crossbow

Manufacturers run staggered setups on higher power RWD car's because the average driver is an idiot.

Wider tires in on the rear promote understeer...as opposed to oversteer. Thus upon losing control, a driver will smack into a single tree, instead of wiping out an entire lane of traffic.

As for the R&T Supercharged-8...its a prototype. Prototypes and concepts always have alotta bling. They're trying to show off a product...generally the consumer goes "oh wow, giant wheels, it must be fast!", while the average racer goes "Hmm...I wonder if I can fit 17's or 16's with those rotors, or will I have to move to a smaller rotor size". Of course the people who race vehicles are infinitely less common then those who just stare at them.

Its a well known fact on most track and autox circuits that moving from a staggered to standard tire sizing (aka even all the way around) promotes much better overall vehicle handling then the obviously understeer prone rear staggered.

Don't believe it?
http://www.sccaforums.com/

Sputnik

So you've timed yourself between stock and staggered setups? Same conditions, back-to-back? How much of a difference?

---jps

MrWigggles

I average 75 MPH on my way to work everyday. There is one corner that is listed 35MPH that I routinely take at 90 MPH if there is no one in my way. I drive about as fast as you can possibly drive on the highway without either getting a ton of speeding tickets or being a menace on the road. The difference is minor and it might mainly be the type of tire allowing me to go faster, but the staggered set-up doesn't throw off my handling. The difference is minor.

I do get more grip coming off the line, but getting a good 0-60 out of the RX-8 is all about how much you want to abuse it - I only have G-timer data for my stock rims not my new set-up. I never pushed the car hard enough to get magazine-like 0-60 times then or now. However everyday I routinely pull out of parking lots on to 50+ MPH feeder roads - I get more grip and my rear end stays planted better. I used to light the stability control light much more often than I do now. The difference is minor.

I've said it many times, no I have not been to the track. If I did want to go through trouble of racing on weekends, SCCA etc., I wouldn't run my current set-up. Why? Because I would put slicks on my stock rims and run those instead. If I did get aftermarket rims, I would probably put 275/35-17 on all four corners (which would stick out of the front fender wells somewhat and cause the speedometer/odometer to read wrong - not a good thing for everyday driving). If someone forced me to run my current front 245/40-18 tires and gave me the option to switch my back tires to 245/40-18 or keep my 275/35-18, it would be a tough call - is the marginal increase in traction worth the marginal increase in weight and possibly marginal decrease in handling? My decision would probably be based on the track, how much gas I have in the tank (rear weight) or the result of a coin flip.

I don't think it is that big of a deal one way or another. Many people act as if people who want to run staggered are putting dragster tires in the rear and bicycle tires in the front or like they are serving Dom Perignon at room temperature.

For my very agressive everyday driving, my staggered set-up is slightly but noticeably better in performance than the stock set-up and that the appearance is dramatically improved.

This topic really isn't worth a 5 page discussion that we seem to have every month.

-Mr. Wigggles