Im intrested as well, this spring id like to do some events at the glen and such, and well Fd wheels which I run require a 25mm(1") spacer. The max aloud is 1/2" I have some panspeed replica over fenders in the front. The stock wheels come under the fender to much, i guess I could run 1/4 spacers, but also stock t2 wheels are heavy!

plus if im going be making around 350hp, Ill only be able to run a 225 on the wheels, and I cant really afford great race tires( I wouldnt say afford, but I will only be doing maybe 2 events the entire year, and its time trial runs). I will prob be running kumho MX's. Im alittle worried about traction issues.

question for you guys as well...are weld wheels basically for drag only? I was looking at these http://www.jegs.com/webapp/wcs/store...egory_rn=36673 in perhaps a 15x8 for the front and 15x10 rear for a race wheel. Until I could afford a set of 17' enkei's

ATS comp lite
they offer in 15x7 in 35 offset and 15x8 unknown offset. ~12 lbs.
hoosier makes a 245/40/15 tire...

Sorry Ted, I should not have jumped on the band wagon, and called you an Idiot. I apologize, but your statement is pretty dumb, and you have NO idea of whether or not I know how to drive a race car. If you want the answer to that, I am sure you have plenty of time on your hands to search the web in general, or mylaps.com etc, and see if I can drive, or am just regurgitating/disputing (depending on the day) known facts (ring a bell?). Anyway, I should have said you were being silly, but I worry that somebody will see your post count, and listen to you... Sorry about the thread folks. I suggest the mod delete my derogatory comment, and Ted's as he sees fit.
Kumho MX tires work quite well for an occasional event, and do not tend to loose grip, or get greasy when hot. They also work well in the rain. If you are on a budget, I suggest carefully selected used race tires (assuming you have a second set of rims) Watch their age, and stick to RA1s, or Victoracers. You will be worlds ahead of a street tire for less than half the cost of new. I set a track record in NASAs unlimited time trial class on two year old take-offs I paid 55.00 each for, so used tires are certainly an option. SCCA, and NASA forums are good sources, as well as the used tire vendors in the back of GRM. Carl

Hey, question... whats more important? Width or diameter?

I see shit like.. 16x7 rims, or 15x8s (up to x13s!) in some sites, and its cheaper than those big ass import forgings - and I know that a lot of cars race on that. But, OTOH you either have a small ass tire and effectively smaller gears, or lots of sidewall.

So, whats the way to go? Make sure you got some stiff sidewalls? Smaller Wheels? or wait for some 17x10s?

the smallest diameter wheel that will fit over the brakes, and the widest wheels and widest rubber you can cram.

ideally 16x8 +27 mm offset. 245/45/16 tire.
If you have money you can stagger. 16x8 +27 up front with 245/45/16, then 16x9 +30 offset with a 275 tire. The only company that makes R-comps 275 with 16" dia is hoosier. Which don't last long at all.

The kumho V10s seem like the hot ticket as it replaces the victoracer. V710s are as sticky as the hoosiers and heat cycle better and last longer.

I ran toyo ra1 225/50/16 on the stock s5T2 meshies. W/ coilovers the balance weight hits the sping perch, so i had to run a 5 mm spacer.

This guy put them on his Buick Skylark :)

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/1968-...ayphotohosting

Weld makes road race wheels, most are drag only though. You would need to go through Weld or a place like Jegs to ensure you got the road race ones. I would not trust private party, and they look the same. Carl

Anyone know how much those Welds weigh? Good price if workable.

Why cant you race with 'drag' wheels?

EDIT: also, why is nt all these damn websites cant let you search by diameter x width? ARGH. Well, wait, do you need a 15" or 16" rim to clear the 4pot brakes on a FC?

I would thing most 15" wheels would clear.
The reason you don't want to use drag wheels for road racing is the centers are probably built differently. Drag cars don't see any side loads.

OOOOOOOHHHHHHHhhhhhhhhhhh. Thank you!

because a drag strip is stright, flat, and has no corners. When you go road racing you have to turn and therefore you put lateral forces on the wheel that was only designed to roll. Plus you add some bumps, some curbs, and some offs = bent or fractured drag strip wheel. Last thing you need is a wheel failing at the end of the straightaway at 120+ mph

I didnt know drag wheels were made so minimally and unable to handle side loads. Bah, now I know to go with some road race wheels that got more strength.

Alright, now what I wonder is if it would be worthwhile to go with 15" rims on the street, because the only kind of high perf. (or higher) street tires in the 15" rim size are not very wide, the market seems to be for 16" rims and up. Guess theyd be race only, because I have seem hoosiers, and other full race tires in 15", wiiiide sizes.

If I went 16" or 17" I could just get kumhos, plus I see race tires for those size rims in various widths and series. Would 15" really only be any good if I got full on race tires? :pat:

As for wide 15" tires, My REPU has hi-perf Dunlop SP8000 225/50/15 on front, 245/50/15 on rear. That's pretty wide considering it's 13b puts 144 to the ground. Amount of HP determines how much tire you need.

Power is hardly going to be something I'll be lacking ;) unfortunately for STREET tires for 15"rims it seems to be tires made for and marketed for muscle cars... softish sidewalls for drag launches and emphasis on just going straight.

Im gonna be having all the muscle but a better chassis... I really dont care about looks and 15" tires are cheaper, but I guess if I want to actually CORNER Im going to need to get bigger rims for street tires :(

I have tried 225/50-15 on my track car but I am very happy with 205/50-15.

Lighter, shorter, and closer to the rim width.

I also use stock 6 inch widths, aftermarket 6.5 inch, and now Kosei 7 inch widths and I haven't noticed huge differences in my lap times there either.

Driver skill totally swamps tire and rim choices at least on victoracers. If you haven't reached the skill level where all your laps are nearly always the same time, you probably won't notice the difference.

ed

Some R compound tires come in a 225/45/15. That would be a good size for us, smaller than stock diameter, and about as wide as you can go under stock fenders without coilovers.

Not true. Even a car with very limited power can lap a track significantly faster with more rubber on the ground. Mark Donohue proved this long before I was born.

Wide 15" street tires in a good sticky compound are few and far between. Most aren't available in anything over 225mm section. If you are happy running 15x7s with 225 section tires that's fine, but you get a lot more choices by going with 16" or 17" wheels, but you have to be very careful with wheel weight. 15x6" whels should stick with 205 section tires. I ended up with 17s as I fell into a set of Bridgestone SO-3s for cheap and bought wheels to fit. I also have some 16x7" wheels for take off race tires, but 15x7 would be even better.

I have a question for you guys. I see quite a few wheels offered in the 16x8 and have a 30 offset. is there any spacer combo that i could run and still fit 245's all around? thanks guys.

CJG

Just got my wheels.
16x10 with 5" of backspacing. There is actually quite a bit of space between the strut/spring and inner wheels lip. I can go lock to lock with the tire touching anything... although I'll admit the car is very high right now (stock springs, no engine/trans).

i must say alot of people in my local auto x scene claim its 95% driver 5% car....i was going to go with 16x8 wheels with 235 or 245 all around would that be a good idea as ill be doing time trials and track days (yokohama AO32R) can some one elaborate on the heat cycle, shaved and R compunds? thanks! BTW ill be daily driving this car once in a while and heading to MSR(motor sports ranch hOUSTON...s) i planned on running some wedsport wheels they are stupid light well...maybe not as light as other but 15lbs for 17inch wheels...BUT i guess ill go with 16's....since i dont have one of the rediculous big brake kits...lol...and i have the clearance..
you guys take on it?

I once tried stockcar style 15X8 wheels (I forget the brand) but the wheels would not clear the front face of my calipers. The center steel was too shallow.

I guess I gave up on that idea too soon.

ed

TravisR Where the hell did you get those 16x10" rims? :eek:

Also, travis, I think some of that might be the nonexistant sidewalls on those things. But hey, lower it a little and go for some cones :D