Best value 17x9 wheels or 17x9.5?
 

I'm about to order my 2nd set of 949 racing wheels for autoX. Rpf1's even with 35mm offset don't fit stoptech big brake kit. Are there any other cheap but quality 17x9 or 17x9.5 wheels I should be looking at? Don't want to spend much over a grand rather have it go towards tires.

Also debating whether to put RE71R's or Hoosier A7 on the new wheels. I'll be more competitive in the 200 TW class but the guys on 40 TW tires look like they are having a blast! Those who've run both how much life should I expect out of each?

Apex ARC8's

www.apexraceparts.xom

They're actually doing on group buy right now for 86 fitment wheels.

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Yesss Apex is what you're looking for. Super light, strong, and clears brakes. They are +42 offset if I'm not mistaken. They're right at a grand I believe, but you can probably find them cheaper in the group buy. Also, there are a few in the classifieds here.

I think it's going to be tough to beat the value prop of the 949 6ul, to be honest.

I'd gamble 2/3 to 3/4 the life of the re71r if you slap A7s on, depending on the alignment and surface. Reports of 100 runs aren't uncommon on A7s on cars that have decent alignment and don't punish tires. We started hitting cords on a FWD hatch that doesn't have enough camber and too much power to the fronts at around 60-ish runs (300 ft-lbs through 225s is an unbalanced equation) as long as your alignment doesn't suck you should be able to beat that, we were getting 130 runs on re71r on that car and a bit more on my FRS.

Hard to beat 6UL and RPF1, Apex has a good rep but for the price range most of your choices will be heavier and potentially no more durable than rpf1s

Thanks for your input. Almost everyone at my local autoX on A7's swaps them at home and drives to and from the events. How much do you think that would effect the life? For me it's a 70 mile round trip and I already have to be there early so being able swap at home is convenient.

How would you describe the handling difference between the two? And how much faster are the A7's on a 1 min course?

17x9.5 isn't so common. TE37 Saga come in that size though. Bit more than $1k though.

What class do you run/want to run?

Mach V Awesome wheels are a good option as well.

I would love a flowformed 17x9.5 or 17x10 wheel. Sadly, I dont think anything aside from TE37 comes in that size, and those are more than I'd pay for a whole set, for a single wheel...

Does the 17x9 fit the performance package brakes on the BRZ's?

Yes it does. I have a set on my Series Yellow BRZ.

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Too bad you're on the opposite coast. LOL


http://www.ft86club.com/forums/showt...ight=949racing

My local Porsche and corvette club don’t really do the classes the same as most autoX’s. They have 3 classes that are purely based on the treadwear of your tires. They have a 300tw class, a 200tw class and an under 200tw class.

I was trying to compete against the guys on Hoosiers with my track tires 100tw NT01’s but have realized the NT01’s are actually slower for autoX than some of the 200tw tires like the re71r’s.

The open A class is dominated by a guy in a Lotus 7 with an S2K drivetrain and a 1st gen 911 that weighs 1800lbs and has almost 300 HP. The 911 looks so dialed in and has a pair of very fast drivers so I doubt anyone will beat them.

The other 2 classes competition would be of course Caymans, focus rs and golf r. Unfortunately there’s not many 86’s coming out.

Gotcha. If you ever wanted to do SCCA, STX is limited to 9 inch wheel width (and 200tw) and it is a very good class for the FRZ's. Might be something to consider.

No idea about the street wear, I wouldn't put an extra 140 miles on them per event if I could help it (we're also 70miles out from our events), especially at the >3° camber we run. We show up half an hour to an hour early to do the swap unless we have a free rungroup before. I regularly put that mileage on my RE71R's for events, I haven't met anyone street driving Hoosiers, they get trailered or swapped.

More grip, with the meatier construction I find them a bit less responsive on initial turn-in than RE71R's in the same advertised size (they're definitely noticeably bigger), but less forgiving of mistakes, they have a less forgiving cliff where if you overstep you're gone, part of that is the chassis (FWD, under-tired) which might not carry over to the FRZ depending on how you're set up. I know that's contrary to how most people would describe switching to Hoosiers (sharper, more responsive, covers up mistakes), but I think that's old sentiment comparing a pinched street tire from the older generation vs a pinched Hoosier, nowadays modern 200TW fast street tires don't like the pinch so they're a lot more responsive than they used to be. The A7's reward precision and bravery and will make you faster than you think you are (which might be the covering mistakes sentiment).

Based on my local surfaces and RE71R's (decent concrete) easily 1s faster over 60s once we found the limit of the tires, looking back at past results we might actually be 2s faster than last year on a ~50s course, but again that chassis was under-tired and over-powered vs the FRZ which has a much better weight/power/suspension/tire balance.


Seems like OP is just playing with a local club, not building a competitive SCCA car. Probably having a lot more fun than we are, but reading the last two posts you're right, building for STX might be the ticket if OP hasn't even considered SCCA, especially not having experienced the fast 200TW tires before this and the added hassle of mounting up Hoosiers at the event. STX competition will be much tighter than Porsche clubs rather lax classes. Tires will also be much cheaper and last longer.

https://pmctire.com/en/wheels/720-fo...t-35-73-1.tire

These are a good bang for the buck imo. A few local guys who used them for the track haven't had issues with them.

Well I was going to comment about Konig Ultraforms and Rays Gramlights.
Turns out ultraforms are 2 lbs heavier per wheel in a 17x9 vs RPF1 (17.85 lbs vs 15.65 lbs)
The Rays are even heavier at 20.2 lbs each.

Thanks for the referrals, gents.

OP, if you have any questions about our ARC-8 17x9" wheels, please let me know. As mention, we are currently running a community Group Buy, so your timing couldn't be better. :party0030:

- Ryan

If you're looking for a good value, check these Speedwell RS-1 wheels out! http://www.ft86club.com/forums/showthread.php?t=136024

Fully forged, made specifically for the Toyobaru twins with hub-centric fitment, made in the USA, and very affordable considering that they are fully forged!

-Sam

https://scontent-lax3-1.xx.fbcdn.net...4c&oe=5DA67421

IMO the konig flow formed line is the best value in wheels.
They come in 17x9 and most (all?) of them clear the PP brakes in that size. (none of the 17x8s do though)

Most of the wheels that are available in a 17x9, under 18lbs per wheel, have BBK clearance and can be had for around $1k or less for a set have been mentioned in this thread. My personal list runs like this:

949 6UL
Apex Arc8
Konig Hypergram
Konig Ultraform

Options open up if you are willing to either spend more money or accept a heavier wheel but this is basically it under the specifications I mentioned.

Special mentions to other options in this thread:
720form GTF1s don't have appropriate BBK clearance.
Speedwell RS-1 are more expensive even with the group buy discount although they are beautiful wheels that otherwise meet the specifications and look to be worth the money.

You might also consider Rota Titans, they look basically the same as TC105N at a much lower price and slightly increased weight. Up to you if the weight and shortcuts they took are significant disadvantages.

Do you already have coilovers? Do you use camber bolts?
One important thing to consider before choosing the wheels is how to dial in the negative camber in the front. The higher the offset, the more limited the range you can get with camber bolts. See also this thread.

.... not even close.

That's about as close as saying the BRZ is the same as a Cayman at a much lower price and slightly decreased performance.

Thanks for sharing!

Sorry wasn't clear: by "basically the same" I've specifically meant the looks :bonk:

Whether they are "mostly same" or "this is a heavy and low quality ripoff" depends on the reader's pocket, skill and performance goals, hence "consider". Not everyone can afford a second set of TC105X's or forged wheels just to put them on for half a day just a few times per year 🙂

[Off-topic]
As for BRZ vs Cayman, I had an opportunity to rent and drive both back to back on the same track, and with moderate mods their BRZ was way more fun than a 718 Cayman S (stock + track pads). Cayman was more refined and surely faster on the lap timer, but I was surprised to learn / confirm than a BRZ is more rewarding to drive, for less money. Tracking them both was a great idea, now it will be much easier for me to justify investing money into more track days and consumables rather than saving for a fancier car 😅

x2

720Form
 

I would suggest 720form too, not sure about the fitment with BBK though…

GTF1 17X9 +35 are around 17lbs and can be found as cheap as 225$ (170$usd) per wheel here in Canada. I bought one used set in perfect condition for 600$ (450$usd). I know they were hard to find in the US for some time but for flow form wheels it's a great deal.

If you're ok waiting for some time, there might be another one coming:

Yes, I've been following that thread :)

Wedsport SA72r Wide spec 17x9.5+38et:D ~$1200


https://i.imgur.com/vE8Exwj.jpg

Thanks this appears to be a viable 17x9.5 option. A little bit heavier but still fairly light.

In my experience you want an offset between +35 to +40 if you want to be able to fit a 255 tire with no rubbing at the front when going full lock. This is with coilovers and 3 plus degrees of negative camber in the front.

Fan of the Konig Hypergrams myself. Flow formed, and great price.
17x9 ET40 clears the Stoptech C43 caliper with ease!

It's tough to beat the Hypergrams for the price. Especially if you can grab a set during on of Discount Tire's sales with $100 off.