stock is 18x8 correct? what size would be the best for performance?

 

What kind of performance?

 

Exactly.

For quick acceleration, smaller is better. But that also limits your top speed.

 

so smaller is better for quick acceleration, what is larger better for?

 

Theoretically, you should be able to go faster, but it will take longer to get to your top speed.

Oh, and they'll probably be heavier if they are bigger, which will make them not handle as well and reduce acceleration. Really, the idea is to find your application, then determine what to do.

If you want to run 1/4s, get some light 15 or 16s, as wide as you can in the back. But that will really screw up your handling, which is what is great about the '8. Otherwise, I'd stick with stock sizes, and try to get the lightest ones you can (currently SSR Competitions).

It's really difficult to go over the details without an application.

 

ic, well the info you gave me was very helpful.
but what difference in performance does the width give? just worse handling?

can you give me a link to a selection of ssr competitions?

 

I don't know the US site, but the Japan site is http://www.speedstar.co.jp/

It depends on where the width is. If the width is in the back, the front will break loose on a turn sooner than the back, thus resulting in understeer. If it is the other way around, oversteer. All this can be fixed (or close to fixed), of course, with strutbars. This has been covered. A book is mentioned in an earlier thread I started about handling. The book, suggested by Pur NRG, is "How to make your car handle" by Fred Puhn. You can get it on Amazon. Lots of good stuff in there... and alot of stuff that is hard to understand. It doesn't cost much and is worth purchasing if you care about handling.

 

www.tirerack.com has a good selection of SSR Comps, but only in 18" I believe

 

Roughly a 17x9. 17" because you need at least that big to fit over the brakes, and 9" because wider is generally better. The 17" wheels will give you room to reduce your gear ratios and lower the car without messing up the suspension geometry via smaller diameter tires, too. The car is well balanced, so you probably don't need to worry about the hassle of a staggered setup.

 

Good answer!

For best performance - light weight is best, and most critical. Light wheels, AND light tires. If you keep overall diameter the same, then it doesn't make much difference whether you use 17", 18", or 19" wheels - other than the fact that the larger diameter wheels are heavier (BAD).

It's also very important to get good tires. Lots of wheel/tire packages get sold with Nitto tires, for example, which are complete crap. Cheap, but crappy. If you want good performance, make sure to get good tires. The other big advantage of 17" wheels vs. 18 or 19s is that the tires are cheaper!

For more specifics, rotary9k, you need to be more specific about what type of performance you're looking for. Street? Autocross? Track days? etc.

Regards,
Gordon

 

18" x 8" - 5/114.3

Is this the correct stock rim?