Looking at going to 18's and dropping the car a half an inch or so on springs. (May or may not go forced induction if that matters). Which size is the best for track/autocross/street driving? Looking at the OZ super or ultra's.

I don't care about ride quality/ride comfort. Do care about responsiveness and handling.

My understanding is that putting down more rubber with an 18" tire will give better performance.

Please educate me - about to make a purchase decision.

Thanks.

 

You won't necessarily be putting down more rubber,with 18".
Get 17";lighter wheels and tires.

 

17".

 

17 for an autocross/street combo. If I were going to buy a dedicated set of wheels and tires for just autocrossing, they'd be 16".

 

17s seen to be the best performance combo. A strong compromise between weight and stiffness (tire sidewall). 18s are best for bling, but I cant comment on their comparison to 17s because I have not driven on both.

 

17" for perfomrnace

18" for blingin'

 

I ride on 18"s on the street, they work well and are lighter than both the 16" and 17" OEM wheels. A lot of this depends on the final drive gear you are using also. I plan to get 4.77 or 4.57's so the bigger wheels tires will help combat the higher rpm at cruising speeds.

 

Assuming you are buying the correct size tires, the outer diameter does not change as you move up from 16" to 17" to 18" wheels....wheels get bigger, but you keep getting lower and lower profile tires. Your engine rpm should not change as a result of getting bigger wheels.

 

Assuming that you can get 18" tires in the same width and diameter as 17"... which you can't.

17" is the way to go.