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What's the better choice (wheels)

JSchleim18

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Joined
Oct 16, 2006
Messages
4,801
Location
Long Island, NY
Here's my dilemma. I have a set of Evo IX MR BBS Wheels wrapped in Potenza RE-01r Tires (245/40/17). I have an opportunity to pick up some Volk TE37 16x8 wheels for an OK price. The car will be used for mainly road racing as it only racing duty. I will drag a little bit but that's not my overall plan.

What would be the better choice? The BBS wheels which are easier to find a 245 wide tire. They are also 18 or so lbs. Or the Volks which are about 13 lbs but 225 wide tires are readily available for the street/track.

Basically, I am asking this. Would you rather have a lighter wheel or more grip from a wider tire in road race?

Thanks for any input.

**Sorry I think this belongs in General**
 
Last edited:

Polish

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Jan 10, 2005
Messages
8,936
Location
NE, IN
Volks all day, the Evo wheels are not bad at all but I'd take the Volks.
 

i like my te37s. 16x8 and you could put 245s on them if you wanted. I get by with 225s with no issues though if the tire is good.
 

iLLeffeKt vr-4

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Joined
Jul 26, 2004
Messages
2,153
Location
NYC
I didn't notice any difference in acceleration between the 14.5lbs 16x7 rota slipstreams and the 18lbs of Evo9 BBS rims.
However I did notice the way it handled. Much more precise and a lot more grip with the 17's than with the 16's.
I guess the shorter sidewall and wider tires had something to do with it. I never road raced the car but I did autox it a few times and took on few on/off highway ramps
and it felt a lot better with the 17's.
You might also want to look into tire weights. The 17" rims might be heavier but some 17" tires weight less than the 16" tires.
 

If the Volks are 16x8, 245/45/16 tires will fit fine. So in this case you don't have to choose between weight versus grip except that the sidewall will be a bit taller. But if I had to choose between lighter wheels or wider tires for road racing a heavy vehicle, I'd go with the most rubber on the road. You'll get more grip with less heat and wear than on a narrower tire.
Mike R.
Contrarian
 

JSchleim18

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Oct 16, 2006
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4,801
Location
Long Island, NY
Looks like Hankook makes a good tire in that size. It was between the Toyo T1R and the Hankooks Ventus RS-2. Tire Rack has the Hankooks for $89 on closeout. The Toyo's are like $150.
 

RedTwo

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Jul 16, 2008
Messages
1,917
Location
New Zealand
I've got a set of 16x8 with 225 and 245s on them (bloody useless D-wan-a-be RWD owners!), the 245s are 1 - 1.5 kg heavier than the 225s!
 

H05TYL

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Joined
Jun 9, 2007
Messages
752
Location
Wgtn, NZ
Quoting JSchleim18:
Looks like Hankook makes a good tire in that size. It was between the Toyo T1R and the Hankooks Ventus RS-2. Tire Rack has the Hankooks for $89 on closeout. The Toyo's are like $150.



T1R's are good tires, but RS-2's are in a whole other ballpark, seemingly fitting about halfway between T1R's and R888's. They cost about 75% MORE than the T1R's here.

Odly, a completely bald Falken ZE512 weighed 1kg MORE than a brand new Toyo T1S (both 215/40/17's on the same wheel)
 
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