Hey guys,
I'm looking to get a set of Racing Hart CP-035R's but I can't seem to find many people that carry them. If I do find a distributor their prices are outrageous. I want 2 18x7.5 and 2 18x8.5 in the appropriate S2k offsets. Thanks in advance.

Ryan

 

I have the CP-035R 18" X 8 w/63 offset and 18" X 9" w/63 offset due to arrive by Wednesday. I got mine from:

Jeff - Evolution
703.961.9090

It has taken forever to get them, but the wider rims had to come from Japan whereas the more normal size you want is probably already on American soil. I was worried about the suggested offsetson the "normal" size that you want due to some issues I had with other rims with even larger offsets that rubbed so I opted to go with the 8" & 9" combo. I 'll tell you next week how they fit. The old rims rubbed even with tires that were narrower than stock size.

I hated the Ghetto "black" look on my yellow car so I am hoping I will love the polished look.

Now to decide on the tires!!!

A big problem I have noticed is that very few tires are actually the size they say they are. My GForce KDs with a 225/255 combo was only a little narrower in the front than the stock tires, but much narrower in the rear. Gave a lot more oversteer and less overall grip than the S02s. I am buying the next tires by actual widths and not rated widths. I have an appointment in the a.m. to sit down with NTB to add some more datapoints to the spreadsheet.

S02s come in some weird actual sizes in the 18" version.
The Porsche SLN2 in a 225/40 is only 7" wide (stock is 7.1).
The SL BMW in 235/40 is 9.2" wide (stock rear is 8.5")
THe Porsche SL N1 in 265/40 is 10.2" wide.

The stock fronts are 83.5% of the rear tires or another way to say it is the rear is 1.2 times the size of the front. Although I would not mind putting just a tad bit more rubber on the front to limit understeer you can see there is not a combo above that gives an acceptable ratio unless I want to play with the swaybars or add coilovers.

It goes without saying that I want more overall rubber no matter what tires I buy

 

I received my rims today, THEY ARE GORGEOUS!

I haven't weighed them or taken any pics, but I have dry fit them to the car and they fit with lots of clearance room in all the right places.

it looks as if I am going with the Bridgstone 9.2" wide front tires and 10.2" wide rear tires so it is possible I will have some rubbing issues, but everything looks like I will have maximum rooms. The ideal front width for a 10.2 rear is about 8.5" (based upon factory stagger) but I can't find a combo like that.

 

I,ve had these wheels on for 2 weeks now and they look awesome. They get alot of attention, I have not weighed them but seem almost the same weight as my stocks???

 

OK, it's not to the ounce, but on my bathroom scales the
18" X 9" rims weigh 14#
and the 18" x 10" rims weigh 15#.

I have had 2 people help me and we have weighed them several times.

That is lighter than I imagined and less difference between the 2 than I expected.

I was worried the wider width (over the 7.5" and 8.5" rims that was recommended) would add a lot of weight, but most of the weight is concentrated in the face which tells me it should be fairly still and not flex.

They are gorgeous, now if only my tires would get here!!

I have a feeling most of my weight will be in the tires since I am going so much wider than stock

 

I went with the 18x7.5 and 18x8.5 with 225 and 255 SO-3's, The tires made the wheels feel just slightly heavier than stock but on the car the difference must be very slight because I can't really feel any acceleration difference, but strangely they seem to ride smoother than stock I would have expected the opposite. Oh well.

 

My tires are in BMW spec S02s for the front and Porsche spec S02s for the rear, unfortunately the lugs and the locks won't be here till Thursday. (extreme frustration)

I have not been able to find their weights, but I expect them to be heavier than stock due to their size.

I am hoping for a weight that is similar to stock since the wheels are lighter. The Prodrives and KDs were slightly heavier and like you said the difference was minimal.

The S03s are a smoother riding tire, so I am told. So since you are comparing old S02s to new S03s I am not surprised at the smoother ride.

 

Does Racing Hart customize wheels to accomodate the offsets required by the S?

If so, are they much more expensive than the off the shelf wheels?

 

The CP-035R are Variable offset and are forged so for lightweight wheels they are also very strong. I got the +51 offset.


David b, why I found it surprising that the SO-3's ride smoother compared to my SO-2's is that my SO-2's are also new with only 300-400 miles on them and being that they had a higher profile I assumed the new 18's on a 35 profile would give a harsher ride? But no complaints here, I am pleasantly surprised, I can feel a loss of dry traction but the wet traction has improved by far.

 

The Racing Harts can be ordered in custom offset, but they will come from Japan so expect a long wait. I have waited 2 months.

They are not cheap, but they are not exorbitant either.

S9Krpm I wonder if the increased weight of the S03s contributed to the smoother ride? I know they are considerably heavier than the S02s, but I have never driven or ridden in a car with the S03s that I also drove it with the S02s so could make a back to back comparison.

I am a little concerned about ride quality with the 18s as well.

My rims are in, and my tires are in. I just need to drill my rims for the pressure relief valves and then I can have it all installed. I will have mine on by Saturday so the wait is almost over.