Upgrade from stock wheel help
 

I would like to go from the stock 14" rims on my 1990 Miata to a 15" rim. I don't want to have to roll/pull my fenders at all, I'm Not on coil overs so I am at stock height. I did some research and found some one say they have ran 15x7 (idk the off set) and they didn't have to roll fenders and if this is true what's a good off set. I also saw some one say 15x8 with +36 off set works.. can any one verify this? And if it's not true then what's a good size to run? I'm sure this gets asked all the time but any help would be awesome. Thank you

If you are 100% certain that you will under no circumstance want to roll the fenders, then stick with a 7" wheel. The only ones I will recommend are the Super Miata 6UL wheels. SuperMiata949 designed and built them specifically for our community. Major brands have ripped him off; I am a small business and know the frustration, hence my loyalty.

Call them and they will not let you down.

Uh oh I wouldn’t have posted that...
15x10 is good for street use.

On a NA 15x8s require camber and a roll... generally anyhow. 15x7 over +30 is safe, then run 195/50s or 205/50s :)

15x10 +36 with a 245/40-15. Slammed 93 LE. Fits great.

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4487/...8d8df43e_b.jpg
20171001_163546 by concealer404, on Flickr

Thank you for the quick responses!! If a 15x7 with any thing over +30 works then a 15x6.5 with +38 should fit no problome.

A 15x6.5 zero offset should fit no problem.

why would you ever put a 6.5 on anything sport related is beyond me. I can see his tire rack page open now......

Stretch some 165s on those bad boys and air them up to 45-50psi to gain 2mpg. Rad.

Goodwin Racing's website has a lot of choices in Miata fitment.

#streetlyfe

Ok posting here to not duplicate the same thread. My car came with what I believe are some 15x8 (with 225 tires) rims. I am looking for some help in picking what's next based on:

• I will roll the fenders
• I will go on drives and track days (HPDE), when I feel safe enough that the car isn't gonna fall apart

I was leaning towards 15x9, but someone I met recommended to go with 15x7 (spec miata size) and from some reading on this forum I should also go cheap with tires, and learn on those. All these sizes and offsets are making my head explode... too much information!!
Any tips?

15x8 +36 fits everything. Ever. Without rolling. With 205/50. Good starter setup. Do that.

I've been told that the advantage to starting with 'cheap' i.e. not race spec rubber, so performance summer tires vs tires that are 200 treadwear just for class rules, is helpful because the tires give you more warning when they let up.

15x8's should be more than fine to start on. Gain experience on those with cheaper 205's, especially while you're still NA, and then move on when you feel the need. You don't need spec wheels because you're not racing spec miata. If you're trying to stay in class for autocross, you need to become best friends with the rulebook.

That's bad advice, kinda like running cheap brake pads cause you won't be hard on the brakes. What happens is you smoke the pads in two sessions and peal the outer shoulder off the tire as well and you're left replacing them in short order. They just can't handle the heat of track work.

Run an endurance 200tw tire for track use, RS4 is a great example of that. I've seen reports of 30hr+ track time, I'm up to 10hrs with a few Autox and a few thousand street miles, not anywhere near half worn.

​​​​​​If you have coil overs (for clearance) and willing to roll the fenders you're doing yourself a huge disservice running anything but 9's and 245 RS4'S.

That's like, your opinion, man.

ew dude no.

Ok got it. Stay away from 15x7. So I'll be looking at 15x8 with 205/50 to begin with, possibly change later on when I get more experienced. I believe that's what I have now but they look awful. I will soon be having coilovers too, so ride height should change. :bigtu:

What.....an opinion on the internet 😁

I do stand by my statement that performance pads and R comps will last longer than el-cheapo all season crap

I think we are discussing a setup for "track noobs", like myself. Getting cheaper tires and getting to know better the limits of the car is more valuable than just use sticky tires that give a false sense of being good at driving. I've read posts, by 949 racing, in which they do recommend 15x9 but I was just asking where I should start from. :bigtu:

There's no reason to get race rubber to run some track days. suggesting "high performance summer" tires is not the same thing as suggesting crap all seasons...

Low performance tires break away gently with much audible warning. They do this at lower speeds when the car is carrying much less inertia. Learning to catch a car and feel its breakaway characteristics and learning to dance on the edge of it breaking away is an imperative skill for track driving. It is much safer to learn at lower speeds with a tire that gives warning and breaks away gently. This is about learning skills and developing a feel, not being fast. Being fast comes after you learn how to save yourself and what it feels like when it goes.

After you have learned car control you can step up to sticky street rubber and find its limits. Then graduate up to slicks of you like. But if you find the limits of sticky rubber and have not practiced what to do you will be carrying way too much speed and inertia to have time to learn before you crash on many tracks. It's how many high performance cars are lost at HPDE's. The new Porsche/M3/Z06 is really incredible at adhering to the track until the moment it isn't and there is just too much going on too quickly in too small a space for a new driver who has never felt it get loose on the street to recover. It's about learning first, so you can safely be fast later.

And it isn't about skimping on performance brake pads. Don't do that. That's not what I'm saying. You need performance brake pads because stock pads won't survive a stock car at the track. The track demands better pads and fresh fluid. Even for a stock Miata.

Performance summer tires are plenty for a track noob IMHO. Even my very aged S. Drives on 6" wheels were fun and predictable for the first season. Then I went to new BFG Comp2 - a 340 treadwear tire, and in my opinion was well matched to my FM springs. In fact, I predict that on those spring rates (about twice stock - which is less than half as stiff as actual track-quality suspensions), that more tire would start to feel unsettled on my current setup, even though it would undoubtedly be faster. The BFGs stood up to my 20 minute lapping sessions just fine, with just slight wear on the front outer shoulders after a few hours, something that I'm sure would be mitigated by running a bit more front camber.

As long as it's in good shape and not complete junk, run what you have. Worry about upgrading later if you want, but there's lots to learn and enjoy on even a stock Miata. I will agree that upgrading the brake pads and putting in fresh fluid will be required sooner rather than later, especially if you're running on a track that's hard on brakes.

The above was basically [Utag]stefanst[/utag]'s advice to me. I.e. learn on performance summer tires not 200tw autocross/track tires because you'll learn more about the car and there will be some screetching noises before you start making 'oh shit' faces.

I did an 'autocross' on all seasons because that's all I had at the time. I was very very very slow but it was friggin hilarious. I had a blast getting sideways without meaning to and I had to catch the car a lot. I had 0 experience doing that, so it was a good environment to do that in.