I know everyone has an opinion on this, so lets hear it. I'm talking purely for performance...leaving looks completely off the table. whats the max weight you can save while still staying 18x8?

InB4 "use the search button"
InB4 "someone already made a topic like this back in 2004, and even though you would never find it using our search feature, and the info in it is 8 years old, we expect you to"
InB4 needlessly hostile rant towards OP that doesnt inform anyone on thread topic
InB4 unrelated flame war between two users having nothing to do with topic
InB4 grizzled member of the forums spends huge amount of time telling all of us we should search for the answer and not waste everyones time by asking ?s already asked, despite the fact that in the process of providing said rant he is wasting more time than if he would simply A.answer the question or B. Not provide a response at all and go on to a thread for more experienced members.
INB4 grizzled member tries to flame new member even though he could be doing something more valuable with his time on the forums not to mention his life
InB4 completely random and unrelated to topic personal attacks
InB4, InB4

okay, ready? Set? Go! Usually it takes about ten thread responses on RX8club to get to the first response that actually deals with the topic/question. Lets see if we can break a forum record and address the topic within the first 8 posts! World record possibility here!

Go.

 

If you want pure performance switch to 17in wheels...
While weight is the most important aspect of a performance wheel, different designs also play a role.

Forged or good cast wheels weigh around 16-18lbs (stock wheels are around 22lbs) so that's the range i'd use to see if a wheel is worth a shot or not.

With that said, this website features a host of wheel weights to help your purchase.

 

thanks brosef! much appreciated info!

 

17x9 Enkei RPF1. They're strong, extremely light at 15.6lbs and are still reasonably priced.

 

It seems like you are searching for the most discussed topics on the forum and creating new threads of such subject matter just to incite confrontation.

Did you even read the stickies for new and potential owners, and modding your car?

Do you know how to properly use the search feature? Honestly, not trying to be rude. The search bar feature is absolutely useless if you are using it wrong, but advanced search is invaluable if you are using it right.

Just to humor you: You need more description of what you want in a wheel. Is light weight the end all be all regardless of price or construction? If so, then as bse50 said, you have to get away from 18". Why specifically 18x8? 18x7 would be lighter. And what about offset? That plays a little into the weight too.

 

Light weight wheels do not mean anything if they are weak...

 

^ yeah, my mazdaspeed rims, ( 1200 a piece from dealer) are crap. weak as hell. thank god they were on my car and i did not pay for them,

 

interesting...I hear what you guys are saying about 17 rims etc. I went on tire rack and there is a huge difference between 17 and 18 in terms of weight. Only reason I'd like to stick to 18 is so I can use the tires mounted on my current rims and not have to buy new summer tires. allready have to buy winter, so that factors in. If I'm going to make the jump then I probably will buy 17' rims and snowtires to fit, but then I have to buy summer tires again as well. Its a tricky situation.

As far as posting a redundant topic has been covered...couldn't really find any threads addressing performance. And when it comes to product recommendations, I sort of feel like its fair game. Good products change from year to year, month to month, even week to week.If we were on a running forum and I asked "whats a good pair of running shoes in your opinoin" I dont see whats wrong with that. Not only that but if someone started a thread like this in 2008...well that was a long time ago. I assume there are better products now then there were four years ago...dont feel like this is unreasonable. But I thank everyone who actually did respond...a nice change of pace!!

 

just plan accordingly and save up. it can be done

 

too bad you did not take in the part about wheel strength...

 

18x8 19lbs
18x9 21lbs

not featherweight but fairly light and nice

 

I did a google search for you and found this to be the lightest by 18x8 comparison
RS Watanabe Cyclone 14.6 pounds


Volk CE28N 14.7 pounds


WedsSport 6.08 pounds

 

I forgot to mention wheel is available in a +40 or +30 offset in 18x8 and +40 or +25 in 18x9

 

some interesting options...some of those rims that New Orleans guy posted are hard to find though. Like volk doesn't even have an official website, even though there rims are held in high regard.

On the subject of wheels...do you guys think there is a huge difference in snow tires? everyone says "buy blizzaks" but is a non-famous brand just as good?

 

Oz Alleggerita is light

 

If you want "real" snowtires look at Michelin X-Ice & Nokian Hakka is it legal to run with studded tires in usa?
No a non famous snowtire is not just as good i live in Sweden, so if you are looking for good snow tires you can ask me

 

What about tires, they're heavy! I know my stock wheels with the tires are way heavier than 21 pounds.

Stretch 195s on the stock rims instead of the 225s and you're bound to lose a few
pounds I'd think.
It's much more fun to drive with less traction anyways hehe, plus the transition from grip to no grip will be smoother with the slightly stretched tires

 

Can you explain your reasoning for this claim? My intuition would expect the opposite since you will have a stiffer sidewall with a narrower tire (sidewall is better supported).

 

Cocaine.

 

It's getting harder and harder to tell who is trolling and who actually believes what they're saying.

 

Lol idk I'm just quoting common drift "knowledge", admittedly those guys don't really seem to put deep thought into these things but hey that's why I throw it out here so that this can be disected by engineers such as yourself

 

Listening to a drifter to gain any kind of handling knowledge is like asking somebody with down syndrome to explain astrophysics.

 

Hey hey I live on a tiny island called Guam. I don't have access to any trackracing nor autocrossing, and am forced to choose between dragracing and drifting.
I think that even the average RX8club forum dweller would prefer drifting over dragracing.

My first post wasn't exactly serious, sure you can definitely lose some unsprung weight by switching to smaller tires but who in their right mind would take that route especially considering the average RX8 driver.

But hey you want me to make an argument for stretched tires, let me pull one out of my *** real quick and see if it might actually stand up to the skeptics:
Hmm let's see... Your blasting down the straight, as the apex is approaching on the left, you pop

the clutch just an instant after having loaded your right tires. With a conventional tire setup (normal

tire width to rim width) as you load your tire and before breaking traction the sidewall will flex

causing a slight delay before the tire breaks loose and thus offering less predictability vs having

a stretched and stiffer sidewall that won't go through the same amount of flexing.

 

Tyres are designed to flex to provide more grip. Your theory is unsound.

 

and in this theory we're trying to accomplish the opposite of gripping