I'd like to go to 17" wheels, but only if the performance and handling are improved.

For straight line perfomance, this means finding a lighter than stock wheel/tire combo (technically, lower moment of inertia). That part's reasonably easy to understand.

For handling/balance, though, it's a lot more complicated. The stock setup is 6.5" front / 7.5" rear, but the tires, while labeled 205 front / 225 rear, are really narrower than that in the front and wider in the rear, with even less rubber to the ground in the front and more in the rear due to the tread differences.

So, to get to the question: The 17" wheel sizes I usually see thrown around are 7.5" front / 8.5" rear, or sometimes 8" front / 9" rear. Would it make sense to go with 7.5" front / 9" rear? Or 7" front / 8.5" rear? That way the same proportions could be kept with tires with similar tread front and rear.

Does this make any sense, or am I on the wrong track here...

Thanks,

Ted

 

You are correct Sir!

Note: Weight is only a part of the big picture, the distribution of the weight counts more. So more than likely, a 17" combo that weighs the same is still hurting you, if that kind of stuff bugs you (theoretically, MOI style)

 

Ray,

thanks for the confirmation. I did mention MOI, BTW.

 

The problem you are going to have is there are only a few wheels that come in the right offsets in those sizes. If you are looking for a wheel that is lighter I would look at the Volk TE37, Advan RG or Racing Hart CP0-35. They come in the right offset and are lighter than the stock wheels.

As for tires when I had 18s on my car, I put 225 in the front and 255 in the rear, the car handled great no rubbing with H&R springs. If you get a 51mm-55mm offset in the front (17x7.5) you can fit a 225 even if the car is lowered a little. 48mm not lowered you can fit a 225, but if it is lowered use a 215. As for the rear (17x8.5 with a 51mm-60mm offset) 255 will work if the car is lowered an inch or less. Lowered more than an inch custom wheel time or smaller tire 235s.

Here are a list of tires I like and good sizes for the S2000

Yokohama AVS Sports

front
215/45/17
225/45/17

rear
245/40/17
255/40/17

Pirelli P Zeros

front
215/45/17
225/45/17

rear
245/40/17
255/40/17

BF Goodrich g force KD

front
225/45/17

rear

255/40/17

Dunlop SP9000

front
215/45/17
225/45/17

rear
245/40/17
255/40/17

KUMHO Ecsta Supra 712 (never used these tires, but heard they are pretty good, and have good pricing)

front
215/45/17
225/45/17

rear
245/40/17
255/40/17

 

kuni,

as for specific wheels, I agree that there are few good choices available with reasonable offsets for the S2000. I was hoping to influence the discussion going on re: Joustmeister 17" wheels that the Bulletproof guys are working on. They say that they'll be in the 12 pound range...

Thanks for the great list of tires; of course they're a very important part of the equation.

 

Ted: I took the opposite approach, which is cheaper [heavier] 17" wheel for every day driving, and put race rubber on the stock wheels for the track.
You can check out my 17" ROH Adrenalin wheels at the next meet... I don't remember exactly what I spent, but it was <$1200 for wheels+tires.

 

Guillaume,

I think that's a pretty good strategy for a lot of people, especially those serious about track times and winning autocrosses.

For me, I'm not going to the track to compete with others, but to learn to drive. With that goal, I prefer to keep my car as similar as possible between street use and track use, so as much technique as possible will transfer between both situations. Hence my quest for an ideal street/track brake pad (currently Porterfield R4-S, considering Panther Plus), and this discussion about 17" wheels and tires.

That said, I do wanna go fast on the track! I just don't want to be swapping wheels and tires, pads, etc. and wind up with a different car. But lightweight (and good looking) 17" wheels with good performance tires (hopefully as good as the OEM SO-2s) sound good for both street and track.

Ted

 

[QUOTE]Originally posted by Tedster
[B]Ray,

 

Ray,

why the "But...... whatever "? I think we're agreeing?

 

No........... not me and you........... just the 99% of the people that have after market wheels that were unable to retain the ~25% stagger.