About to buy my new wheels, but i am trying to decide whether to go with 18s or 19s. The wheels are TSW Thruxtons like flipstream has and they are the hyper black model going on a titanium 8. I am going for more looks than anything and am not planning on lowering the car in the near future. I am also wondering about going staggered, I want the tires to last and I would like to be able to rotate and balanace them, but I also like the look of a staggered package. Let me know what you guys think.

 

TSW makes notoriously heavy wheels. Buy the smallest size you can; you'll save money on tires, too! :D

 

Well--staggered setup is not the best for handling--it is good for drag racing when coupled with hi-powered reardrive cars--it does look good tho. If you do go with 19's, it is my understanding that the car will sit up higher--as such you would need lowering springs to bring the ride height back down. While 19" staggered is enticing to me--I think I'm going to go with 18"s--not sure if I'm gonna stagger them tho.

 

19" benefits - better looks, less sidewall decreases rolling resistance, ability to fit larger brakes inside, possibly lower overall weight (to maintain the same rolling diameter, you can fit less rubber in there without changing effective gearing. tires are heavy too!) in some cases they may be available in wider widths
19" disadvantages - more expensive, wheels are heavier (although you can run less tire), less sidewall gives a harsher ride, more expensive tires, more wheel hop without suspension mods

18" benefits - you can possibly use OEM tires, more lightweight options, more sidewall gives a better ride, less wheel hop
18" disadvantages - many 18" wheels look smaller than stock IMO especially if they have a lip, don't look as good as 19's

honestly if you arent doing any suspension mods then performance probably isnt a top priority (that's ok though). so just go with what looks the best. personally i'd stay away from staggered just so that you can rotate you expensive 19" tires.

 

Thanks for your input guys. I really think that I would enjoy the Lip I would have and the look of the 19s, I just don't want to have to lower the car in order for it to look right, but I think it will look ok if I use a lower sidewall tire, say a 35 or so. I was thinking 245s on the front and 255 or 265s on the back, do you think the front will rub?

 

Did you read the 2 sticky threads at the top of this forum? One about staggered wheel/tire setups, the other about unsprung weight.

It's ultimately your decision, but make it an informed one! Read those, so you know exactly what you're getting in to. Me, personally, I'd never go staggered on an RX-8 - the handling balance is near neutral stock, and going with wider wheels/tires on the back will just make the car understeer more - that's bad. You certainly don't need to be on a track to feel the difference, any twisty roads driven in an enthusiastic manner will reveal the difference. I also would not fit wheels that are any heavier than the already-too-heavy stock 18" wheels. Not necessarily for performance reasons, but the ride and responsiveness will both be degraded with heavier wheels.

Regards,
Gordon

 

The Thruxton's in 18's are a couple of pounds lighter than the stock 18's on the 8, but I'm unsure of the difference in the 19's. I don't know how many track appearances I am going to make, but I am keeping my stock wheels and tires for those times. Thats why I am thinking about going with the 19's. I think the look will be good.

 

I have 19" on my car right now. Honestly if I had to do over again i would have stuck to 18", & maybe even my stock rims with just bigger 245's on them. I have the turbo on there & I do need more traction than the stock tires can give me, but the handling with my 19" just isn't as nice, or crisp as when I had the stock 18" on there. Better looking but the tradeoff is the handling isn't as good. If you value handling, I would tell you to stay with the stock 18" & put on some 245's.

BTW, if you are not dropping your car, or dropping it an 1" or less you can fit the 245's on the front. I currently have 235 front & 265's in the back. I was told by my wheel vendor that if I lowered it at all I would need 235 up front & 265's in the back or I would rub, but my drop is so mild that if I had to do it again I would have went with a 245 front & 275 in the back.

 

Well I'm thinking that I want to go with 18x9 all the way around with 35 offset in the front and 40 in the rear, I think this will give me the Lip that I am looking for as long as the 35 offsets will work in the front to clear the calipers. Let me know what you guys think. BTW I appreciate all the info on this, first time I have bought aftermarket rims (Last car was a Ranger with 31x10.50s and 10in rims, no problems with rubbing or looking too low, lol).

 

I have had mine on for a few months now and think they look great. Here is a picture of mine so you can see the end result. They are 18x8 and I am glad I went with 18's due to the weight increase and decreased handling with 19's.

 

those look good, are those the stock tires that you put back on there? I am still thinking that the 19's will fill out the wheel wells a little more than the 18s. I think I'm going for looks now, since I have the stock 18s for performance. Let me know what sizes your tires are and offsets, etc. Thanks.

 

Stock tires swapped onto the new wheels. Since then I put on Tein H Tech springs and Racing Beat sways so it looks and handles really good. If you go to 19's you will notice the difference and I personally think you will be disappointed.

 

what are the offsets?

 

Do you have an updated shot of your car you can share with us? I'm curious to see it looks with the H-Tech. That's about a 1" drop?