Wheels and Tires

 
     

For ultimate Land Speed Record performance at the Bonneville Salt Flats, special Goodyear Eagle Land Speed tires were used on Circle Racing Wheels.

Sheldon and Bob check runout on one of the wheels to be used at Bonneville for trueness.


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For the Land Speed Record runs at the Bonneville Salt Flats, the Circle wheels have been fitted with aerodynamic wheel covers.

Sheldon welds tabs to a Bonneville wheel for attachment of the aerodynamic wheel cover.

 

The Sidewinder Dakota utilizes a variety of tire and wheel combinations for specific high-performance applications.

The stock Dakota wheel and tire are flanked by the front (left) and rear wheels and tires used at Bonneville. These Goodyear Eagles are capable of 300 MPH.

 

The wheels and tires on Project Sidewinder have been selected for best diesel sport truck performance, towing, and mileage. On the Street, the Sidewinder Dakota diesel sport truck runs on Boyd Coddington wheels and Yokohama ultra high-performance street tires.

Yokohama high-performance tires are mounted on the 18” front and 20” rear Boyd Coddington forged aluminum Stingray wheels for the street.

The wheel and tire package is a big part of the performance and appearance of any sport truck. The multiple goals of Project Sidewinder call for several wheel and tire combinations to meet the specific needs.

Street and Highway

For street and highway driving, the Sidewinder Dakota is equipped with Yokohama® high-performance tires. On the front, 255/45R18 tires are mounted on 18x8-inch Boyd Coddington® Stingray forged-aluminum wheels. On the rear, huge 295/45R20 tires are mounted on 20x9.5-inch Coddington Stingrays. These tires provide a high level of street traction for cornering and braking while allowing the massive torque to be put to best use, and of course, the big diameter wheel and tire combination adds to the sport truck appearance of the Sidewinder.

Bonneville

For the Bonneville speed trials, Goodyear® Eagle Land Speed 25.0x4.5-15 tires were used on the front and Goodyear Eagle Land Speed 8.00/8.20-15 on the rear. Both fronts and rears are mounted on Circle Racing Wheels® Nascar-style super speedway steel 15” wheels with spun outer rims and fully-welded centers. The front wheels are 15x6-inch and the rears are 15x9.5-inch. This tire and wheel combination has been proven on many vehicles over a long period of time at Bonneville and is speed rated at 300 MPH.

The rear Goodyears were developed jointly with Banks in the mid 1980's from a super speedway tire used at Daytona and Talladega. These tires offer the best traction for this application.

Road Course and Road Race

The final determination on Yokohama tire size for the road courses has yet to be made, although they are virtually certain to be 17-inch, mounted on appropriate 17-inch race-quality wheels.

For all of the above wheel and tire packages, extensive rear bed and fenderwell modifications have been made to fit the big tires in the available space. Similarly, front steering and suspension travel will need to be limited for the road course wheel and tire package.