Wheel Options
 

OK, I am trying to figure out what I should do.

This is my situation:

I have bronze GramLights 57C 17X7.5 4X100 40offset wheels on the car currently.

I can get gold Gramlights 57C 17X8.5 4X114.3 40offset wheels for under $400.

I have 2.5" fender flares and am gonna be running at least a 25mm spacer on the wheels I already have, with 245-35-17 tires.

I can get 4-100 to 4-114.3 adapters that are 25mm thick.

Should I get the new wheels and sell what I have??

Should I just wait since the tires I have work perfectly on the 7.5" wheels I have and just widen them later and then get the wider tires?

i say ur wheels are 2" too big...but just my 2cents

So I should run 17X5.5"?

Yes, I know what you mean. Go find me a 245 tire in a 15. Or a 255, or 275? You won't. Now find me a GOOD BBK that will fit under a 15...no, Wilwoods don't meet my definition of good.

I need the tire width to be able to get traction. I'm not gonna run R-compounds on the street to do it either. I'd prefer to have traction on some wide street tires, and then if I need to, I can put some 275 Hoosiers on them for some serious track times.

Those are the reason I went with 17s. I'm not just trying to keep up with regular cars on the track, my goal is to keep up with a 997 Cup Car. Gotta have lotsa Hoosier, lots of power, and lots of brake to do that.

For the track?

The 15x9 6UL w/ the 275 hoosier looked pretty badass.

I don't have much more of an opinion other than that, Aren't gramlights ridiculously expensive?

I like my 16", I'd never rock a 17"

tire size options already suck for me. but im going with 215/45/16, only one real option for a 225/35.

And for the street? I would like to be able to put the power down in 2d, not just 3d.

They normally are pretty expensive, but they are doing a blowout on their slow-movers. This is the same way I got the set of Grams last yr.

I think tvalenziano's comment about 2" too big was in regard to the diameter. 17's seem awfully large for a track duty Miata. It may be hard to find a tire that has low enough profile at such large width to keep your overall diameter in check. With wide tires on 17s, the car's CG will rise, suspension loads will go waaay up, and unsprung mass will go up. If you're going a set of track wheels, MiataMania's recommendation sounds pretty good.

For you street wheels now, what tires are you running? You've got a few 17" options w/ auto-x tires such as Kumho XS. 235 would probably be the limit for 7.5" wide rim.

You can get some Toyo T1R 245-35-16. That is the widest wheel I found that would fit a 16 for a Miata. Hence why I had the 16X8 RPF1s, but when I found out Toyo was the only one who made a tire that size, and that the Grams were on special for the 17s, I moved up. I have the 16X8s, new, never used. Offers?

so you want a 9 inch wide wheel, for the street?

The 245-35-17 Eagle F1s are only slightly bigger than the stock wheel/tire, with 245 instead of 205 contact area.

I can run a max of probably 255 on the 7.5s, hence why this thread is here. I can either get the 8.5s super cheap, or pay $200/ea to widen the ones I have up to 2 more inches. With a 8.5" wheel, I could run up to 275 tires with little issue, and maybe 295s on the street, where sidewall deflection wouldn't be as big a concern.

Not quite, only 8.5" wide. I need the width to run wider tires so I can still have traction on street tires. I don't have the money to be running R-compounds on the street, so I need to be able to run more width to get similar traction levels. Plus they will last a whole lot longer. I'm not willing to pay $270/tire to have them last only 4k miles, when I can get some $150/tire that lasts me 20-30k miles.

You're right... the 245 isn't much larger OD than stock, but what I'm saying is if you go bigger to 275 or 295 on 17's, that is going to be a much taller tire. That may be OK on the street. Actually, the increase in CG will increase your weight transfer and help your grip in straight line. You can go wider than 245 on the 7.5" wide, but the contact patch is going to start bulging, resulting in uneven pressure. At 295, a 10" wide rim would be minimal if you're after good grip.

IMHO, an auto-x compound will get a little more grip than the Goodyears. With a larger sidewall, you may get better grip on the street as the tire itself will be able to absorb road irregularities and be less peaky.

295 would be only for the street, for straightline acceleration. The most I plan on running at the track would be a 275 Hoosier. I don't plan on going bigger than 245 on the 7.5, but I can add up to 2" to it later on, which is what I was planning on doing, then I saw the special on the 8.5s. I can still add 2" to the 8.5 if I so wish. :cool: