Just saw an ad on Instagram about a group buy on ARC-8s for FT-86/BRZs.
Exciting!

https://www.gangup.com/apex/apex-17-...s-q3-2019.html

Yes, we just kicked off another community Group Buy last week :D

For those in the market for a lightweight set of 17x9" wheels that clear the PP Brembo's, now is certainly the best time to grab a set at our deepest discount available all year.

- Ryan

Just picked some up used and at -2 deg with camber bolts they won't even go on because they contact the spring perch. They came with 245/40 Forcuem Hena and my suspension is all stock BRZ Performance Package. The tires look like they're pretty wide on the wheel so maybe that's the issue. Previous owner said he had 3 mm of clearance with 0 camber: https://www.ft86club.com/forums/showthread.php?t=135386

He got rid of them because he didn't want to run camber plates but wanted camber. I'm probably going to pull the bolts and go back to 0 camber until I get some coilovers, and get some use out of these all seasons in the meantime. I may try adding a spacer so that I can switch my stock wheels back on for track days and still have camber. I think that's just the price to pay for getting flush fitment with how wide these wheels are, and I'm fine with paying it as I'm eventually getting coilovers anyways.

Other than that though the wheels look great, I just wish I could get them on now!

This topic comes up often, and that is because there is very little room to work with under the stock fenders with stock suspension in place (especially with the TRD/PP Sachs struts). 9" wide wheels are the maximum wheel width we can stuff under the car with the stock suspension in place, and we believe the sweet spot for offset is ET40-42. If you run a 9" wheel with a lower offset, let's say ET35, they will poke a touch without negative camber and could possibly rub the fender arches under suspension compression (of course this ultimately depends on tire size and brand as not all are created equal). If you run a 9" wheel with a higher offset, let's say ET45, the wheel is dangerously close to the front struts and in many cases, the tires will make contact.

For performance driving enthusiasts looking to increase handling performance while gaining more outer fender clearance (in order to stuff wider compounds onto the wheel), adjustable camber plates are the real solution. Camber/crash bolts are a band-aid fix and can only net you so much camber. More importantly, they sacrifice inner clearance between the tire and the suspension where space is already very limited.

Adjustable camber plates will give you a broader range of adjustment (better handling and more consistent tire wear on track) AND will not sacrifice inner clearance since everything moves in harmony. It is important to note that camber plates pay for themselves very quickly in the form of tire longevity. They are one of the better, relatively inexpensive modifications you can do to the car.

- Ryan

Very interested in your 17x9.5 offering! Currently im on stock suspension running 17x9 +35 rpf1s with 245 40 17 re71r/rs4.

-4.0 degrees of camber in the front with two camber bolts on each strut and a 15mm spacer to clear spring perch. Surprisingly the wheel/tire tucks inside the fender and does not rub :thumbsup:

Also interested in 17x9.5, but please, do not make a high offset. Those interested in a 17x9.5 will be track focused people, bling users will just get 18x9.5 which is widely available. Which means most of us are running at the bare minimum -3 degrees of camber, and past -4 you need both, plates and bolt so spring perch clearance could be an issue with anything +40 or higher probably.

Agreed, the 17x9.5" wheels are being designed with hardcore track enthusiasts and racers in mind. Brake clearance, as well as front strut clearance, will be paramount and the offset will likely be somewhere between ET38 & ET40. We test inner strut clearance with various race compounds, suspensions, and camber settings, as not all are created equal.

Customers purchasing the 17x9.5" wheel will be running 255/40-17's, or a 245/40-17 race compound that runs wide where they would benefit from the added sidewall support. Aftermarket suspension (slimmer in design) and negative camber is par for the course. :thumbsup:

- Ryan

Awesome, seems like you know exactly what I want then :) Eager to see the end results then :party0030:

Any ETA or teaser photos you can share? :)

Our forged wheel line is launching later this month, which is something we have been working hard on for quite some time now. Once the release goes live, we will have a lot more internal bandwidth and production resources to push forward projects like broadening the 86/BRZ line.

We will definitely re-engage with the community when we have more concrete dates and content to share. :thumbsup:

- Ryan

Thanks!
I guess you're implying that the forged wheels won't be available in the 86/BRZ sizes?

Great question. We are currently working on expanding our flow formed 86/BRZ wheel line.

The first phase of our forged release will encompass a wide variety of chassis specific BMW fitments, but like our flow formed line, we will swiftly move to support other makes and models.

86/BRZ enthusiasts will ultimately have both flow formed and forged wheel solutions from APEX. The bottom line is that car enthusiasts are diverse, and we want to be able to cater to everyone's performance and budgetary needs.

- Ryan

Quick update: I tried putting 5mm spacers on. The driver side cleared fine, passenger side apparently had a bit more camber and just barely made contact when installed. I honestly didn't want to run spacers anyways, so I decided to pull my camber bolts out and put the wheels on, need to take it in for an alignment still. Just FYI, I have more room than the 3 mm the previous owner said he had at 0 camber. I didn't take an actual measurement but I could wiggle a 2 mm thick shim back and forth with a lot of movement. I could probably dial back in a bit of camber and still be okay. I may experiment and see how much I can get dialed in.

Any word on new 17x9.5 development? Patiently waiting with money in-hand

1. i wanna say Thank you and hearing out so much demands. :)

2. Will there be gold color in the future? Thank you.

We've got a number of new 5x100 fitments in the works including the 17x9.5" wheels being discussed in this thread, and our engineers and production team are working hard behind the scenes to bring these to fruition. We know many have been patiently waiting for the release, and while I don't have a hard ETA at the moment, the idea is to get them into customers hands this season.

We'll update the community soon :cheers:

Absolutely! Providing quality and affordable wheel solutions for enthusiast communities has been a focal point for us for over 12 years now. Forums like this give us a unique ability to understand the needs of a diverse audience, and aside from chatting to fellow track junkies in the paddock at the race track, forums are still one of the best ways for us to stay in direct contact with our customers.

A gold finish will definitely be an option in the future. We've been reviewing samples/swatches internally to hone in on the right tone.

- Ryan

Alright I'm gonna go ahead and read between the lines here and hold out for a future set of 17x9.5 or 10's. Can't wait :)

Just wanted to say I’m in on the group buy and looking forward to it. Anthracite (or my second choice of satin black) with some nice extended studs and open lugs should be a great look, and perform a lot better than my heavy rotiforms

Are you going to open up the line of your other wheels to the brz?! I’d be in heaven you have some sweet looking wheels on other platforms!

I need tires this year, might as well buy my second set of Apex wheels. Looking forward to seeing the new models. I'm hoping for SM10 :popcorn:

Any updates on the new offerings for the brz/86?

CALLING ALL BRZ PERFORMANCE PACKAGE OWNERS IN THE BOSTON, MA AREA

In an effort to expand our wheel offering, we are actively looking for a BRZ Performance Package model with the stock Brembo brakes and Sachs struts still in place to conduct 3D scanning. If you or a fellow enthusiast you know is available, please contact us by PM, email or phone. Scanning can be done at your convenience, Monday - Sunday, and can also be done at your location. I know many of you have stored the car for the winter, so we want to make this as convenient as possible for the owner.

This is a vital step to ensure our new flow formed and fully forged fitments and designs for this community are optimized for this chassis, and we greatly appreciate the support from the community in bringing this to market.


https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/rennlis...61f76f310b.jpg

I don't know if it's too late in your development process, but for 17x9 fitments there be different offsets? The ARC-8 17x9 et42 is very close to the stock front struts when using 245/40/17 Continental tires.

In my case, camber plates were necessary to get any negative camber up front on RCE yellow springs.

It sounds like you'll appreciate one of our new fitments :thumbsup:

8" and 8.5" wide wheels are slim enough where inner and outer clearances are a non-issue as long as the wheel manufacturer chooses the appropriate offset. We do 3D scanning and on-car testing with various track/race compounds to ensure we offer the most optimum offset.

When it comes to 9" (and wider) wide wheels, the "perfect" offset really comes down to how your car is setup - suspension type, how you plan to dial in negative camber (bolts vs. plates), how much negative camber you would like to run, tire size and tire brand since not all are created equal. This means that enthusiast "A" with a more compliant suspension (aftermarket coilovers or non-Sachs struts) may appreciate a higher offset like 9" ET42 where no/less negative camber is required to clear the outer fenders, while enthusiast "B" with Sachs struts may appreciate a lower offset like 9" ET35 so they dont have to run spacers on the fornt.

The same can be said about enthusiast "C" using camber plates to dial in negative camber, vs. enthusiast "D" who will use camber bolts (which compromises inner strut clearance).

For these reasons, we will have multiple 9" fitments (offsets) to satisfy the needs of all enthusiasts.

- Ryan

Well, now I am getting slightly concerned. I just got in on that group buy for the 17x9 et42 on the understanding that they fit PP with Sachs. Don't they?


Or is it just a camber bolts vs plates issue? I planned on plates but don't have them yet. Although I expect they will be in by the time the group buy wheels are delivered...

@APEX Race Parts: if you do that 3d scanning to ensure your wheel clearance .. may i ask for two things that imho twins owners community may greatly benefit from?
- can you also scan non-PP stock brakes?
- can you release brake clearance fitment templates for both stock PP and for generic stock brakes?
Most aftermarket brake vendors provide downloadable brake templates for their BBKs .. unfortunatly no such for stock brakes though even they are more numerous and their owners also would benefit from easier/quicker wheel check way (eg. with stock brakes if one wishes to check some R15 for winter use clearance).

@APEX Race Parts This is awesome. What sizes and wheel models are you testing for? I’ve always loved the rest of your lineup. When can we expect them to be released?

Can't wait to see new wheel desgins. You guys have won my business next wheel purchase.

Sent from my GM1915 using Tapatalk

In the case of my tires, DWS06 in 245/40/17, I had to keep the front camber at 0 to allow 5mm of clearance between the tire and spring/perch. I tried camber bolts and could only reach -0.3 degree, and that left barely 3mm of clearance, so camber plates were necessary. If you have camber plates, the whole assembly moves so it’s not an issue.

Me too. Really eyeing the FL-5 or maybe the EC-7s. Got new tires on stockers last month so I’m good for a bit while they design the new ones. Excited :thumbup:

I wonder if you should also scan the same setup but with camber bolts giving something around -1.5...-2° in the front, as this seems to be a popular mod among drivers who want negative camber in the front but not ready to spend significant money on coilovers.

One more data point: on stock suspension height your car will look like a monster truck on these wheels. You'll most likely want to lower the car, at which point might as well get some reasonably priced coilovers. At least this is what I ended up doing, although I picked wheels from a different manufacturer.

Thank you for your recent participation in the GB. I'm happy to help provide more clarity and guidance in regards to your specific setup.

Since the PP Sachs struts have a slightly larger silhouette in comparison to the non-Sachs struts, inner clearance between strut and wheel/tire is slightly diminished. This really does not come into play with slimmer wheel widths, but 9" wheels are wide enough to the point where all the fine details matter. As described, whether or not small spacers are needed will come down to tire size and brand since not all are created equal.

What tire size and brand do you plan to run? Is this a car enjoyed on the street only, or will it see track time?

For track enthusiasts, adjustable camber plates are the better solution for dialing in negative camber. While camber/crash bolts are cheap, they do not have a broad adjustment range and they compromise inner clearance where space is already pretty tight.

Depending on the wheel and tire setup and the driver's goals and intended use, camber/crash bolts may make sense in some scenarios. With that said, if the driver at hand is investing in wheels, tires and a track alignment with the intention of optimizing performance (grip, turn-in, etc.) and tire longevity on track, it makes a lot of sense to spend a little more money on adjustable plates. You'll get a quick ROI in the form of tire longevity after a handful of track days.

You are absolutely correct. When we develop new fitments for a specific chassis, one of the first things we do is research brake clearances to ensure our wheels are designed from the ground up to clear stock brakes (including upgrades available from the factory like PP Brembo) and a wide variety of popular aftermarket BBK's (Essex AP, Brembo, StopTech, etc.). When discussing the topic of brake clearance most immediately think of large brakes being problematic, however, small rotors position the caliper closer to the center of the wheel where spoke clearance is typically the tightest, so it is imperative to take all brakes applicable to a given chassis into consideration during the wheel design phase.

The three aftermarket brake manufacturers I mentioned above make it really easy, as they all have templates available online to download. When it comes to original brake equipment from the manufacturer (even if they source a from a supplier like Brembo), 2D templates are not released/available.

This, in addition to suspension related data, is precisely why we take things a step further and conduct 3D scanning sessions. Needless to say, these scans are expensive when you factor in the equipment used and all of the associated logistical costs with donor vehicles, etc. While it would be nice to share the templates with the community, it would also result in handing over valuable data to wheel manufacturers that have chosen not to invest in development to the same degree.

This data will result in our ability to create better wheel solutions for 86/BRZ enthusiasts, and the brake clearance information will be available in our chassis-specific fitment guides.


We really appreciate the support. We will have more concrete information very soon.

If an enthusiast is set on running camber bolts with the stock suspension rather than adjustable camber plates, a 9" wheel will typically need to have an offset around ET35 - 38 depending on the tire size and brand at hand, and whether it is the PP with Sach struts or not.

- Ryan

I plan on tracking the vehicle and right now I am aiming at 245/40-17 Kumho V720's. I will also be getting camber plates.

Between in-house testing and customer feedback, we're constantly compiling data on 245 tire clearances against the front Sachs struts with these wheel specs. Unfortunately, at this time I do not have the 245/40-17 Kumho V720's on that list to be able to confirm or deny.

As a reference, 245 tires that run wider than your average street tire (most extreme summer tires, r-compounds, and semi-slicks) will almost always require small 5mm spacers to clear unless aftermarket coilovers are installed.

Adjustable camber plates are a great call for the reasons previously mentioned. :thumbsup:

- Ryan

What lug nuts/wheel studs are you guys running? My group buy set will be here soon and I'm trying to get my ducks in a row. I really like the look of the longer lug nuts (closed-ended) but I'm curious if I need extended studs to run them. Or is the extended stud just a stylistic thing for those wanting to run longer open-ended lug nuts?

Another question; I drive a 2014 BRZ on stock suspension, will I have an issue running 245's?

Those 17x10 coming soon?

Most important question of 2020 right here.

X2

Satin Black Apex ARC-8s - Dark Gray BRZ PP
 

Satin black ARC-8s on my Dark Gray PP BRZ. I participated in the most recent group buy to get my hands on these, and I couldn't be happier. This is exactly the look I was gunning for! Getting $150 off and free shipping was a cherry on top.

Attachment 185371

Attachment 185372

Attachment 185373

Attachment 185374

Attachment 185375

Satin Black ARC-8 17x9
245/40/r17 Continental Control Contact Sport SRS tires
Eibach Pro Kit springs - otherwise stock suspension
Factory performance package Brembos & Sachs Dampers

Your car looks great! What are your alignment specs? Did you use camber plates or bolts?