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Widest Track tires for stock wheels??

I was thinking with going with some federal 235/45/17 rs-r racing for the stock wheels. Do you guys think it is to wide for the stock wheel?

Found them for dirt cheap

https://www.onlinetires.com/products...g+94w+bsw.html

For the tire federal says 7.5-8.5" wide wheels with an 8" wheel suggested. It'll probably fit but you'll ballon the tire a bit. A 215 or 225 would likely function better.

That's a street tire not an r comp, you were aware of that correct?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dave-ROR (Post 192302)

For the tire federal says 7.5-8.5" wide wheels with an 8" wheel suggested. It'll probably fit but you'll ballon the tre a bit. A 25 or 225 would likely function better.

That's a street tire not an r comp, you were aware of that correct?

Yup but they are grippy plus you cant beat the price. I think they will have enough grip for a car this light plus they are dirt cheap.

I can't speak to it's value, but there is a good amount of unflattering info on the 595's at s2ki.com (http://www.s2ki.com/s2000/topic/8391...gestone-re-11/) and the S2000 is pretty much the same weight as the FR-S/BRZ.

OTOH, the overheating comments seem to apply to track days - you don't really say what you intend these for - and they are really inexpensive - might be worth testing yourself.

I agree that you will probably end up just as quick with a 215 or 225 on 7" vs 235 on 7"

They're cheap because they're garbage.

215 or 225 Hankook RS3s are only slightly more expensive and worlds better.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Biggins (Post 193558)

They're cheap because they're garbage.

215 or 225 Hankook RS3s are only slightly more expensive and worlds better.

Agreed.

To a point you get what you pay for.

I love Star Spec's and Hankook V12's.

Tires on the only thing connecting the car to the road so I can't suggest cheaping out on subpar tires. I've never used the Federals so I can't comment but some reviews I've read, and the posts here, show that they aren't great tires.

I'd rather run RE11s, Star Specs, RS3s, XS, etc.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dave-ROR (Post 193580)

it frustrates me to no end the way people want to cheap out on the two most important safety items on a car: tires and brakes. :sigh:

Quote:

Originally Posted by NESW20 (Post 193584)

it frustrates me to no end the way people want to cheap out on the two most important safety items on a car: tires and brakes. :sigh:

Agreed. I've only in the last couple years been able to convince my immediate family of the benefits... I never understood why such a simple concept seemed so dificult to grasp? I guess for a lot of people basic maintenance and upkeep for their cars is a "grudge" purchase.

Quote:

Originally Posted by NESW20 (Post 193584)

it frustrates me to no end the way people want to cheap out on the two most important safety items on a car: tires and brakes. :sigh:

I have ran 2 sets of these tires on my c63 and 1 set on my 240sx and i have ran nt-05's as well. I track my cars every month since i am a member at my local track and i have had no problems with the federals, they seem to perform the same as the nittos except they last longer and are cheaper. If they can handle a 3700 pound car they should have no problems with a 2600 pound car.

It frustrates me when people speak when they have no experience over something. :barf:

Since im buying this car as a track only car meaning it will be stored in my garage at at my local track i need to save money as much as i can since i will be tracking it at least once or twice a month meaning i go through a set of tires every 2 months or sometimes less. I am not competing profesionaly so i dont care if they give me .2 seconds of a lap slower than higher and more expensive tires.

So to get back the original title of this thread, is a 225/45-17 the widest recommended tire for a 7" rim?

I understand that actual width varies somewhat from one brand to another, just looking for a general guideline.

In general 215s rec a 7" wheel. 225s usually on a 7.5" wheel but will fit on a 7" wheel of course.

Depends on the aspect ratio too.. check the specs for your preferred tire, the info is all there.

None of the rim width range specs for the 'extreme performance' 'street' tires (R-S3, AD08, R1R, XS, RE-11, Z1SS, 595RS-R) show a 7" wheel for anything wider than 225 (unless there is something wierd in non-17" or non ~25" OD I didn't look at).

Some more food for thought from multi-time SCCA champion Andy Hollis quoted from his FAQ here: http://www.cicenet.net/showthread.php?t=11708 (the original page is maintained on FB, which I won't link to : )

Quote:

Optimal wheel size
Many folks entering the ST category are refugees from Stock looking to make some performance upgrades to their car and/or reduce their tire budget. Unfortunately, they carry with them some baggage on concepts that may work well in Stock, but not in ST. One of these is optimal wheel/tire fitment.

Since Stock limits you to the OE wheel sizing, astute competitors have learned how to stuff increasingly wider tires onto those skinny rims. And tire makers have been happy to make wider and wider tires, likewise charging more and more money. But, is wider better? In Stock, the answer is often "yes". The sidewalls on these DOT-approved "Not for Highway Use" R-comps are super stiff and allow for "overtiring" much in the way that a cantilever style slick works to get around wheel width limitations for formula cars.

In ST, drivers in most classes have limits on both wheel width and tire section width, both of which are much wider than OE. The tendency is to cram the widest legal tire on the widest legal rim that will fit and go for it. But that is not always the optimal solution, as street tires do not have the same super-stiff sidewalls as do the best R-comps. Sometimes it makes sense to run a narrower tire for a given rim fitment. From the testing we've done, we find that a good rule of thumb is that the optimal rim is the same size (rounded up to the nearest half-inch or so) as the tread width (not section width!). So a 205/50-15 tire with a typical tread width of 7.5" is best on 7.5" rim. An 8" rim will work, too, but it will be majorly stretched on a 9. Likewise, it will lose some performance on a 7, and will lose a LOT going down to a 6 or 6.5. Similarly, a 225/45-15 with an 8.2" tread width works best on at least an 8.5" rim and loses a fair bit on a 7.5".

A practical example of this is in STC, STF and STS where the rim limitation of 7.5" keeps the 195/50-15 Toyo R1R at the top despite it not being the widest allowed tire size. The 225/45-15 R-S3 mounted on that same 7.5" rim is not quite as fast. But put that same R-S3 on an 8 and it comes alive. And it's even better on something a bit bigger. So in STR, where wider rims are allowed, the common 225 R-S3 on 9's is a faster combo than the 195 R1R on a 7.5 (assuming nominal weather). And putting the 195 on an 8 or wider does nothing to enhance performance and close the gap.