Hi all, I'm sadly still running on my winter tires and no longer have my OEM tires since I destroyed them in less than 3 months of street driving...

I'd like to do my first track day in the next month or so, but I also cannot afford another set of dedicated race tires/wheels. Can someone make some recommendations for wheels/tires that can serve double duty (street and track and possibly autox)?

I've run 2 sets of falken azenis rt-215 and 1 set of rt-615's on my miata and was fairly happy with their street/autox performance. The RP-F1's look nice and are within my budget. I'm just not sure what tire and wheel sizes to go for. To be honest, all the different sizes and offsets confuse the heck out of me...! I don't want to roll the fenders and the combo should also be suitable for the street. Good-win racing has some recommended tire/wheel packages but I'm worried they might involve some minor fender rolling or may simply be too extreme for the street.

The car is a stock 2007.

Thanks

 

The Enkei RP-F1's in 18X9.5 +45 fit with 275 Azenis with no fender problems...even on a dropped car

I used a couple of sets of them before I went to R comps and they were a decent compromise for street/track tires

Advan Neovas are a good bet as well...they are a bit more pricey...but not that much

 

Yes, do the Enkei's with the Falken 275's.

 

Thanks all. What do you guys think of this combo?

RP-F1 17x9, 45mm offset and Toyo R1R 255/40/17?

RP-F1: http://www.good-win-racing.com/Mazda...t/60-1290.html
Toyo's: http://www.good-win-racing.com/Mazda...t/61-0101.html

 

That would be OK too as long as you don't want to upgrade your front brakes down the road....

Tires are going to wear really quickly......will be sticky though

 

Do you mean these will wear faster than the falkens or they'll wear faster due to the size? What about the performance difference between the 17x9 w/ 255's vs the 18x9.5 w/ 275's? I know the obvious differences. 17's are lighter and cheaper. 18's are heavier and more expensive, but wider...

 

17" will always win on cost, and if you can't afford a dedicated set of track wheels/tires, then cost is apparently a big factor for you.

I would stay away from the R1Rs, though. Several top Street Touring autocrossers have tried these and said they don't stand up to heat very well. I can only imagine how poorly they would do in a track environment.

Edge Racing has the 17"x9" RP-F1 (+35mm) for $257 each, and you can pair them with 255/40-17 RT-615s for $125 each mounted and balanced. This size wheel/tire combo will fit fine on a stock or mildly lowere RX-8 without fender rubbing - I run the exact same wheel and tire size and offset for my track setup.

 

Thanks, I decided to go with the 18x9.5 rp-f1's and falkens mainly because the general consensus on these forums (after a brief search) seemed to be that 17's leave too large a wheel gap on the stock suspension (although this isn't an issue if the car is lowered).

 

Good choice! I love mine and they never rub even though I'm lowered.

 

umm...consider how f'n expensive replacement tires will be!

 

They will be about 1K a pop...Not really that bed

 

you spend 1k a pop in bed?

damn dude, you hire some high class hos.