SS Wheels...

I want to put some 20" SS wheels on my 03 1500. IS there anything special that has to be done, besides calibration, to put them on? What size tires will fit inside the wheel wells without rubbing? Any advice from those with experience would be greatly appreciated.

The SS silverado is actually lower than an normal 2WD silverado, but is still basicly the same truck. The bolt pattern is the same. So there should be no trouble mounting the SS wheels on any silverado.

Be careful though, I put Escalade wheels on my old 89 pickup. It looked good for about six months until I got up one morning and my truck had been stolen and stripped. Bummer.

I'm not sure of the exact tire size used by the factory on the SS wheels. But a good tire size would be something around a 45 or 50 series tire.

I want to put some 20" SS wheels on my 03 1500. IS there anything special that has to be done, besides calibration, to put them on? What size tires will fit inside the wheel wells without rubbing? Any advice from those with experience would be greatly appreciated.

Greetings Chuck,

Let me give you an alternative to your idea. SS wheels in 2003 were brushed aluminum alloy - nice but not spectacular. In 2004 the SS wheels were chromed aluminum alloy - nicer than the 1993 version.

But then Chevy produced yet a different version to be used on their Limited Appearance Package which is what I have. They are 20" chromed alloy with gold bowtie centers - less concave than the SS units - same bolt hole circle etc.. They didn't appear until May 2004 and can also be purchased from Chevy directly.

The tires that come on Chevy 1500 RWD with Limited Appearqance Package are Goodyear 20's 55s. Nice grip, decent mileage, and I love the sidewall profile and features. Surprisingly - I'm driving them in the snow and ice here in Wisconsin with GOOD traction.

The picture of my truck is in the gallery - and shows the wheels in case you're interested. (No modifications of the truck are needed for this size. Incidentally, they run at 30 PSI).

Hope this helps as an alternative.

White Lightening

Thanks for your response... Very nice looking truck, and the rims look great. I am specifically looking at the 2003 rims because I want the brushed aluminum. I like the spoke look but without the bling... which series GY do you have? Do you know if they make bowties for the standard SS rims?

Thanks for your response... Very nice looking truck, and the rims look great. I am specifically looking at the 2003 rims because I want the brushed aluminum. I like the spoke look but without the bling... which series GY do you have? Do you know if they make bowties for the standard SS rims?

Greetings Chuck,

Yep - when it comes to wheels its a "to each his own" viewpoint. Myself, I had concave chrome on steel on my Explorer and when I saw the Chevy with the Chrome on Alloy with the convex shaping instead of concave - that was for me.

The Gold Bowties on the wheels I have seem to surprise Chevy owners when they see them - not expecting Chevy factory to have such a thing. I don't recall seeing rhe bowties on the SS wheels - either brushed on the 2003 or shiny on the 2004. In fact as I recall - it may be the SS logo (can't remember for sure).

Tires:
Goodyear Eagle LS 275/55 20s.

White Lightening

I've got the SS wheels on my 2wd 99 Silv. I love them! They aren't chromed, but I kinda like the low-key sport truck look and I'm hoping they won't be as big a target for theives. I haven't had any problems with them clearance wise and my truck is still the stock height.

Of course, they did sap some of my acceleration and braking power and throw off my speedo. I used the Hypertech to correct the power loss and speedo....and I need to save for some more effective brakes.

Hope you enjoy your wheels. Oh....and I got mine from Ebay in great shape for alot less than at the dealer.... :smile:

I'm not sure how to post the pics on here.....but this is a link to my fotki album which shows the SS wheels and the clearance they give.....

http://public.fotki.com/WWalker482/pics_of_my_cars_and/

Greetings Red00lght,

that Black Chevy with the brushed alloy SS wheels looks very attractive. But I was a bit confused when you said it sapped some of your acceleration and braking power. I figure your axle ratio and then putting on 20" wheels probably altered your gearing a bit - prbably cut your stoplight punch but increased your gas mileage. But I didn't understand how it would affect your braking? Can you clarify?

I've read some reviews done on the 2004 1500 (what I have) that talked about 12" discs aren't enough and it could use more - yet my braking seems quite acceptable - and it seems to me that 12" is pretty good sized. Am I all wet?

White Lightening

One last question for any of you. I'm wondering if for winter driving purposes here in Wisconsin if there is any advantage in getting either brushed aluminum SS wheels (2003 model) or Chromed SS wheels (2004 model) because of road salt etc.?

White- With the larger tires you have increased rolling mass. This means that it will take more power to brake in the same distance.

As far as winter goes, I live in Indiana. We get our fair share of snow and ice and the DOT loves to use salt. I just took off my 20" wheels and replaced them with the factory alloys. I would suggest the same to anyone. I have too much money invested to have premature wear from salt. You can pick up factory alloys off ebay for about $200. My guess would be that the brushed aluminum would hold up better than the chrome.

just my 2cents
nineball

White Lightning,

I'm no engineer....but from what I understand, larger wheels produce more weight/mass away from the center of the wheel where braking is more effective.... making it harder to bring the truck to a stop.

What I do know is the truck probably takes another 30 feet to stop from 70mph with the stock brake setup and my 20" wheels, and it is definetly a bit slower during all phases of acceleration. Don't let this stop you from getting some nice wheels though....there are plenty of ways to get the power back (and then some!) and there are lots of good brake kits to get the truck to stop fast. :smile:

As far as road salt goes in driving during winter.....I'm not sure about the ability of the SS wheels to stay shiny since I'm down here in South Florida and it is 78 degrees today! :wink: :evillol:

Seriously though, my 03 rims I put on have been very easy to clean and maintain....I bet chrome would be a little harder, but look better when they are shined up!

In case you guys want the proper terminology, lol in case anyone is as much of a dork as I am. The proper term is the Mass Moment of Inertia, and its the amount of Force it takes to spin a given object around a defined axis. Its based on mass, and characteristic length. Basically the more mass you have further away from the axis of rotation, the harder it is to get the mass spinning or to stop spinning. Just think about the figure skaters when they do that spinning thing! they get themselves going at a given rotational velocity, then just by reducing their overall radius (i.e. bringin their arms and legs in) even though they havent changed mass, they begin to speed up, why? well two reasons, their angular momentum is conserved, and they have reduced their mass moment of inertia and voila, rotational velocity increases.

So forgive me for babbling or not making sense, im tired:)

Final verdict, 2 wheels of same mass, if one is larger than the other or has more mass at a greater distance from the axis of rotation, more force, and therefore mre power to turn, and/or stop the wheel. Welcome to Dynamics 101.

Great....now every time I see a figure skater I'm going to be thinking about my damn wheels! :lol: