Best value 17x9 wheels or 17x9.5?

[steverife]

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.

[strat61caster]

Originally Posted by GrabTheWheel

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?

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.

Originally Posted by steverife

What class do you run/want to run?

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.

[mb_]

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.

[CrowsFeast]

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.

[APEX Race Parts]

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.

- Ryan

[eastendraceshop]

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

[Evan55]

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)

[Lynxis]

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.

[timurrrr]

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.

[CSG Mike]

Originally Posted by timurrrr

You might also consider Rota Titans, they are basically the same as TC105N at a much lower price and slightly increased weight.

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.

[frsbemore]

Thanks for sharing!

[timurrrr]

Originally Posted by CSG Mike

.... 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.

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

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 😅

[Goingnowherefast]

Originally Posted by Icecreamtruk

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...

x2

[AsphaltJ]

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.