offset should work OK, but try to get one with a 70.5 mm hub bore diameter to fit on the hub without hub rings. Rim width would be 7" to match the 2003 and up models. All Town Cars use the same stud size and spacing.

The rear differential ratio on the 1998 to 2002 is normally 3.08, but can be 3.27 for some models. The 2003 and up is normally 3.27 so the 17" wheels and 225/60R17 tires work out to be the same ratio for the gearing as the earlier car with 225/60R16 tires. You can juggle the tire profile to keep the speedometer correct which will result in a harsher ride for probably 50 series tires (I have a calculater to get the closest profile/section width), or you can get the tire size you want programmed into the PCM so you can use any tire size and profile within reason.

CrownVic.com has a lot of information on this subject and can recommend some stock wheels that would fit. The MKZ or Zephyr will have large offset wheels comparable to the 2003 and up Town Car so will not fit without wheel spacers. FWD cars need long axle shaft lengths to minimize torque steer, so you will be looking at Mustang and other RWD platforms. I will see what I can find later.

I live in Orleans.

Good luck.

 

[Town]

I have used steel wheels with winter tires and found them ugly and rust very quickly and look even uglier. Attached is a picture of a Town Car with steel wheels. I like painted alloy wheeels since they look great and don't cost a lot, mine were $140 but the offset is 42 mm instead of 56 mm so they increase the track by a 1/2" on each side. They are 17x7 same as stock but the hub size is greater than 70.5 so they need hub rings. Attached are pictures of my car with winter tires and wheels in the winter and a picture of the wheel. Also attached are my summer wheels on and off my car.

You may want to try your Ford dealer for winter alloy wheels. I did not think of that resource when I bought mine from a tire dealer. I checked with a Dodge dealer where my son bought his 2012 Caravan for winter wheels and tires and the pressure sensors. They sold me a package that included very nice painted alloy wheels, an exact fit for the caravan, at $130 each. I think that Ford dealers would have the same type of deal on aftermarket exact fit wheels for the Town Car, and probably in 17" size.

The Michelin all season tires that came on my car are terrible in the winter in all conditions. So I purchased Toyo Observe G02 plus in 2008 in size 215/65R17. They are excellent in all winter conditions and I think the best winter tire. The runners up are Blizzaks and X-Ice3 since they are not the best in heavy slush snow or standing water. Toyo have a new tire that was introduced last year, the Observe GSi5 that is better and I got them for my son's Caravan for the coming winter.

I have no problems in the winter, my car is very stable and sure footed on ice and snow and the rutted slush in town and on the highway where my car changes lanes easily with no dramatics at all. It is as good as a FWD starting off but very much more stable and self assured on the move and at speed on the highway. I keep the fuel tank filled but no extra weight.

Good luck.

 

[BuzzHaze]

Thanks for all the info Town. It's great that you're in my home town too!!! I'll have to call Campbell Ford and see if they have anything. I am thinking they might be more expensive than a wheel shop but it's worth a try.

I have a set of winter tires from Russia..haha, they are a soft compound and grip very well. I used them on my Mark VIII for a few winters so I intend to put them on my current Town Car rims. I don't mind using them for winter. They don't look too bad.

I live over a Benson's Autoparts shop in the west end and they can get wheels but I kind of like the 16 tooth wheels that came with the Towncar, except for the fact they are beat up, I like the style and look so I was hoping to scour the junkyards for a set that are still in nice shape, if not, then I guess a set of aftermarket rims will do the trick. I like the 7 star pony-style rims you have on yours for winter but I am going for more of a stock look for this Lincoln.

Based on your excellent information, I might just stick with the 16" since it won't require spacers or anything. I'll start searching for a better set of 16 tooth like these:




I do like these stock Lincoln rims as well but I think they are bigger than 16"....that's why I was hoping they would fit.

______________________________

 

[Town]

You can get alloy wheels refurbished. I use CAPS for aftermarket parts and I think they have a supplier to refurbish wheels. Their store in the West end is at 28 Capital Dr and their phone # is 613-727-0300. The 3 lower pictures are of the 2003 and up 17" wheels for the Town Car, which are not a direct fit for your car. The Ford wheels from a dealer are usually in the $500 range each. You will want to ask Campbell Ford for their aftermarket direct fit wheel package, usually sold with winter tires, but should be available separately.

With new tires you can increase your section width from 225 to 235 (235/60R16) which usually helps improve the ride without adversely affecting anything. I like the supple less harsh feel over road irregularities. The change will likely make your speedometer more accurate since the same % diameter change on mine matches my GPS speed in a straight line on the flat.

Good luck.

 

[BuzzHaze]

Well...just got the tires done. I selected Goodyear's Comfortred Assurance Touring tires, 225 R60 16's. The tires I took off had some crazy wear on one of the fronts, half the tread was gone (the outside edge) so once I put the new ones on, I went and got a 4 wheel alignment to see if there was any issues. It was pulling to the ditch a bit.

The alignment exposed 2 seized tie-rod sleeves so it came out to around $300, plus the tires at around $780. I also had to replace the leaking gas tank for about $250, and another $250 to have it installed. I am going to paint and body next. I figure within a year, I'll have this sweet towncar looking and acting like new. It only has 100,000 kilometers on it so there's still plenty of life in this car. It had obviously been sitting for a good portion of it's life. (it's a 2000 model)

I'm just waiting for traffic and the temp to go down so I can take it for a highway test can't wait. I have the feeling, I'll be floating on a pillow

 

[Town]

Thanks for the update. Sounds like you are well on your way to having a "new" Town Car in performance and looks; but it looks awesome as it is in the picture you shared.

I am very interested in knowing how you find the tires.

Good luck.

 

[BuzzHaze]

Thanks, I love the look of this car...that's why I bought it instead of a newer one. There's something about the grill that I just love. They changed it to a newer style, like your 2003 but I'm still stuck on the older design...haha. Love it!!!

These Goodyear Comfortred Touring tires are the bee's knees. They are the smoothest, quietest tires I've ever experienced. They match the Lincoln ride to a "T"....made for each other. They are almost dead silent until you hit 90-100KPH, and even then, they are very quiet and smooth. I haven't tried any extreme weather with them yet but I don't think I would use them in winter, even though they are considered an all season radial. haha, you know what it's like here in the winter. I have a dedicated set of winter tires from Russia.

I've had a few people for rides in the car and the first thing they say is "wow, the ride in this thing is amazing" followed by " I love the interior" It's nice that I can get those kind of compliments on a 13yr old car that I bought for under $5000. I have about $40,000 into my Mustang which will rattle your bones and make you sweat like a dog. haha. very sparse interior and loud!!! mind you, it will do a 1/4 mile in 10 seconds and reach about 130MPH before you can say "oh my God" haha. Thing is, none of my friends want to ride with me in the Mustang.

Two very different cars for a duel personality driver

______________________________

 

[Town]

Thanks for the update.

Both your cars are awesome, as are the pictures of them.

Good luck.

 

[04linky]

The 1998 thru 2002 Town Cars use a 16" wheel with approx 6 mm offset, while the 2003 and up use a 17" wheel with a 54mm or 56mm (on my car) offset (like a FWD car). The reason for the different offset is the greater length of the front control arms and the rear axle is wider. I think your car will accommodate 17" wheels, but would need spacers to use the 2003 and up wheels, which is not a great idea. A 17" wheel with a 6mm offset should work OK, but try to get one with a 70.5 mm hub bore diameter to fit on the hub without hub rings. Rim width would be 7" to match the 2003 and up models. All Town Cars use the same stud size and spacing.

The rear differential ratio on the 1998 to 2002 is normally 3.08, but can be 3.27 for some models. The 2003 and up is normally 3.27 so the 17" wheels and 225/60R17 tires work out to be the same ratio for the gearing as the earlier car with 225/60R16 tires. You can juggle the tire profile to keep the speedometer correct which will result in a harsher ride for probably 50 series tires (I have a calculater to get the closest profile/section width), or you can get the tire size you want programmed into the PCM so you can use any tire size and profile within reason.

CrownVic.com has a lot of information on this subject and can recommend some stock wheels that would fit. The MKZ or Zephyr will have large offset wheels comparable to the 2003 and up Town Car so will not fit without wheel spacers. FWD cars need long axle shaft lengths to minimize torque steer, so you will be looking at Mustang and other RWD platforms. I will see what I can find later.

I live in Orleans.

Good luck.

Are you able to run those 16 inch town car rims on a 2006 without running into any issues ?

 

[jrod_wicker]

Yeah, I would stick with the stock wheels. The offset on the 99 Town Car makes it harder to find compatible wheels and tires. I tried 17's from a mercury but they rubbed on the brake lines. If you go with others, just keep an eye on them after every ride for first few days, to make sure they clear.

 

[oktowncar]

Yeah, I would stick with the stock wheels. The offset on the 99 Town Car makes it harder to find compatible wheels and tires. I tried 17's from a mercury but they rubbed on the brake lines. If you go with others, just keep an eye on them after every ride for first few days, to make sure they clear.

Careful.. Necroposters get the ruler around here

______________________________

 

[arziegordon]

Hello All.