Downsizing Wheels and Tires -- I Want Less Grip and More Sidewall!

[SkAsphalt]

Originally Posted by diss7

I know how you feel. I did a similar thing. Got supercharger, then bbk, then big wheels. I'm just know undoing it all. I like driving my car NA with small wheels better than i did with FI and big wheels.

I see myself going to lighter, narrower wheels down the road. Will be like a rebirth haha

[z3ro]

This is beautiful to me.

[diss7]

Originally Posted by dem00n

195 fit safely on a 15x7? I know some in the Honda crowd who run away from this on the track.

They're recommended for use on a 7". I use 195/50/15 semi slick on a 15x8 for drifting in my ae86, and it's stretched.

[dem00n]

It would be nice to run a 16x7 with a 205/50/16 tire.

Might go for this with Enkei rpf1 unless i find something good local.

So tempting...

Shocks and springs first!

[Vracer111]

I wouldn't mind some lightweight 16x7-8 wheels (like the Enkei Sport Tarmacs) but tire choice in 16" is the worst of any tire size now (there use to be a lot more choice, but its extremely hard to find good 16" performance tires now) and prices are more expensive than 17" tires. I select the tires then decide wheel size based on tire availability, which is why I decided to stay with 17's for the FR-S. I think my next set of tires will be 205/40-17 Max performance summer tires to be at maximum width fit for the 17x7.5 Enkei Fujin's for responsiveness and minimum weight for a 17" tire. The lighter you can get your tire/wheel combo the better the car rides and handles...dropping unsprung weight really is noticeable with the FR-S and makes the car a joy.

[adprokid]

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[Rosso_Corsa]

Thanks for the great suggestions, guys. And for the personal experience, diss7.

Very interesting to hear that the taller profile, smaller diameter, narrower tires are giving you more grip at the track!

I love the 80s looking 15" that TRD put together. Combined with the lowered ride height it looks very hunkered and retro.

I wonder if I actually prefer the 'wallowy' feel that you describe in the 205/55/16s. The reason is that I like the progressive behaviour where it lets go not suddenly, but gradually. More 'feel' for me. But you could also think that it's mushy and not responsive.

[Gearhead1]

I just bought 225/45 x 16 Direzza ZII's ($129 each) mounted on Andros Spec D 16 x 7.5 ($99 each ) from the Tire Rack for track day tires. Can't wait to try them this spring.

[spralwers]

I also hate the shift towards bigger tires. Got 16" for the winter, and am also considering another set of 16" rims and tires for the warmer months. For the winter I ended up getting 16x6.5 subaru forester rims on craigslist (for $120, decent deal!) and put on 205/60/16s, mainly because of price. $71 per tire, brand new! Car is pretty easy to drift in the snow, but I really gotta apply power to make it break free on wet roads. But, the steering response isn't as nice as the stock tires (but still pretty good), and you definitely feel more resistance from the car when making sharper turns.

[fatoni]

Originally Posted by diss7

You need to do your own measurements TBH as it's tight. I have two 15" wheels, one fits, one doesn't. They have different clearance on the inside of the barrel.

Here's some pics I took confirming that the ap racing sprint kit fits a 15x7 0 that I had in my garage. The endurance kit also JUST fit, but only left 1mm clearance, where as recommended is 2.5mm







If you're thinking about getting a 15" track set, get out of this mind set that wider is better. Wider is better, once you don't have better compounds. For a track set, go a 195/50 or 205/50 semi slick, both will have loads more grip than a typical 235 road tyre. When you want more grip than the semis, get some second hand full slicks. 15s are very common so you'll get a set very very cheap.

except wider is better in this case. a 15x9 is going to be a faster rim than a 15x7. 225/45 is going to be faster than 205/50 on those respective rims. using a slick to "typical road tire" comparisons only pollute that fact.

im also curious to hear your reasoning for thinking more sidewall is good for grip. you use sizings for slicks but those tires are cantilevered and have no value when comparing tires of different construction.

[diss7]

Originally Posted by fatoni

except wider is better in this case. a 15x9 is going to be a faster rim than a 15x7. 225/45 is going to be faster than 205/50 on those respective rims. using a slick to "typical road tire" comparisons only pollute that fact.

im also curious to hear your reasoning for thinking more sidewall is good for grip. you use sizings for slicks but those tires are cantilevered and have no value when comparing tires of different construction.

My point was that it's better to upgrade to a better compound if you're chasing more grip.

Re: profile. In my experience, very low profile tyres offer sub optimal performance.

[fatoni]

Originally Posted by diss7

My point was that it's better to upgrade to a better compound if you're chasing more grip.

Re: profile. In my experience, very low profile tyres offer sub optimal performance.

okay well i agree with that but i just think you can make that point without implying that a narrow wheel would be better

[Captain Insano]

I definitely like this idea and I'm seeing more and more people wondering about this on this board. Hoping that opens up more options, I haven't seen very many good looking 16" options. If I go 16s I do want them to look decent/good since they won't be an exclusively track only wheel/tire combo for me. But I love the idea of this dropping weight on the wheel/tire combo without sacrificing performance/looks if I can find the right combo.


Right now, I think the best size I would want is a 16x8 with a decent offset. My reasoning is I can use that wheel for just about anything on NA power levels. Could daily drive that with a street tire and someday if I start tracking the car a lot I could always switch it over to track only and still get a decently wide tire on there for this car's weight/power level.

[stevo_12v]

Originally Posted by dem00n

It would be nice to run a 16x7 with a 205/50/16 tire.

Might go for this with Enkei rpf1 unless i find something good local.

So tempting...

Shocks and springs first!

Running same wheel spec and tyre spec setup currently(daily wheels), the ride is so comfy(so to speak while on coilovers) compared to the 17's. RPF1's are a great choice, esp at 6.22kgs.

There's also a new release by ROTA wheels, pretty darn cheap at under $200 AUD per corner, probably cheaper in the states where you are. They are obviously SprintHart CP-R knockoffs but look good and have that classic stepped lip on them.

btw, I don't usually like rota's but these would be good for some cheap, relatively light track wheels(7.3kg - smaller diameter wheel so cent. forces are different.. less mass toward outside - more on inside). Or just daily's you don't care about. Plus genuine CP-R's are hard to come by - 16x7's weight 4.9kg derp